Rockport Rockport Men's World Tour Classic Walki

2nd UPDATE: I went home (upstate NY) for the holidays and in my spare time went to a local, well-regarded shoe shop that I know in the past carried this model Rockport. After getting sized by a retail associate, they brought me a pair of 12 W of this model and it fit just like it used to. I checked the label under the tongue and was unsurprised to find that the country of manufacture was Vietnam. I bought them immediately, and would have bought two more pairs if they had any left. The price was also slightly cheaper, although after the headache of guessing sizes and returning poorly fitting shoes, I'd have gladly paid more.So, it seems that Rockport has either moved manufacture of the shoes from Vietnam to India, or that they have manufacturers in several countries at once fulfilling orders. Regardless of where they are made, the current lot coming out of India seems to be suffering greatly in sizing, quality and consistency. I'm going to submit this entire saga to Rockport in hopes that something might change in the future, but I'm not holding my breath. In the short term, I plan to scrounge through any area brick and mortar stores carrying this model in hopes they have some Vietnam-built in my size in back storage.UPDATE: I returned the last pair and ordered size 12, 3E (which I wasn't even aware was a size, but there were no 4E available in size 12). Tried them on, still very tight. When I compared them sole to sole with my 10 month old pair of size 12, 2E of same model... the older shoes are wider! Not sure where to go from here, but I'm probably never going to buy Rockports online again if there's going to be a complete lack of consistency on the part of the manufacturer.ORIGINAL: I've resigned myself to being happy with any pair of daily wear shoes that lasts longer than six months before they wear out. I'm a big guy so if the soles don't run smooth, then the inside back of the heel usually starts to fray/come apart. These shoes are better than most in that regard.However, the quality of these products has declined over the years. The last two pairs I've owned have been vastly improved by third-party insoles. Also, the shoelaces tend to break/fray easily, and Rockport-brand replacements in the right color are tough to come by.This time around, I ordered the same size (12, 2E) of this pair of shoes I ordered 10 months ago. The shoes' fit is much tighter, in particular around the big toe MTP. I don't suffer from bunions or bursitis, but I get the feeling these shoes might aggravate those conditions if you have them (or perhaps induce them...?). In addition, the shoelaces are shorter than I remember them being (although they do appear to be the same cheap quality that I mentioned above).I'm not sure where to go from here, since I'm pretty sure I can't return these since I wore them outside for a few days in hopes that there might be a "fitting in" period and they material would relax (but that doesn't seem to be the case.) The only difference I can see between the old pair and this new pair is the place of manufacture. The old pair was made in Vietnam and the new pair in India. While I'd love to buy American-made, I'm simply looking for a quality product that doesn't wear out quickly. And if it does wear out in 6 months, doesn't cost an arm and a leg (e.g. my last few pairs of NB).Next time, I'll try ordering a half-size up or perhaps even 4E width. Then again, I might just have too look for yet another brand that hasn't been suffering from these quality/consistency issues. I think I'll have my work cut out for me.