Alden 405-57H to 405 fit difference?

[Mola Ram]

Recently was lucky enough to pick up a pair of 405s in natural chrome, by all accounts my "dream" shoe. I wore a pair of 405s size 10.5 D for years and they were always a little tight. I bought these in 10.5 and only after leaving the store discovered that they seem slightly larger than my origonal 405s. The chrome leather is NOTICIBLY roomier. Question for all you alden wearers out there....where does your toe sit at the front of the shoe?

[Cajunkraut]

The tip of my big toe sits more or less at the moc stitching.

[Mola Ram]

Looked in the archives here and on style forum....

There was definitely too much space in the front of my shoe. I went back to the store and exchanged my 10.5s for 10s. According to the branock device I take a 10D, so I went with precisely that. Left foot is absolutely perfect. Right foot is pretty tight. I fractured two of my bones last year and its caused my shoe size to change apparently....

Anyways, thanks for the input.

[sneakertinker]

The Natural Chrome leather is very forgiving as well...With time it will stretch out...

[Ken]

Definitely - when I got a new pair of Aldens I had one week of sheer painful torment and cursed myself for buying the wrong size yet refusing to not wear them because I had paid a lot of money for them. 1 week later ..... the most comfortable shoe I have ever owned in my life (once the blisters had healed).

Ken

[Mola Ram]

I just kind of hoped and stuck it out....they are incredibly comfortable now. My only worry is that they are just slightly not wide enough. My pinky toe is resting over the top of the storm welt just a little bit. I've always had this problem though and I don't think its severe enough to get rid of them. (not causing any pain)

[Tennessee Smith]

I had the same problem with my last pair. Find a good cobbler in you area, explain it to him and he should be able to stretch them out over an evening. After that they should be perfect.


I also recommend buy a good pair of cedar shoe trees. They'll help the boots keep their form and prevent them from reverting back after the initial stretching done by the cobbler.


-The Dude

[Ridgerunner58]

I just kind of hoped and stuck it out....they are incredibly comfortable now. My only worry is that they are just slightly not wide enough. My pinky toe is resting over the top of the storm welt just a little bit. I've always had this problem though and I don't think its severe enough to get rid of them. (not causing any pain)

I've had that problem with a lot of different shoes. In most cases the leather stretches out and they fit fine. In a few cases after 2-3 years of wear my little toe has worn through the lining and caused the leather on the outer part of the upper to tear. (Bally and Cole Haans appear to be most susceptible)

Thankfully Aldens seem to fit my foot shape and I've never destroyed a pair of them.

I would suggest every one in awhile checking the lining with your finger to make sure you aren't wearing a hole. If you find one I think you can get them relined before it damages the outer.

[Mola Ram]

Thanks everyone.

Should be okay....I just plan on wearing them in. The initial tightness has gone away. The first week kind of stunk. I've worn them so much in the past two weeks I've almost wore the entire heel down. (not a joke) Walked about 100 miles on trips in LA and Orlando. Man do these **** in airport security...

The weird part is that the 10.5s on the left in this image are identical in every measurement to the 10's in Natural Chrome on the right.
I think the Natural Chrome Excel boots at North River may be off by a size, because 10.5 in the original brown felt much more size wise like the boot pictured here on the left.

The boots on the left I bought when I was a freshman in high school they were only 195$ when I bought them back then!
How times have changed. If I sold them on ebay now I think I'd MAKE money. I've treated them with pecards once every two months since I bought them. They have the cotton duck liner which I honestly prefer over the leather. The leather makes them much stiffer. 10+ years and they now belong to my father.



No worries about the shoe trees, I've had a pair in them after they came out of the box.

Thanks for all the input folks.