Here is a pair of vintage, OG - for our purposes - Nike Air Force One High’s, in purple and white, from 1992. This shoe is excellent for several reasons. First, it is monochrome. Only purple, purple stitching. There is some white, a swoosh, and the outsole is white. Most air forces with white outsoles can look fake; indeed, most are*. This instance is pretty real though: the quality of leather on this shoe is unbeatable. Nothing on a $700 Italian shoe I don’t mess with, but for a basketball shoe, it’s pretty damn good. These were made in China, yes, but the MIC Nikes are a little better than wherever they’re made now. This concept is nothing new, though. $2 Levi’s from Sears were sounder than any Swedish jean today, just like these dusty leathers spank a Lux out of the park like that.

You have to hand it to this shoe. It’s purple, it’s a high top, but it looks harder and tougher than a Timberland. I, myself am impressed. It should be noted that AF1s are very high, true high tops along with the AF2 and 3 High. I know my man Jay Bil has this exact pair. Reason enough to buy it, to be sure.I suggest adding this seller to your favorites. He always has some serious heat, and those photos remind me of random stores in Delaware or Connecticut. Kind of a slip through the crack powerseller. One offs of not so much quikstrikes, but random small run shoes from the last few years you might have missed out on. I tend to have at least one of his auctions, active or otherwise, on my list at all times.*One notable exception to this is the very fine Nike Hong Kong Air Force from, I believe, five years ago. I personally do not own a pair, but it is on my fairly short list of shoes I wish to buy, and maybe look at for twenty minutes when they come in the mail.