NThis was me before moving house recently. Was funny putting all my stuff out like this. Yeah I like black 
TMy dry leather shoe collection waiting to be conditioned
TWhites, c&j, viberg, c&j for peal & co, coach, carmina, 80s AE
T
TAnd air inboil easymocs
NAE color 8 (??) are cool. Nice oxblood
IThese are beautiful I need a pair
Tthese were designed by an ehf member, only 6 pairs and one of them is the pair the easymoc guy made for himself
TI wore them basically every day this summer that was under 90F (over 90, only birks)
IWow that’s such a cool story behind a shoe
IBut also 
GThose docs look really cool, are rhey 1461’s?
TThey’re my every day. Doing my own little patina challenge. Started these in mid September
WOh wow those 70s aes are gorgeous
TYeah for real they are
TBeautifully aged brass buckle
NAll blacks are 1461 mono. Contrast welt ones are 1461 "STRAWS"
GOhh yeah I was talking about the contrast welt ones, black derbies with a natural welt are kinda spicy IMO
TI’d probably have to size up 3 sizes to fit an A width
T
TConditioned plus iron rangers I forgot
PHow bad (or potentially not bad) are PRL leather boots? I’m on the hunt for something on the cheaper side and I’m seeing a good amount of the polo ranger boots for pretty cheap on eBay
PLots of options under $100
1@Esoterrorism where are these from and do you still wear them?
TCoach about 10 years ago. They went half price and it was too good to resist even though they aren’t really a welted shoe. They’ve held up to a fair amount of wear over the years. I’m still wearing them once every couple of weeks
1Thanks. I’m in this in between. I want some every day wears I can slip on in the non summer. Thst can take some weather and I can wear with jeans on chinos. And I keep thinking Chelsea like this im just A. In save mode and B wear size 14.5 so I have less options . c have some shoes that i really like. I just don’t like lacing or the leather sole. Etc small gripes
EConsidering Solovair as a Doc Marten Lace up alternative
EAnd Redback as a better quality still Aussie alternative to Blundstones
EGood choices?
EMainly focused on good pull-on boots because it’s Summer here atm
EAlso good pull-on shoes are really important to me atm
EAny thoughts on Redbacks? I was looking at Blundstones but I don’t like they’re no longer made in Australia and they don’t have the best quality
CThey're fine. There's nothing wrong with blundstones either.
EI've heard issues with quality of the leather, lacking important sole aspects (a shank iirc), and more
CNearly all of these are totally overblown for most people's use cases (Rose Anvil is a hack).
Ewhy is he a hack?
EI also like that Redbacks are still made in Australia
CHe might know something about leather (but he's also been shown to get that quite wrong fairly often), but he doesn't often seem to know much about shoe design and he has also very notably taken money to give stuff good reviews that he has previously given bad reviews.
EBut he's not the only person who's highlighted the loss of quality to Blundstones, similar with Doc Martens losing quality
COk, they're boots on the cheaper end. They're not supposed to be built like tanks and your at least in part paying for the iconic design, not for them to be built like tanks.
EFair point, but what’s wrong comparing to a similar priced shoe that is higher quality?
CWhat's similarly priced but higher quality?
EBlundstones to Redbacks, Doc Martens to Solovairs iirc?
CThe difference in quality between any of them is marginal at best for the use case of the vast vast majority of people.
EHow so?
CBlundstones and redbacks are essentially the same aside aesthetic differences - both use cheaper leathers, have no shank, similar sole attachment (fused). Solovairs and MiE docs are basically the same price and nearly identical in terms of construction and materials - coated/refinished leathers, heat fused welt. Shanks arent actually going to make a huge amount of difference to most people who have sedentary/city/office based lives. Most people aren't going to bother repairing their boots, or even use them in the settings where minor differences are likely to matter. Buy the ones you think look nicer.
EWhat if you want to use them for travelling, maybe some mild hiking, and want them to last as long as possible for a smaller investment? I also like that Solovair and Redback didn’t export their manufacturing as well, that’s a major factor for me
CThe differences are so marginal it won't matter. If you prefer that companies didn't export their manufacturing fine, but the boots are all practically speaking very similar.
ESo they are still good? Only difference is style and manufacturing preferences