Club Obi Wan

So as some of you know the Alden Boots are my fav piece of Indy Gear and since I've been a member of this site I have gotten now 3 pairs of Alden 405's including a pair of the AB Indy's...

I have actually grown to love the Alden Brand as I also have a pair of Chukka Boots in Cordovan Leather on order from the San Francisco Alden Store as well as a pair of the NST (Norwegian Split Toe) Boots in Cordovan Leather on order from Tom at Leathersoul Hawaii...

Last spring I stumbled onto this post by jeremy3178 where he had posted these pictures and fell in love with his shoes...He was kind enough to inform me that they started out as the dredded pumpkin orange colorway...

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That being said I searched high and low for a pair of the Pumpkin Orange Indy's as I fell in love with they way the leather aged...The petina and distressing was perfect...Needless to say this search returned negative results and after about 5 months of searching I had all but given up...

By this time I had made more than a few contacts in the Alden field and was able to determine that, while listed simply as "brown Calfskin" by Alden at the time, the Pumpkin Orange Color was actually a color called "Burnished Tan" in the Calfskin Leather...

Finding this out I spent a great deal of time last fall trying to find somebody that would be willing to do a special order for me (Yes Alden does still do special orders for single pairs)...Long Story err - long - I was able to place an order for a pair of 405's in Burnished Tan...The order was confirmed in December and they should be here come March...

Just thought I would share my story of my new found love for Alden shoes / boots...and of course the Indy Boot...and of course the news that my boots are being made and will be here in (fingers crossed) 2 short months...

Here is some pictures, just for reference, of what the "Burnished Tan" Calfskin Leather looks like now a days...

There is that Pumpkin Orange I was looking for...Can't wait to get these boots in...

That's a pretty cool story and a very cool pair of boots. If you don't mind me asking, what was the price tag?

The price is $500...Not bad I'd say for a pair of boots that I would consider my "Holy Grail" if you will...Plus I have come to realize that paying a premium price for Alden Boots is well worth it as I have put my first pair through #### and they are still holding strong...They have been worn for everything from a wedding (With a Tux on) to hoofing it a great many times through Red Rock Canyon here in Las Vegas...

I agree. That's a pretty reasonable price.

Thanks.

I will also be sure to post picks once I get them and because I guarantee they will be worn to death just like all 405's should be...

What I find so interesting is we've come full circle on yet ANOTHER piece of gear with this order, as folks were storming the gates at Alden's about NOT wanting anymore of these colors to be ever bemade of a 405 ever again, and here you go asking for a special order!

Interesting world we live in.

Regards! Michaelson

Human Nature I guess...We want that which we cannot have...

Trust me good sir I initially hated the Pumpkin Orange color but after seeing a few pics, and the ones I posted up there in particular, of how well that color ages I knew I had to have a pair...

LOL! Well said.

I had a pair, and they definitely 'glowed in the dark' until a few applications of Pecards finally toned them down some.

Regards! Michaelson

hey sneakertinker, great story. i too looked into that leather for custom 405's. i thought they would make quite handsome indy boots. in the end, i wanted something darker. can't wait to see what you get

I think I have my bases covered for dark 405's G...I already have the pair that I darkened myself as well as the AB's plus I'm prob going to end up with a pair of the ones Schmidty is doing up...

I'm set for life after that...

sneakertinker wrote:

That is a nice looking boot. There is a British manufacturer that makes a very similar model

RCSignals wrote:

sneakertinker wrote:

That is a nice looking boot. There is a British manufacturer that makes a very similar model

It's Tricker's Boots is the brand your thinking of...and Yes they do indeed make a nice boot as well...

$500 bucks? Not bad? WOW!!! You guys play in a different ballpark than I do. Beautiful boots, but WAAAAAAAAY overpriced. Just my humble, but experienced opinion.

Randall

I'm going to have to second that. I love my Alden boots, and the ones in the pictures are gorgeous, but $500??????

Methinks something fishy is going on with the pricing on these. Then again, companies like Armani and Donna Karan, Gucci, etc. have been doing this forever as well, but there is something odd with Alden's pricing structure.

A pair of custom made boots (a one of a kind order, for example) can easily run into the $400 or $500 or ever higher range. Try shopping for a custom made boot, not a factory made-by-the-millions model, and you'll find the prices right in line.

Yeah $500 is on the low end of custom boots actually...Especially for a single pair order...Tom over at Leathersoul has custom Alden's that are not a single pair order (I.E. Groups of at least 12 pairs) that regularly reach into the high $600's to low $700's...

It all breaks down to what type of custom job you want...You gotta remember that with Hand Made Shoes, such as Alden's, you can literally change everything from the sole and stitching to the last itself and everything in between...Then you can factor in the cost of the materials (Cordovan Leather for example as it's generally more expensive than cowhide) and the fact that the company has to go out of their normal routine to gather materials and assemble the product...Also keep in mind that depending on what material is being used there might be a different assembly process then what would normaly be used for the model that is being worked on (Again I'll use Cordovan as an example as it is formed to a last and assembled onto a shoe / boot differently than cowhide) so you can imagine that it can get pretty costly depending on what you want...

Don't even get me started on Edward Green shoes...For a custom pair of those they can reach well into the mid / high $1,000's easy...

If you think that a really good pair of sneakers can cost $100 and might last a year or so, paying $500 for a pair of high-quality shoes that will last a lifetime (with proper care and maintenance, of course) in the long run is a moneysaver.

I agree. I tend to spend several hundred a year on sneakers for walking/jogging, so I can see spending that much on a pair of boots which can be resoled and basically given new life when worn out.

While I wouldn't care for the pumpkin color, those are some really nice looking boots! And I say to each his or her own in footwear! Those would be at home with dress or casual. I can see them with very easily with a pair of jeans or slacks.

Randy

Are you saying your special order boots will look like the traditional Indy Boots, or will they look like the ones in your second set of photos (with all the detailing that isn't on the Indy Boot...)? Because I am needing some new boots, having almost worn out my 2 pairs of Indy Boots that I've had since 1999, and if I could get some straight from Alden with the detailing you show, and for $500, I am very interested!

Mr J

IndianaJons wrote:Are you saying your special order boots will look like the traditional Indy Boots, or will they look like the ones in your second set of photos (with all the detailing that isn't on the Indy Boot...)? Because I am needing some new boots, having almost worn out my 2 pairs of Indy Boots that I've had since 1999, and if I could get some straight from Alden with the detailing you show, and for $500, I am very interested!

Mr J

I'm getting the standard 405 boot basically just in the color and leather of the ones in those pictures...

However since you like that particular Wing Tip pair from Alden sooo much here is a link for you...

http://www.alden-of-carmel.com/index.cf ... ot_198.htm

That's the boot with the detailing you were asking about and guess what...They are $435 and not $500...So it's the pair your looking for at a cheaper price...

Little Update...

Just got a phone call from Alden saying that my custom order shoes were done and placed in the mail today...Scheduled to be here on Tuesday...

That will make them a full month early from what Alden told me the estimated date would be when I placed the order...

I'll post some pictures as soon as they get in...

Okay everybody...Got my boots in the mail today and I gotta say they are fantastic...

They turned out to be more of a muted color than I was hoping...Almost caramel colored...But great none the less...

Here is some pics...I took them with my other Aldens so I could show the color contrast...Obviously the pair all the way on the left is my custom order pair, the pair next to them is the general 405's that I have not altered the color on, the next pair is the one's I darkened myself using Pecards, and the pair all the way on the right is my AB's...

And I think if I throw a little wear their way, plus add a little of the trusty Pecards...they may just turn out looking something like this...

ST.......those boots are awesome my friend! congratulations. sorry if i've missed it, but how long did your order take and who'd you go through?

i love seeing aldens that aren't per the usual offering. i think those look fantastic.......




can i have them?

I agree.... something a little different can be very cool.

Indiana G wrote:ST.......those boots are awesome my friend! congratulations. sorry if i've missed it, but how long did your order take and who'd you go through?

i love seeing aldens that aren't per the usual offering. i think those look fantastic.......




can i have them?

Thank you Sir...I physically placed the order around the middle of November and they went into production in December...They were scheduled to be here at about the end of March or the first part of April but they came early which is great...

Also the quality is perfect...Nothing like those poor quality boots that others and myself included were getting through last year...

They're beauties! Congratulations.

Tron7960 wrote:They're beauties! Congratulations.

Thank you very much Sir...I do hope they wear like the pair that jeremy3178 posted because I love the way naturally distressed Aldens look and to me those are just about perfect...

<<<<Just noticed I'm officially an Archaeologist now...Finally!! Now I can get out of the lab...

Just a bit off topic....
I have some of Aldens dress shoes in the burnished tan calfskin, thought I'd share a pic. The bag next to them is a saddleback briefcase. I love this color for these shoes.

So ironic to see a picture of Lucas wearing a 'Han shot first!' t-shirt! Is he confused, or what?

BTW, I'm looking at wing-tips right now, but never considered applying the design to a high-top boot. ME LIKEY!!!!!

Little Update on the color of my Special Order 405's...I added a couple coats of just Natural Shoe Cream and polished them up real nice...The color is turning into a nice caramel color which is what I'm shooting for...Here is a couple pics from back when I first polished them up...I'm really happy with the progress in color with these...

Mine started out looking like that, but I slapped on a few coats of Meltonian "Brick" and got 'em closer to the 2nd pair from the left. I just recently applied a Meltonian "Brown" to it and got them ALMOST to the color of the 2nd pair from the RIGHT. I'd prefer to get a pair like the one furthest to the right, though, which is why I'll be shopping someone other tahn Alden's next time. The boots I have are great, but matching that kind of reddish brown is tricky a lot of the time.

Awesome shoe collection you have

whats the size of your shoes ? they look great with this kind of jeans.

indynoob2009 wrote:Awesome shoe collection you have

whats the size of your shoes ? they look great with this kind of jeans.

Long time no post...I'm an 11E in my Alden's....

fine thx. they look really nice. not to big like my red wing gentleman in the size us10.
i think i have to order a pair.

but one more question, will the feets be hot if its sommer or have they a good climate ?

sorry for my poor englisch