Opinions/Experience on Guidi Horsehide Boots needed

[Robbie79]

Hi fellow loungers,

Does anyone own Guidi Horsehide boots and what's your experience. Are they worth the money? I'm considering following Guidi boots but the price tag says 1200€ which is a lot of money. I decided against the Viberg Shinki HH boots due to high price and import tax+duty. I hope the seller of the Guidi boots is willing to reduce the price. Is the construction as good as Viberg? What about the Guidi Horsehide? As I'm alternatively considering handcraftet Italian boots from other maker for less than half the price (I like the Guidi more), I wanted to ask you guys first before I make my final decision. I'm not the boots expert but I'm sure there are many out there
Anyway, thanks in advance for your help! I received following pics from the seller.
Cheers,
Robbie

 

[dudewuttheheck]

I'm not a fan of how those look at all. I always thought zip boots were supposed to be sleek, but those look oddly bulky to me.

It's your choice at the end of the day, though.

 

[Robbie79]

I'm not a fan of how those look at all. I always thought zip boots were supposed to be sleek, but those look oddly bulky to me.

It's your choice at the end of the day, though.

Thanks for your honest feedback. I don’t think these ones look bulkier than Service boots or Engineer boots. I agree with their front zip boots which are ugly IMO. I just wanted to know how the construction, workmanship and leather quality is compared to other high quality makers such as Viberg, your White Klouds (I don’t have an opportunity to fly to Japan), Clinch or other high quality makers. I wish I would have bought the Viberg Shinki boots which are sold out now

 

[dudewuttheheck]

Thanks for your honest feedback. I don’t think these ones look bulkier than Service boots or Engineer boots. I agree with their front zip boots which are ugly IMO. I just wanted to know how the construction, workmanship and leather quality is compared to other high quality makers such as Viberg, your White Klouds (I don’t have an opportunity to fly to Japan), Clinch or other high quality makers. I wish I would have bought the Viberg Shinki boots which are sold out now

No, they're not bulkier than engineers. I suppose my point was that if I wanted something along the lines of engineers, I would just get engineers. In terms of quality I can't comment because I have never really seen these before.

 

[Mich486]

They are not quite the aesthetic of the average fedora lounge user. I think that is understandable given that they’d look quite off imho with the jackets/vintage clothing discussed here. They look very fashion forward.

I’ll try to ask the question on Styleforum, I’m sure there are people who can be more of help there.

 

[AeroFan_07]

No experance with these, a bit outside my wheelhouse, as Mich486 indicates above...

 

[Robbie79]

No, they're not bulkier than engineers. I suppose my point was that if I wanted something along the lines of engineers, I would just get engineers. In terms of quality I can't comment because I have never really seen these before.

They are not quite the aesthetic of the average fedora lounge user. I think that is understandable given that they’d look quite off imho with the jackets/vintage clothing discussed here. They look very fashion forward.

I’ll try to ask the question on Styleforum, I’m sure there are people who can be more of help there.

@Mich486 Thanks for your honest feedback and for offering your help to ask on Styleforum. IMO I think they won't look off combining them with on of my leather jackets - more or less I would create my own style even if people would say it doesn't match. I'm just not as experienced with boots compared to leather jackets. That's why I'm asking as I don't want an expensive low quality fashion "thing"...I just came across with the name Guidi and find these boots to look quite nice with an elegant and vintage touch (taste a different I know). When I spend this amount of money the quality should be superbe. I would have already contacted the well-know Engineer boot makers but Engineer boots aren't my cup of tea even if I like them on other people. Anyway, thanks again!

 

[Monitor]

Yep, don't suppose you'll find much info on these here though I quite like them. Not a fan of that big zipper and I don't like boots with zippers in general but they're cool. Nice heel. I like that Incarnation-styled stuff. Wouldn't say it's fashion oriented, these just go for that specific look. Or vibe, maybe. But it's fun stuff.

And I know Viberg makes a very nice boot.

 

[Will Zach]

Good discussions on Guidi on Reddit as well. Some weird stuff going on with soaking them to shrink them during the manufacturing process, and impact on consistency of sizing. Not my cup of tea by a mile, but some people like them. Hide is good, as Guidi is foremost a tannery.

 

[navetsea]

can only comment on the zip back, happen to have zip back boots it is easiest to wear no pulling or prying or yanking required, just park the foot and zip up

 

[Robbie79]

Quick update. I had an opportunity to try on Guidi horsehide boots. Knowing Viberg, White's, Rolling Dub Trio, Red Wing, Vass Budapest, Santoni, Sassetti, Pantanetti and other Italian high quality boot makers the horsehide of Guidi is top-notch and I would say it is one of my favorite leather types also comparing it with Shinki HH used for jackets. The leather is very thick and heavy, very soft and pliable with an intoxicating smell. Of course shoemakers like Vass from Hungary (best shoes I own actually) would not use this kind of leather for their more classic shoes as it would not match. The boots are handmade by Guidi in Italy and craftmanship / construction is very good, so no low quality fashion boots at all. The boots I tried on don't have a massive leather sole, just thick and robust (you would get additional Vibram soles as pictured above which can be attached to the leather sole by a professional shoemaker if you want to). The boots with back zip do look very elegant and not bulky/boxy at all. For all shoe/boot lovers, I can highly recommend them. The only "negative" point is that the price of >1000€ is so high - in other words I will wait for Sale discounts of 30-50%.