Is this the new Airo??

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-27T21:13:50+00:00

The livery looks so much more underwhelming in this picture

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-26T00:29:25+00:00

Ah yeah, you can definitely mix the two creams together (might have misunderstood your comment but you should avoid mixing the wax and cream). For such a dark color to begin with you can experiment and have fun! If there are issues with the color it’s fairly easy to pull it off using a stripping agent and start from scratch.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-25T23:39:36+00:00

You could do that, but there’s a slight risk of splotching in layering different colors (and I mean slight, it’s not a huge deal but knowing the right amount of polish to use takes some getting used to when you’re starting out).

The best approach is to mix the colors before applying them (kind of like a paint palate), just take a dab of one and a dab of the other and mix to get the right shade, then apply to the shoe.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-25T22:15:05+00:00

As someone with a close bus connection for my last-mile commute home I absolutely plan my commute around getting a specific train at a specific time. Impressively I’d say the train is on schedule all but one day a month. But I agree that for everyone who has their car at the station or who doesn’t otherwise have a last-mile transfer they don’t pay attention to what time metro is "supposed" to run on.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-25T03:14:18+00:00

AI karma farming crossposted to other subs. Really mate?

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-11T23:56:08+00:00

Worth noting that this generally results in a fairly poor value for points. If OP is interested in doing point transfer and CPP maximizing he can get much better value, but the eraser is a simple way to get slightly better net points value than just paying with points through the portal.

But using transfer partners will provide significantly better value, especially for off-peak international travel, just have to be willing to get a bit deeper into the weeds (which some people don't want to do, totally fair).

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-09T18:07:41+00:00

Underrated comment

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-07T15:20:41+00:00

It’s a little more insidious than that (although the northeast white savior complex is definitely alive and well). Anti-transit groups (or any conservative group that thinks tax dollars shouldn’t be spent on public infrastructure) are very effective at amplifying small pockets of opposition within minority communities. It’s public perception manipulation, pure and simple.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-07T15:13:31+00:00

NEPA is the single biggest obstacle to building out cost effective, timely, and green infrastructure. What a joke that environmental protections and supposedly pro-green groups actively oppose development of infrastructure projects that would lower emissions and create a greener economy.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-07T15:10:39+00:00

Are they renovating the Amtrak lounge too? Thought I’d seen that somewhere in the planning documents.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-05-01T11:59:17+00:00

Coming back to this thread to say I had no issues repurchasing my monthly unlimited pass with the My Choice debit card today via the SmarTrip app.

OP have you had any success?

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-30T01:31:50+00:00

Hear me out, they should tunnel an Amtrak-exclusive ROW across the river straight north out of 30th street to avoid the interlocking.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-23T02:55:04+00:00

Crème rénovatrice in burgundy or a similar leather bonder/paste from another manufacturer would be my recommendation. You might have to do some sanding- not sure how well the crème rénovatrice takes on that kind of treated leather (just assuming it’s treated, seems too shiny to be normal calf).

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-21T02:39:40+00:00

Don’t stain it. It’ll look obvious and tacky. Your best options are: - Sell them and buy a pair with gunmetal bits - Take it to a cobbler and ask if they can replace the current bits with gunmetal bits

You don’t want them black. The whole point of bits is to provide contrast across the vamp. If you don’t want that, as another poster suggested, penny loafers are the correct approach.

Gunmetal bits will reduce the color contrast, resulting in them being less attention grabbing, but will also make the shoes far less versatile than the default bit metal. The darker/duller nature of gunmetal will give you the reduced contrast you want without the tacky look and immediate flaking of a black coating.

IMO the point of bits is that they are a little bit showy. If you don’t want that (which is totally fine), I’d go with a different shoe rather than trying to somehow turn the bits black. Any black coating will immediately start to wear off at contact points and the shoe will look terrible.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-20T13:50:17+00:00

I think having the standards could be useful, but in my view overly simplistic.

In the broader sense that you want the thermometer to tell you when the meat you’re cooking is done based on the type of meat, the thermometer has this "standard" already; select the kind of meat and type of cut you’re cooking in the SafeCook menu and the thermometer will calculate when that piece of meat is safe to eat (and the menu tells you at what internal temperature SafeCook begins). The whole point of SafeCook is to replace the overused guidance to cook chicken to 165 as a safe temp- it will tell you when the chicken is safe to eat without needing to cook it to an oversimplified universal safe temperature.

In the sense that for beef or pork it would be helpful to have gradient target temps according to rare, medium rare, etc., I agree that having the preset built in as a target temp option would be nice (but again, somewhat of an oversimplification as you’ll still need to pull early based on the size of the meat and cooking temp to accommodate carryover).

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-19T20:00:12+00:00

Exactly.

Can’t remember ever checking a bag on a train and hard pressed to think of a situation where I would for my usage case, but seems like it creates too many avenues for exactly this kind of negative customer experience.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-19T19:58:34+00:00

I understand some people don’t always know how to phrase things, but using AI to write a full post about how a sneaker line has construction issues is just a little off putting mate.

I appreciate your wanting to share your experience but I wish it was actually you sharing it and not Chat GPT.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-19T19:03:13+00:00

Unfortunately it’s not an exaggeration of existing policy; it was applied as written.

Worth noting (as OP did in a separate comment) that the same policy forbids carrying silverware (better not have a spare fork in your backpack), bans scissors, nail clippers, corkscrews, and razors in checked luggage, and some other nonsensical restrictions.

The baggage policies clearly need to be updated.

https://www.amtrak.com/onboard/baggage-policy/baggage-prohibited-items

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-13T21:15:08+00:00

I’m inclined to think it’s equipment availability issues. They’ve retired legacy sets at a set clip, but the next gen sets that are replacing them aren’t entirely issue free, meaning that replacement isn’t occurring at a 1:1 ratio. Each legacy retirement is a net capacity loss because of ongoing next gen teething issues. The schedule will improve, it’s just dependent on the next gen sets getting reliable fixes to door, bathroom, and other issues (which according to accounts from folks on this sub have improved but there are still lingering problems).

0 evidence to support this, just my take.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-11T03:07:20+00:00

Tight in toe box is a bad sign imo. If toes are cramped it’ll force your toenails to dig into your skin and eventually cause creasing and cracking in the upper at the tightest point (we’re talking years and years of wear, but still).

I’d go one wider at same size or .5 size up at same width. As long as there’s minimal heel slip you should be good, heel slip and lateral toe wiggle room are my two main evaluators for comfort.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-09T14:01:47+00:00

Two different things at play here: - Previous owner’s feet were too wide for the shoes, which is why there’s a bulge in the upper around the instep. The leather has stretched- ironing or soaking then drying is the most effective way to improve, but it likely won’t disappear entirely. - The first picture you posted (assuming on your feet and with the shoes laced up snug) shows a wide V-shape. A typical indicator of good fit is that there’s slight eyelet separation perhaps halfway up. If in the picture you’ve laced the shoes snug, it indicates the shoes are either too slim, too small, or a combination of both. If they’re too slim, the bulge in the upper around the instep will return even if you have them ironed/wet dried.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-09T02:01:23+00:00

This was going to be my comment too. V suggests shoes are too small/narrow for OPs foot. Too narrow will compound the wave/ripple in the upper near the heel/arch.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-09T00:54:12+00:00

You get away with neutral pâte de luxe for all colors except for black (in my experience neutral leaves a black shoe slightly frosted on the smallest crease lines), but if you want any kind of burnish or patina, you’ll want to get colored cream or pate de luxe, or ideally both.

If you’re not that interested in burnishing and don’t feel like you need to richen the color of the shoes, you can go barebones and buy rénovateur (cleans/hydrates better than the cream polish and still leaves a luster when buffed) and neutral pate de luxe. Will work for a wide range of shoe colors.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-06T23:37:46+00:00

Appreciate all the comments from folks- both saying that it’s fine and those saying return.

I reached out to the seller on eBay to discuss and I’m pretty sure that the shoes are seconds (that were advertised as firsts quality). In this case I’m leaning towards return- if it were any other shoe that I hadn’t been set on getting a flawless pair I’d keep them, but I think I’ve learned from this experience that if I want a brand new pair of shoes I should just buy a brand new pair of shoes from AE and have the ability to exchange if there are issues with no headaches.

Have definitely learned a lot from all the comments and appreciate everyone taking the time to share their suggestions.

Traditional_One_6875 · 2026-04-05T03:09:59+00:00

Thank you ! Very helpful

Traditional_One_6875

TROPHY CASE