Comparing Seidel’s Natural Double Shot and Horween’s Natural Chromexcel

I've seen forums debate which one is better. Uh Horween's Chromexcel or Seidel's Double Shot. Well, getting any argument about the color out of the way, let's compare natural Chromexcel with natural Double Shot. >> [music] [music] >> Good day. Welcome back to Bootlosophy, my channel about heritage boots. And if this is your first time, my name is Tack. I'm on Wadjuk country here in Gallop in Wadjuk Nyoongar Boodja. I was recently asked by a viewer what the difference was between Horween's Chromexcel and Seidel's Double Shot. Apart from the cheeky reply that one was made by Horween and the other by Seidel, >> [laughter] >> I was intrigued and so I set off to research the difference. Firstly, uh in as much as the tanning processes differed, uh as well as what people thought of them, and also how I find the two leathers. But first, in order to remove any, you know, taint by comparing different colors, because I have seen comments that, you know, one is more prone to tea core than the other, uh so leaving the color out, I decided to compare the two versions of natural. Uh Horween's natural Chromexcel and Seidel's natural Double Shot. And to do that, I decided to touch and feel and tell you how uh these two boots wore. Uh these boots being bought no more than 3 months apart in 2021, and both having about the same amount of wear. So, this is the Parkhurst Richmond in the old 602 last in Seidel's light natural Double Shot. And this is uh Oak Street Bootmakers Trench Boot in Horween's natural Chromexcel. Taking each in turn, I bought this Oak Street Bootmakers trench boot in November of 2021 in their classic toe capped natural Chromexcel with an oil infused leather sole. I have done a review of it and to my mind, Oak Street is one of the most underrated bootmakers out there producing really good stuff in good solid service boot designs, particularly when they go on sale. Apart from my usual, you know, four-week break-in period where I wore these exclusively for a week and then every other day for a second week and then took a couple of weeks where I wore them every three or four days. I have put these on about once a month since then. >> [snorts] >> They're easy to reach for because they're made over a comfortable reasonably round toe last and the leather sole construction is both flexible and comfortable. In my review, I noted that the clicking was excellent and perhaps the brand's owner George was simply able to walk over to Chicago neighbor Horween and select some great hides directly from the factory. But it then and still now has not shown too much loose grain or, you know, even wrinkles worth talking about particularly on the vamp. And the interesting thing is that while it darkened to a what would you call this a mellow honey in use, I have a Parkhurst brogue model called the Spalding which I bought four months earlier and this is a natural Chromexcel that's just darkened to the color of milk chocolate. And there's no way I've worn these any more than that trench boot. But I'm going to compare it to this Parkhurst. The cap toe model called the Richmond in Sidol's double shot. When Parkhurst released it, they called it the light natural double shot, but since then I've come to understand that the word light merely denoted the natural color and there really isn't a dark natural uh a shot. This is made when Parkhurst was still partnered with its uh Batavia, New York factory before COVID closed that factory. I bought it in February of 2022 and obviously was made a few months before that. In all honesty, while I have my fair share of Parkhurst plain toe Allen boot, their Richmond is my favorite design because I think that toe cap gives it a more like a complete service boot aesthetic. This pair was my first pair in saddle leather put on top of a grippy uh low profile uh day night sole and it has the combination 602 last where it's narrow in the heel and the waist and comfortably wide in the ball of the foot. This is another easy to reach for boot, especially in this now mellowed color. And so I've worn it about the same number of times as the Oak Street uh trench boot. You can also check out the review I did and I'm going to put links to both websites below, but note that while uh Oak Street still makes this trench boot, Parkhurst have evolved their production methods and in particular the 602 last as well. First, let's take a look at how Horween produces Chromexcel. Horween is a famous tannery located in Chicago uh started in 1905 and is still run by the Horween family. In the early 1910s, Horween developed Chromexcel. And the story goes that it was first developed for an industrial purpose, specifically to be used as seals and gaskets for engines. Apparently, rubber gaskets failed catastrophically, whereas leather gaskets failed by degrees and they say that experienced mechanics could hear the engine gasket start to perish. Uh the tanning of Chromexcel takes four stages. First, the hide is chrome tanned with chromium salts that preserve the leather and then gives it a flexible base. Then it's re-tanned using vegetable extracts to make it more durable and give it a richer structure and aesthetic. Then the third step is hot stuffing, where the hides are placed in heated drums and stuffed with a secret mixture of animal oils, greases, and waxes. This uh pumps the fibers full of oils and waxes and gives it an an oily feel and a really intense pull-up effect when stressed or folded. Uh Finally, the hide is then aniline dyed and dried, then hand brushed and rubbed with oils and conditioners. In its natural state, of course, no dyes go on. Uh this process famously takes 89 individual steps over 28 days and takes the hide through all the floors of the Horween factory. Seidel, on the other hand, is said to have developed double shot in 2020. Seidel was founded in 1945 in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. Uh it's all still in family hands. Apparently, Seidel redeveloped a similar tannage to this, which they originally developed in the 1940s. >> [snorts] >> In 2020, Seidel collaborated with a few uh Pacific Northwest bootmakers to redevelop this leather. There are rumors, but not that I could find a fact-checkable fact, that it was developed in response to Horween being unable to produce the volume of Chromexcel required by PNW brands during the COVID years. Uh it follows a similar process to Chromexcel. The hide is first chrome tanned and then re-tanned with vegetable extracts that gives it that structural firmness and a rich aging capability. From what I can gather, the double shot process differs from Chromexcel's in that the re-tanned hides are dried and instead of being fat liquor wet in a hot stuffing barrel, they're actually hot stuffed with waxes and oils in a dry barrel. Apparently, while dry, the fibers suck up the fat liquors like a sponge. Sources like Maverick Leather say that the whole process takes less time than the 28-day cycle of Chromexcel uh followed by the dry hot stuffing process. So, understanding that the tanning methods are similar but different, how does Chromexcel and Double Shot compare when felt by a non-leather expert? I have to say that initially, the natural Chromexcel felt wetter when the books were boots were being unboxed. While Double Shot, it certainly felt waxier. The Chromexcel seemed to bleed some oil on hands and brushes. Uh even today, both pairs have been worn about the same amount. Both have been conditioned in almost exactly the same way. Uh I condition them with Neatsfoot Oil about three times a year, and then I finish it off with Venetian Shoe Cream and brush them. Uh and even today, the Chromexcel Oak Street Bootmaker has an oilier feel you drag your hand over it. The Double Shot, this Richmond, while it's still soft in the in the hand, it definitely feels waxier rather than oily. Both brands use similar thickness leathers. And while the Chromexcel feels more pliable, the Double Shot actually feels firmer. Uh and it provides more structure. I'm not sure if that's because of the oily versus waxy feel, but it seems to me that that the Double Shot is easier to scratch and it's it's harder to buff out the scratch. While the Chromexcel, it shows a lot of scuffs, right? But it's a lot easier to use your thumb to smooth them out. Uh presumably, I think because there's more wet oils and firmer waxes waxes in the leather. Uh in terms of temper, I think Chromexcel has has a medium temper, me me medium soft. It needs almost no break-in when you first put it on, and it feels uh remarkably comfortable from the first wear. You can almost feel it mold to the knobs and lumps of your feet. But, this yielding temper also means it can stretch out over time and um not in this pair, but I I had a pair of Wolverine 1000 Mile in brown Chromexcel uh that really showed some relaxed structure around the ankle and the Chromexcel shaft really collapsed into folds. Mind you, that pair also showed some grainy separation around the ankles as well. So, maybe clicking wasn't exactly at 100%. I think the double shot somehow seem seems firmer in temper, has more structure. Not that the Parkhurst required a long break in, but I just felt that there was more, you know, fighting back when I was breaking in this boot. Having said that, maybe the firmer temper also avoids loose grain because there's only a bit showing on the on this boot across the the fold of the toes. Whereas, some of my brown and black Chromexcel boots do show lots of like wrinkly uh separation. Now, just before I finish with how these feel, some people call the double shot a work leather because PNW brands use it quite a lot. Just bear in mind that the thicknesses that PNW brands use are sometimes double the, you know, two and a bit millimeter thickness leathers used here. Uh and Nick's, for example, doesn't call it a work leather. Now, let me compare how these two leathers look. First in terms of their color, both came out of the box looking quite similar, a sort of pale, buttery, uh golden light light honey color. As they wore, and in both cases I wore them out in Australian summers with a lot of UV dangerous sunshine. As I wore them, they both darkened. But, I feel that the natural Chromexcel uh darkened more and faster and in a very attractive way with highs and lows in the wear patterns. While the double shot did darken, it seemed to me to be less dramatic and it darkened like evenly. After the first bout of conditioning, both darkened, but as the uh mink oil dried, the double shot remained darker and again, you know, more even. Over time, I continue to find that the Chromexcel seems to darken to a golden caramelized honey brown, uh better, faster, and the patina is showing a lot more than on the double shot. Again, as I said at the beginning, it may be the batches or the choices of hides, but take this pair cuz where is it? The Spalding. This is only 4 months older than the Oak Street, but take a look at how that patina has developed. I'm assuming that the patina development is because the Chromexcel has oils that oxidize faster and the double shot has more waxes that protect it. I don't [snorts] really know. Um even the pull-up, I think you can see, is much more marked uh in the uh Chromexcel and a lot more subtle in the double shot. And talking about you being able to see it, I'm not sure sure you can, but I find that on brushing these pairs, not with polish, but just after conditioning, the double shot seems to gleam more easily than the Chromexcel. Again, I'm guessing that the waxes polish it up better. Since I'm talking about how they compare, I guess I should talk about the care for these leathers. I find that if you come home with scuffs, just because you've been clumsy and brushed up against something hard, I can easily use my thumb on the Chromexcel and with some vigorous rubbing and a bit of heat from my thumb, I can remove 90% of the scuffs. With the double shot, they seem to show less scuffs, but if there is a scratch, it's harder to rub it off, and I need to wait until I condition it to uh really look after those scuffs and scratches. In regular conditioning of these boots, I find that the process is totally similar, to be honest. You brush them a lot to remove dry dirt, and then you uh also brush them to redistribute the oils and the waxes. And then I use a thin smear of neatsfoot oil to moisturize both leathers. I find that neatsfoot oil won't darken the leather, or if it looks darker, it will lighten up as it dries and gets absorbed in a day or so. Don't forget that Horween uses neatsfoot oil as one of the products at the end of their tanning process. Both leathers seem to address that uh uh uh address and absorb the thin smear well, but if you have any oil sitting on the surface, just wipe it off. Then, I use a couple of thin coats of Venetian Shoe Cream, allow it to dry, and then brush like crazy. It's at this stage that I find Double Shot provides a shinier finish after the VSC. At the end of the day, unless you're looking for a really aggressive patina to develop, I think for all intents and purposes, both leathers are comparable. The differences don't make me prefer one over the other, but when I look at the old Parker Sporting, and I think that this trench boot will look that way, I like it for that look. I think buy Chromexcel if you want a classic, comfortable heritage boot that tells a story quickly through high-contrast creases and quick darkening. Buy Double Shot if you want a more supportive leather that seems to retain its shape and stay looking clean and light toned for longer. So, I hope you like this video. If you do, I'd really appreciate it if you SLC. Subscribe, like, comment. Comment with your thoughts of which one you prefer. Let Let if uh you disagree with how I find how these two levers behave. Otherwise, my friend, take care out there and come back soon. >> [music]