 Good day. How are you going? Welcome to Boot Lossophy, my channel all about boots. My name is Tech and today I'm taking a look at the Parkhurst brand Allen boot in Horween's Color 8 Dublin Leather. This is Parkhurst brand's signature plain-toe boot called the Allen boot. Parkhurst brand is based in Buffalo, New York and was started by founder Andrew Savisco in 2018 as a direct-to-consumer brand, meaning that they only sell through their website. Andrews started the company after identifying a market niche for well-made American service slash dress boots at an affordable price. Parkhurst is a small batch manufacturer. Due to its smaller size Parkhurst can't buy hundreds of hides to make a permanent run of boots. So what Andrew does is saw some very interesting hides from famous tanneries like Horween, Seidel and Charles Dead to make smaller batches of unique boots. They're built around three main boot designs, the Captoe Richmond boot, the Brogue Captoe Delaware boot and this their plain-toe Allen boot. Of course as a small batch manufacturer it does mean that they run out of stocks in a particular style fast, especially with a growing and enthusiastic following of collectors who race to buy every time a new drop takes place. This does mean that by the time I get around to reviewing a particular makeup, that choice may well have been taken off their website. Sometimes that makeup gets made again, but sometimes a particular leather may be gone for good. At the moment Parkhurst are recovering from COVID inspired supply chain problems and they are still catching up with making their scheduled 2021 models in 2022. So from time to time you may only see one or two styles showing on their website. In my opinion, their scarcity, the innovative leathers offered and their quality, which I'll get on to later, all make Parkhurst boots very collectible. If you can't afford the variety of exotic leathers put out by Weiberg in their service boot at 700 to 800 US dollars, you can get them at Parkhurst at less than 400 dollars, but not in my opinion at proportionately half the quality. So let's take a look at the aesthetic of this Allen boot. It's a service boot so called because they're modeled after the military boots worn in the Second World War. Six inches high, in this case plain-toe with no cap at the toe, reasonably sleek in profile and also from the top. Simple number of panels helping that sleek look. The thick antique edging and the wheeled welt, more of that later, makes it look quite tough, but the slim profile of the outsole also allows it to be dressy as there's this particular dark burgundy color that Horween Tan recall color number eight. As a versatile combination casual and dressy boot, it's tough enough for you to bash it to hell and back, picking up scratches, scuffs and patina, or you can keep it well conditioned, even put on a light polish or some cream polish and wear it dressy. In the dressy sense, I have worn it with a suit, something dark with a less formal textured cloth shirt such as a slub cotton button up, making the burgundy color pop. You can wear it as a smart casual boot with some moleskin trousers or chinos and a less formal jacket like a chalk coat or a bomber. And of course denim, dark denim and a simple shirt, dark wash denim, rolled cuff or not, light wash denim, mid wash denim and flannels. It's a really very versatile boot. I mentioned the leather comes from Horween Tanry. Horween is based in Chicago in the US and is recognized as one of the oldest continuously running Tanrys in the US. It was founded in 1905 as a family owned company and remains in the Horween family hands to this day. They are now, I think, into the fifth generation of Horweens working in the company. Horween produces a huge array of tannages, mainly from bovine and horse leather, but also produce bison hides. In terms of their products from horse leather, they're famous for their shell cordovan. Rare and tough, smooth and rippling rather than creasing when worn. Their most famous product though is probably chrome excel leather, used by pretty much every bootmaker at one time or other. Their list of customers is a who's who of American leather good manufacturers. Horween also produces sporting goods leather, Rawlings baseball gloves, Wilson American footballs and basketballs and so on. In this case, this is their Dublin leather, a veg tanned, vegetable tanned leather. Basically leather can be tanned in two ways, veg tanning, which uses the tannins and vegetable matter to preserve the leather. And this can take a long time, up to months in fact. Or it can be tanned using salts, primarily chromium salts, which is a faster process, but arguably not as kind of the environment. There is also combination tanning in its various geysers, which use both methods in the process. Dublin is a full grain hide, tanned using the same veg tanning formulas that they use to produce shell cordovan. It's part of a family of tannages produced by Horween, including Essex and Derby leather. The process starts with the production of Essex as the base tannage with no additional waxes or finishes. Dublin is the next step in this tanning process, taking the base Essex tannage and adding a blend of natural waxes and then its roll to produce a smooth finish. And it results in natural variations along with the full grain scars and textures still present. The waxes make this a pull-up leather. Pull-up is the effect you get when you pull up the leather from underneath and see the waxes move the colour around under the surface. The next tannage after this is Derby, which takes the Dublin leather and tumbles it to produce a softer, distressed looking product with a lot more pull-up. As a veg tan leather, this Dublin is supple, but it's tough for its relative thickness. It's a bit stiff when you first wear it, so it can be used as a knock-about boot without fear. The waxes in it will produce some great patina, yet it's supple enough to be maintained in smooth dressy form. Just making sure that you rub out and condition any scuffs and scratches. This Dublin is in a colourway that they call colourate. Horween developed this colour for their shell cordovan. It's called colourate because it's dyed in their secret dye formula eight times. It's a really rich colour, a dark brown with purplish burgundy showing through. In strong sunlight, it's a red brown. In other light, there's the purple of deep burgundy and cherry red all over it. And how do you care for this Dublin leather? Some people say to condition your boots out of the box. The theory behind this is that the hide may have been stored in the factory for a while, and the boot, once it's finished, may have been in the box on the shelf for some time before it gets shipped out to you. So they reckon it may have had time to dry out and conditioning it straight out of the box will replenish lost oils and waxes. In my view, particularly with just-in-time direct-to-consumer brands, it's unlikely that leather has had time to really dry out. I used to condition boots straight out of the box and then, like many boot enthusiasts, looked to condition and oiled my boots regularly. But I've recently come to the conclusion that, really, you only want to condition your boots when they need it. And I believe you can feel it. They will feel dry and less oily and waxy. Anyway, when you do, Parkhurst's website says to use any type of boot wax. And they add a cautionary note, saying that this is a patina-making leather and conditioning it too soon, or too often, could change the patina developing. If you've been watching my channel for a while, you know by now that for a smooth leather, my go-to product is Venetian shoe cream as a conditioner and has a less shiny polish to finish the care. I have conditioned these after a week spent walking through rain and wet grass and mud. I use Venetian shoe cream in neutral, of course, allowing a couple of thin coats to sink in overnight before brushing with a horsehair brush. I'll put a link to the VSC and a set of horsehair brushes in the description box below. It's an affiliate link, by the way. If you need the products and you use that link, I'll earn like a 3% commission while it won't cost you a penny more. Now let's go into the construction of these boots. As usual, I'll start from the bottom up. The outsole is a rubber day-night sole from the UK. Day-night invented this particular studded sole in 1910, so it's not new. It's a firm rubber composite, so it's quite hardy and not too bad in absorbing the shock and heel strike. The rubber studs give pretty good grip. Look, I'm not sure they'd be great hiking through a forest, but where I wear mine in an urban environment, I've been through rain and wet surfaces, including the obligatory wax floors of a supermarket, and I haven't slipped in any way. They're also pretty good in not picking up dirt, because the studs are set in shallow rings that seem to knock off mud and sand pretty well. They're thin enough from the side to pass as dressy outsole. They sit under a veg-tanned leather midsole. The edges are antique and match the veg-tanned welt. The outsole and midsole are attached to the uppers using Goodyear welt construction. I've explained in several videos already how this actually works, sewing the welt to the inside of the boot and then to the sole through the welt. You can see more detailed explanations in videos like this one up here. This is a split-reverse welt, meaning that one edge of the welt is flanged upwards against the side of the boot, making it more water-resistant and not affecting re-soleability. Inside the sole is cork filling, and embedded in the cork is a fibreglass shank to help with arch support in this gap, and to provide the boot with the extra torsion support when you're walking on uneven ground. Parkhurst uses fibreglass rather than steel for the shank, because it doesn't rust or flake. Some people swear by steel shanks, but honestly, I think unless you're in the heavy construction industry, I'm not sure there's a huge difference, and I like fibreglass because it doesn't set off airport security. The uppers are built around Parkhurst's 602 last. The last is a 3D mould that's shaped like a foot. The bootmaker pulls the leather around the last, shaping it into the design based on that last. That's why the shape of a Parkhurst Allen looks different from a Thursday captain say. The lasts are different. A bootmaker designs the last they want, based on the external look of the boot, and then they have to produce that last in a variety of sizes and widths that they want to make. And they have to have enough lasts for the whole factory to make multiple copies of the same size at the same time. So you can see the investment in lasts could be extremely high. In this case, the 602 last only comes in one width type, basically a D width at the heel and arch or waist, opening up to an E width at the forefoot. The toe box is quite round, without it looking like a clunky work boot like a timberland or an iron ranger. I personally find the 602 last perfect for my foot. It's anatomically more correct than other lasts that try to affect a slim shape and might squeeze either the ball of the foot or the toes in day-to-day wear. However, being a combination D and E width, there may be sizing implications if you have wider feet, which I'll talk about when I talk about sizing. The plain toe service boot design incorporates a thermoselastic structured toe inside to keep the shape of the toe box. There's also a thermoselastic heel counter on the outside, covered up by a two-piece backstay. There's a central strip going up the shaft to cover the stitch here, and a heel backstay to cover the heel counter. The heel counter in there is what keeps the shape of the heel and keeps your heel tucked into the pocket that it creates. Stitching is double and triple stitch where it counts. Single stitch where some reinforced leather is around the collar and the five eyelet three speed hook hardware is attached. The hardware is not backed. It's pressed flat in the typical star shape pressing at the back. The top of the collar is tucked in and then backed by a strip of the same leather. On the inside, the vamp and toe box are lined with veg tan leather while the shaft and semi-gusseted tongue are unlined and the insole footbed and heel inlay are also leather. The overall construction looks, well I've said it before, tough yet dressy. I've reviewed the same Allen boot in dark rose Dublin up here and in that review I said the dark rose Dublin was a tough boot. I'm wearing it as a rough casual boot where I fully expect to see scrapes and scuffs but this color eight Dublin however I'm going to try and keep dressy so I will keep brushing and I'm going to condition out said scrapes and scuffs and I'll just allow the patina to develop in a different way showing up from under this burgundy color. I talked about the last being a combination last that is it's a D width at the heel and the waist and a wider E width at the ball of the foot. This hasn't affected my sizing. I'm a US 8.5 in a D width true to size. That's true to size as measured on a Brannock device and just for my non-American viewers that's equivalent to a 7.5 in G width in UK or Aussie sizing numbers and a 41.5 in euro. Parkers as do most American boot brands say to go half a size down so this is a size 8 and it's a perfect fit. I feel the heel is snug and form fitting. The waist is equally snug and you feel nicely held as it broadens into the E width forefoot. I feel roominess in the ball of my feet and in my toes. I'm not swimming in them by any means despite my true to size width being a D. I don't know what it would be like if you had a true to size E or double E or even triple E width feet. I guess you may have to size up but if you are in any doubt at all contact Andrew on the email that's on the website. You'll find him incredibly responsive and very helpful. Anyway for lucky Mr Average Me this size is extremely comfortable and the roomy forefoot meant that there was zero break in. This was super comfy right out of the box and now eight months later as my feet have sunk into that leather and cork combination as the thick leather midsole has flexed and the Dublin leather has softened it's even more comfortable. If I had to mention a con it's the arch support. It's okay but it's not great for me. When you order you can ask Andrew to build in extra arch support if your feet really need it. I think it's 40 or 50 dollars more. I've put in a stick on arch support wedge on the inside and it's fine. Okay this is where I usually talk about value. I think it's worth the US $338 I paid for it. Yep but let's just go through a price comparison and look at quality at that price range. Compare it price-wise with boots that sell for $200 to $400. Ignore the aesthetics and you get helm, some Thursday models, red wing, Wolverine Thousand Mile and Grant Stone. I know there are others, Doc Martens, Timberland and so on, of those either I don't know them or they're really not in this quality class. In terms of quality materials and quality build in my opinion we're really only talking about red wing, Wolverine and Grant Stone. Taking red wing lots of tradition but there are rough and purposely unfinished boot in many ways. Certainly can't be accused of being dressy in the same way built like work boots. I'd say the same quality if you can compare a military personnel carrier to a suburban people mover. The Wolverine Thousand Mile boots are interesting. In my opinion they are finished the way red wing iron ranges are not. Just a little bit more care in the clicking and leather selection and anyway comparing the chrome XL used by Wolverine it's closer to the Dublin than Red Wing's oil tanned leathers. Quality of material and construction similar. Grant Stone is the outlier not because Parkhurst are built badly on the contrary I think for the price Parkhurst are really built well but Grant Stone are not built at the sub $400 category. They're really built at the $500 to $600 category in my opinion. So overall when you look at a similar type of boot the Parkhurst Allen compares really well. What makes it worth the mid $300 price though? The design, the innovative unique leathers and I have to say the customer service. For those of you who don't know while I've been talking about Parkhurst it's really only one man the founder Andrew Savisco. Andrew designed the last and the boots. He partners or I guess more correctly contracts the manufacturer to a factory that makes boots for other manufacturers. The owner of the factory has said that he takes a keen interest and involvement in the making of the boots. He'll inspect the finished article, he'll check before they are sent out, he does the marketing on social media, he updates the website, he responds to customer emails himself. Check around and you'll not find a bad word about his customer service. Very responsive, very low key but he's there for you. On the third or fourth wear of these boots one of the speed hooks popped out. There was a slight stretch of the hole punched for the speed hook to be set through and it popped out. I contacted Andrew and he immediately offered to pay my cobbler to have it fixed apologizing profusely. Anyway my cobbler said it was an easy fix. He reinforced the area with a piece of leather inside the Dublin layers and put in a new colour match speed hook for Australian $20. I told Andrew not to worry about it but it was his initial reaction that reinforced his customer and quality first focus to me. Sure he apologized, you would wouldn't you? Sure he immediately offered to pay for the repair, that's what you'd expect. But he made sure to explain that it had happened before infrequently and he explained how he was fixing it and about setting the pressure on the stamper and discussed his decisions to stop using small eyelets and advised me what to tell the cobbler. He made sure I knew the facts and what he was going to do. I liked that. As a customer I felt involved and that's it. That's my review after eight months of wear in a big rotation of boots of my Parkhurst Allen boots in Horween's Color 8 Dublin. I hope you liked it and if you did I'm going to ask a favour of you. Would you please click on the like button below. I have plans for a lot more videos reviewing all of my other 50 over boots and as I get more which I'm sure I will, don't tell my wife, I will be bringing you some unboxing videos. I also plan to start making some videos about boot brand comparisons, leather bags and also look at the top five or ten boots in different categories. So if you're into boots and leather goods like me click on the subscribe button so that YouTube notifies you when I upload something new. Take care and I'll see you soon.