Quote Originally Posted by longhuntr74 View Post
Firstly, to the OP, welcome to the forum.

Regarding the initial question, I don't own a pair of ghillies, but I do own a pair of Thistle standard brogues (regular wingtip oxfords) and want to share my experience. I'm sure (at least I hope) that it is an anomaly that the first time I wore them the sole showed signs of separating from the upper...it almost looked as if the stitching was loose or incomplete in the instep and that it was mainly just glue holding the sole on. I can't speak about the quality of Thistle shoes in general...again, I'm hoping that I just got a misfit...but I know I wouldn't buy them again.

Had I purchased a pair of Florsheims, etc, I'd have returned them immediately for a replacement or refund, but since I had purchased them from Scotweb, I was kinda stuck with a pair of shoes that are falling apart or spending $20 to get some of my money back or a replacement pair that I would have to hope wouldn't fall apart too. I've decided to keep the Thistles and recently wore them to the highland games...I'll get around to using some Shoe-Goo to glue the sole and upper back together (there's about a 3/16" gap when pulled apart). I've replaced the Thistles with a new pair of Florsheims for wear on better occasions and will continue to use the Thistles as a pair of beat around, highland games, etc. shoes.

It looks as if you decided on the Loakes...I think they are probably better quality. I'm familiar with the name, but have never been able to compare in person.
If you take them to a cobbler, he could probably fix them up a treat. The price would likely be less than posting them back to Scotweb.