White's Semi-dress Boots..

[univibe88]

Totally understand your frustration and there is no making up for the lost time. Please let us know how they do with the makeup work.

 

[andy b.]

I don't picture this turning out for the best...

http://m.spokesman.com/stories/2014/jul/22/whites-boots-of-spokane-sold-to-portlands/

 

[Lefty]

Nice. I still don't have my boots back.

 

[tropicalbob]

Lefty, did you ever hear from them? What's the current BS from them?

 

[Lefty]

They signed for the boots on July 7. I sent them an email for a status update on July 18 and was told:

"I sent them down to the shop foreman so that he can personally do the work you had requested done. We are shooting for them to be finished today so you should see them within a couple of days."

I was told the turn around on this would be a few days, that my boots would jump all lines so the job would get done quickly and right.
Still nothing.
Even if they were to send me a new pair of boots (which I'm not expecting), I'd never spend another dollar on White's again.

 

[andy b.]

What work exactly was White's originally to do on your boots?

 

[Lefty]

resole - nothing fancy, just replace what was there with exactly the same thing - the vibram composition heels and half soles

 

[andy b.]

I guess I'm confused, as it appears that is exactly what they did.

 

[Lefty]

They did do it. They failed to do it right. If I had paid a 7 year old with a glue gun $3 to do it, I got my money's worth.
Instead, I paid the original manufacturer to do it and they did a 10th rate job. If you can't see that in the pictures, you might be their target customer.

 

[IXL]

^^^Or, it could be the photographs is lack the ability to clearly convey any absence of quality.

 

[andy b.]

You asked them to replace the sole, that is what they did. If you wanted the midsole and welting strip replaced, I'm sure they would do that, for the standard $250 rebuilding price. The uneven edge on the toe is because as the boot is worn and settles, the welting strip will pull down into the midsole and deform it. If you took any pair of welted footwear and ground even 1mm of the edge away, you would start seeing it. When the new sole is attached, they have to grind it even with the existing sole, and as such, the portion of the edge where the welting and midsole have formed to each other may be exposed. That is just how it is.

White's is in the workboot business, and the owners (well, former owners now) have expressed on several occasions they really dislike the "fashion boot" business. I can fully understand their reason for selling.

And you are correct, I am their former target customer. I understand how boots are made and the difference between resoling and a complete rebuilding. I don't tend to take a ruler or macro lens to my workboots.

 

[Lefty]

I wear the hell out of my boots. They're beat up quite well. I paid a lot for good boots because I wanted US made, sturdy, comfortable boots - and yes, I like the way they look - new and worn.

None of that has anything to do with White's failure here. I paid to have a job done and I expected that it be done right. Instead, it was done poorly, as White's acknowledged when I emailed them the photos. They didn't say it was a rebuild issue or say that I received the level of work expected for the service I had requested. I didn't even want to send the boots back to them, knowing that I could just wear them as they were. White's, however, wanted to "make it right", as they continued to claim, and promised that I'd go to the front of the line and have the work done right, by a foreman, with a quick turn-around time and at their shipping cost. I sent the boots back, and it took another three weeks before they were returned to me - exactly the same amount of time it took for the first resole.

I received the boots back today, properly resoled. White's first received the boots on May 24, so it took almost exactly two months to get the job done right. While I'm pleased with the job they eventually got right, they've caused me far too much frustration. White's will never see another dime from me.

 

[IXL]

I'm glad you finally got the job done to your satisfaction. Could you post up some images showing the contrast to the images from the previous job?

 

[Lefty]

Certainly. I wish I had taken better photos of the initial work, but I was too angry to care.

In the first set of photos, the edge of the sole on the toe looks like it was given to a dog as a chew toy. The sole isn't attached evenly, resulting in a ragged overhang. The heels were slightly askew - and I admit that part isn't visible in the photos. The work also wasn't finished. I realize that the parts come with ragged edges (edit: talking about the heels here), but hitting those with a buffer for just a few seconds to smooth them over seems like something anyone who cared about their work might do - it's certainly done on new boots from White's.

As Andy said, we are talking about millimeters, but it seems like that's how everything at this scale is measured. If lace hooks or holes were a few mm off, you'd certainly notice by look and by feel.

One thing I didn't capture at all was the fact that the soles weren't even put on straight. The "shadow" of where the original soles had been was visible, and really illustrated how badly the first job had been done. That has been corrected with the second job.

I'm pleased with the final work, I just wish that it's what would have been done a month ago.

 

[IXL]

Certainly. I wish I had taken better photos of the initial work, but I was too angry to care.

Brother, we've all been there! I can now relate to some of the troubles you've had with this repair.
Thanks for the photos: if I ever send any of mine back to them, I'll have some idea of what to look out for.

 

[Lefty]

No problem. From what I understand, Baker's is now doing repairs. As I bought these from Baker's, and they're even a model exclusive to Baker's, I wish I had known that a couple of months ago.

BTW, as a funny little touch on the story, you might notice a little glue residue by the lace hooks in the photos I just posted. It peeled right off, but really caps off the experience.

 

[Bunyip]

Hi guys, hoping someone can help me. Can anyone post a pic of the mini lug half sole on whites? Pref upside town so I can see the whole sole. There seems to be a few different versions out there, and I want to put some on a pair of boots,if they are what I think they are. Is it basically a 430 vibram cut in half? Thanks for any help.

 

[andy b.]

No problem. From what I understand, Baker's is now doing repairs. As I bought these from Baker's, and they're even a model exclusive to Baker's, I wish I had known that a couple of months ago.

I'm glad it worked out. It does sound like White's kind of egged you on to cause more frustration than needed. What I'm really interested in though, is Baker's doing the repairs. White's makes a big deal out of using the same lasts to do repairs as to originally build the boot. Does this mean there is some giant "last warehouse" that sells all these lasts to companies and White's Standard last is the same as say a Red Wing #8 last, only using a different name? On the Drew's Boots website they make a big deal of how Baker's bought Drew's and now runs the business. It would make things a lot easier if I knew that all these companies use the same lasts and what fits in White's will fit the same from Drew's (for example), provided I know which unique last name to ask for.

 

[4spurs]

Not responsive to the previous posts re the repair job by White's or the lasts that White's uses.

I put a pair of Superfeet innersoles in my semi-pros when they arrived and I never felt that arch hump, or feeling like my sock was balled up under my foot.

Superfeet makes an innersole specifically for use in cowboy boots, and that's the one that I used.

 

[feltfan]

Whites makes nice boots. Sounds like they just aren't reliable for repairs.
I understand how you might not want to give Whites any more money after
how they treated you, but it sounds like the general lesson is, support your
local shoe repair shop? Or am I missing something?

Mind you, there are enough good boots and shoes out there so I wouldn't
fault you for giving up on one, after bad treatment! They deserve it.
I feel your pain- going through disappointment with Allen Edmonds right now:
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/show...in-grey-calf&p=1823609&viewfull=1#post1823609