Red Wing Oxfords Model 107 (discontinued)
Made in the United States
Postal Approved (It took me 11 years to figure out what the little green tag was!)
This shoe has been a part of my life since 2006 and has been worn for over twelve years. I still remember the day I picked these shoes up. I had just blown out the sides of a new pair of shoes I had bought from a "reputable" company. My roommate at the time wore Red Wings that his office job employer issued and he loved them. I figured I'd hop over to my local dealer and see what Red Wing has.
I walked in and met the local franchise owner. He asked me some questions about my work, walking habits, and took some measurements. He actually suggested something on his clearance section. Hanging there with a $75 price tag were the Red Wing Oxfords model 107. I tried them on and they fit like a glove and decided to take them home. He explained that this model was unlike anything else Red Wing had to offer because they were basically a work boot from a materials, construction, and durability stand point but just in a smaller package. He said they were so durable that Red Wing is discontinuing them because the people that buy them don't need replacements for a long time.
For the first eight years I wore them every day all day. There was no shoe rotation. I wore this shoe all four seasons. For eight years this was my only pair of shoes. I didn't want to wear anything else because anything else hurt my back or my knees. I was good about cleaning them when they got dirty, protecting them in the winter from snow and salt, and using cedar shoe trees to help them maintain their shape. During this time I went through two sets of heel replacements and one full sole replacement. Heels were $35 a set and sole replacement was like $75. That's around $225 for eight years of quality footwear if my price recollection is correct.
After eight years of daily wear I got a new office job that allowed me to wear shorts to work. In fact you looked odd wearing long pants. From this point onward for the next four years I only wore my 107s during the "cool" months when pants were normal at the office. I'd periodically go visit my Red Wing dealer for cleanings and new laces and at one point I was told 107s were back. Next trip they were discontinued again. Next trip they were back but only available for special order at full price ($175 I think).
Then in late 2016 I went in because I needed a sole replacement. While the owner filled out all the paperwork, he broke the news to me that Red Wing is finally no longer making this shoe. After a few years of going back and forth with this shoe they've destroyed the molds and cutting patterns so to speak. I asked him if there was anything he could do and he thought for a moment and said "You know what, there is. I have access to the inventory of every Red Wing store out there. Let's see what we can find." Turns out we found three stores that had the 107s in my size or a size close to mine. He gave me their numbers and I promptly went home and called each store and bought the entire world supply of 107s in a size 11.5 E. It's only three pair but it sounds way more fancy like that. (The originals are 11.5 D and they're just a smidge too tight. The 11.5 E's fit even better as I'm border line D/E widths)
These 12 year old shoes still have life left. In fact they need a heel replacement but the sole is otherwise fine. Sure the cotton toe lineing is pretty much destroyed, and the leather is getting thin where my pinky toe has rubbed it for twelve years but rest of the shoe is in good condition considering the age and how I wore them. I bet these things still have another two or three years of daily wear left in them before the leather finally gives out to cracking around the toes.
Eight years of every day _hard_ wear followed by another six years of wearing for half the year. I have three more pairs in reserve. I'm 38. I could start wearing the new ones and have a nice three pair rotation. I bet I could get something obscene like 20-25 years doing that. Yeah, I think these are buy it for life. That's close enough anyways.
Edit: The new ones are almost the same as the 2006 vintage. The only difference is the inside lining is tan instead of purple and these shoes are no longer USPS approved. So there is no little green tag on the side of the right shoe.
Submitted August 26, 2018 at 08:21PM by zshguru https://ift.tt/2odL9oo
