u/DrunkenMasterII

I love the made in_ series especially the Made in Germany ones this is my favourite collection they have going at the moment. Basically they’re taking a classic models so far Superstar, Spezial and ZX8000 and making the silhouette as authentic to the original as they can, give them high quality materials with leather lining and charge us almost double the price as the standard version… it might sound crazy to some people reading this, but I think it’s absolutely worth it. If you put them in perspective in a world where adidas sells Y3 for $500cad, WB are flirting with the $300 line and basic classic models are $140-160 I don’t mind paying collabs price for materials and craftsmanship on my favourite classic models. I won’t lie the quality control could be a little better on some cuts it’s not perfect (looking at the serrated edges in particular), but it’s definitely better than regular pairs and the materials are much nicer.

I might be basic as fuck, but I’d love if they’d revisit the Gazelle, Samba and Stan Smith the same way they did the last 3 models. I just got the black Spezial and I love spezials, but I can’t help and think how I wish I had a pair of classic black Samba of that quality. I just love the idea of having the ultimate quality version of my favourite sneakers. I don’t care if they look exactly the same as the regular pair for 99.9% of people looking at them these shoes are really, more than anything else in my collection, for myself. I’m just happy to share my enthusiasm of those with a few of you guys and maybe hope people at adidas stumble on a post like this and give us even more of what I like… but not too much I still need to be able to afford them 😰.

P.S. they also did a pair of Berlin in 2024 and they’ve made some more made in Germany pairs in the past, but I feel like they really ramped up production with the 3 models I mentioned. There seem to be an effort to get the production line in constant operation and the products more integrated in their catalog of products and less like limited exclusivity. I have absolutely no insight into Adidas production so I don’t know what are their goals with that line, but I have to say that I love what they’ve been doing the last two years.

Model KI4761

I was waiting for these and getting a little anxious seeing a few people saying the shoes fit pretty large, but in the end I don’t know if there’s a huge difference between the brown pair and the black pair or these people just don’t buy a lot of adidas because these are pretty tight. I got them same size as usual which is half up from my true size and I can’t imagine getting them true size. They fit perfectly snug, more snug than regular samba same size than my Stan Smith freizeit.

Other than that they look amazing and unique, clearly a lot of attention to details was put into it and mix of materials fit nicely together. I didn’t realize the stripes were suede before buying them. The rest of the materials quality is pretty average, the main leather seems to just be soft tumbled leather with a heavy coating for a polished look, the toe cap is some synthetic felt like material and the lining is just the regular synthetic plastic coating for the heel area and tongue, unlined where the stripes are and regular textile lining in the toe area. I always wish for the best materials and in that regard it’s a little disappointing, but I think the uniqueness of the shoes construction justifies the pricing and the shoes don’t feel cheap. If they did better on the materials the shoes would’ve probably ended up $300+ which doesn’t make sense for the SFTM collab. So I’m satisfied of what I got for what I paid and can’t overstate how amazing I think they look.

P.S. they also come with regular laces options in white and black and in case you’re wondering the thin round laces attach together at the end (as you can see on the pictures), it’s not two pairs of laces looped in.

Model JI3231

They barely cost more than basic pairs of Samba when they were released, but the quality on these put some much more expensive pairs of adidas to shame. That leather with the brogues detailing is so nice and it has a full leather interior, I understand brogues isn’t necessarily for everyone, but I’m still surprised these didn’t just flew off the shelves at the price they were selling them for. Even today they can still be found under retail.

Model JS1822 Billy’s x Size?

Every time I put those on I’m amazed by how nice that deep brown leather look.

Model IG6351

I purchased those out of curiosity reading the Dassler interview with From soul to sole co-author, Jason Coles. I was curious to see the different elements that were changed to make this pair more authentic to the original according to the original designer Jacques Chassaing. The good thing is I have a pair of forum 84 hi from the year before those so I can compare and honestly it’s kind of cool, like the more supporting sockliner or how the tongue is connected to the shoes leaving no extra tongue material hanging or the metal eyelets, it’s small details, but it’s nice and the overall quality on those is pretty solid.

I’m a perplexed though because while these small elements were important for authenticity the design of the shoes meant they stitched the strap to the upper rendering it almost useless in function, at least it’s not working as intended as it’s stitched all along the ankle part. It just seems to me like such a strange choice for one of the major design element of the Forum considering the attention for authenticity given to small elements. There’s other elements in the material choices of the upper that are not authentic, but I don’t mind like the toe cap in suede I’m curious if it was done consciously as like an hommage to the Top Ten which were basically predecessor of the Forum.

The design is inspired by NYC and its graffitis seeing during a blizzard by Chassaing while he was stuck waiting for his plane after one of the initial meeting for the forum project. I think it’s cool and gives off a strong 80s vibe that I dig, but if I’m being completely honest I personally would’ve much preferred if they tried to remake a 1:1 model of the forum like when it came out, with the extra attention to details that Jacques could provide than trying to sell a story. The strap situation for me works against what I found interesting about the shoes and I’m ending not liking them as much as I wish I did. It just leaves me craving for a really well made re-edition of the original Forum.

Model If5787

Easily in my top 10, I love these so much I often think maybe I should buy a second pair. I know it’s already quite unusual for SPZL collections that we got 4 variations of this model (excluding the oasis exclusive pair) so I’m not holding my breath to see these being made again, but I really wish we got these exact same with the synthetic tongue in other colours than just green and black. I’d give a huge chunk of my collection just for a pair of these in classic gazelle red and blue bird.