# Comparison of Alden vs. Brooks Brothers shell cordovan belts. With pictures.



## ecox (Oct 25, 2009)

I've had a Brooks Brothers burgundy shell cordovan belt for a while. But I recently picked up an Alden cigar shell belt from Alden SF. I thought some may like to see the differences between the Brooks Bros and Alden shell belts, seeing as they're both made from Horween shell cordovan, but the Brooks Bros is less expensive.

Remember, shell belts always will be made of three parts because no one shell is large enough to make a belt on its own.

The two most immediately apparent differences between the two belts are how the shells are joined and the stitching. Brooks Bros on top, Alden on bottom:










As you can see, the Brooks Bros shell belt has a half moon-shaped flap where the shells overlap and are sewed together. The Alden uses a slightly longer overlap with a pointy shape. The Alden overlap appears more substantial, partly because of the longer overlap and partly because there's padding of some sort in the pointy bit. (The Brooks is not insubstantial, and I'm not suggesting that it will fall apart or anything. Mine's been a workhorse and still looks great!) It's easier to see the padding differences here, which was taken without a flash:










The second main difference is in the stitching. The Brooks Bros has more stitches per inch. That, combined with the smaller overlap, lends a more elegant look, whereas the Alden belt looks somewhat more rugged.

Next, the ends of the belts are shaped differently. The Brooks Bros is more rounded, while the Alden is more pointy.










The keeper is slightly wider and is stitched more towards the center on the Alden, compared to being stitched at the edge on the Brooks Bros. This again lends a more rugged look to the Alden, and a more elegant look to the Brooks Bros.










Finally, the Brooks Bros appears to have its rear backing put on after the shells are sewed together, because there is no stitching showing through at the join point. The Alden is stitched all the way through.










The Alden is a perfect match to my cigar shell chukkas. The Brooks Bros is burgundy, not #8, so it's a not a perfect match to my PTBs, but it's close.










If I ever need a new black belt, and I decide to (read: my wife lets me) get black shell to match my Alden black shell cap toe bals, I'd probably go with the Brooks Bros belt over the Alden belt. The Brooks is more elegant, and with the AA 15% discount, it would be quite a bit less expensive than the Alden. However, if someone GAVE me the black shell Alden, I wouldn't trade it in for the Brooks Bros version!

Hope this was helpful.

Erik


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## PeterW (May 14, 2004)

Great work!


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## PeterW (May 14, 2004)

BTW, any idea where to get a cordovan belt strap only?


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## joenobody0 (Jun 30, 2009)

How does your BB Cordovan belt fit through the buckle? I too have an Alden shell belt and two BB shell belts. Both of the BB shell belts fit too tightly through the buckle and have had their color (on the top and bottom edge) worn away by the buckle. It's very annoying to me. 

I think the BB burgundy belt would match AE burgundy well since it appears to have not been treated with the dark over dye that Alden elects to use.


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## Orgetorix (May 20, 2005)

If I had to guess, I'd say that, rather than the Alden join being padded, it's only skived (thinned down) around the edges, while the BB join is skived thin on the entire half-circle piece.


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## ecox (Oct 25, 2009)

joenobody0 said:


> How does your BB Cordovan belt fit through the buckle? I too have an Alden shell belt and two BB shell belts. Both of the BB shell belts fit too tightly through the buckle and have had their color (on the top and bottom edge) worn away by the buckle. It's very annoying to me.


Mine fits fine through the buckle. Sounds like maybe I got lucky.


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## joenobody0 (Jun 30, 2009)

ecox said:


> Mine fits fine through the buckle. Sounds like maybe I got lucky.


I'm actually glad to hear it's a QC thing instead of a horrible design issue. Maybe one day I'll bring my black belt in and see if they will exchange it for one that doesn't eat itself.


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## Anon 18th Cent. (Oct 27, 2008)

Who makes the BB belt?


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## Orgetorix (May 20, 2005)

Not sure, but they're made in Canada.

An old thread on the topic: https://askandyaboutclothes.com/community/showthread.php?66666-Shell-Cordovan-Belts-....


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## Dragoon (Apr 1, 2010)

I don't really like the splice. I wonder why they don't use the same process to tan the sides of the horse hides? It may not be as good as the shell but it seems like it would be decent leather anyway.


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## Hobson (Mar 13, 2007)

I have more than one BB cordovan belt. It seems that the cordovan was more substantial in the past than those available now. The older belts seem heavier and more substantial, the newer ones lighter.


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## Hobson (Mar 13, 2007)

"The Alden is a perfect match to my cigar shell chukkas. The Brooks Bros is burgundy, not #8, so it's a not a perfect match to my PTBs, but it's close."

I sympathize with the less than perfect match. I've thought about using some Number 8 polish from Alden to get the belt's color a little closer to what I want. It would also address the fact that the three pieces are often different shades. Hopefully the color would be a little darker and more uniform. Afterwards I would buff like hell to make sure it wouldn't come off on clothing. Has anyone ever tried this?


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## dorji (Feb 18, 2010)

Hobson said:


> Has anyone ever tried this?


Thought about it....never tried it though. Let us know!


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