- Lethato Captoe Oxford
- Goodyear Welted
- Calfskin upper
- Leather soles
- Burgundy
- Size 10
- Made in India with Argentinian leather?
- $130.00, was on sale for $84.99
u/greenblaster posted an Amazon Deal of the Day for these shoes and I was curious to see an $85 GYW shoe. I'm no shoe expert, I've got a few pairs of Allen Edmonds, a pair of Aldens, and a pair of Viberg boots. How did the Lethato stack up?
The box was sturdy and the shoes were tucked in a shoe bag, and wrapped in tissue. They also had a foam insert. Despite all that, one of the left shoes was a bit smushed and both were creased. Oh yeah - they sent two left shoes.
The Amazon page describes some of the shoes in the brand as being "hand-painted." I don't think that was the case here, but there was some polish that had rubbed off on the paper. The burgundy was reddish brown, showing more red in the light, and more burgundy in the dark. There was also some color inconsistencies where it looked like the polish was either too dark or they missed a spot. Pretty minor.
The leather was not stiff, but not glove-like either. There was some noticeable loose grain, but it really wasn't that bad compared to what I've seen from Allen Edmonds. The stitching seemed tight enough, and the brown welt was barely visible, creating a cleaner, more formal look. There was a bit too much white glue-like substance around the welt, not sure what that was about.
Fit: I usually wear a 10E and the shoe fit rather well. There was some heel slip. If you are wide, go TTS. If you are regular width, you may want to size down by a half. In fact, the sole of the shoe marked the size as 9.5-10. I don't think there would be any issues with break-in. I didn't get the best feel since there was no right shoe to put on. Insole was decently cushioned, and there was decent volume in the shoe for my wide, flat feet.
Overall conclusions: One of the benefits of a GYW shoe is that you can resole it. But thats only if the upper leathers are worth it. In this case, the leather was decent for the sale price, but nothing special. It was not particularly smooth or unblemished. You can see the loose grain, the creasing resulting from packaging, and the inconsistency of color. At full price, this is absolutely a no go. You're better off spending a little more and gambling on Allen Edmonds seconds or Beckett Simonon seconds.
Submitted October 26, 2018 at 05:10PM by TheKingrover https://ift.tt/2OOTezr
