How Does the Air Jordan 10 'Double Nickel' Compare to the Original 'Chicago' Pair?

A more detailed look at the differences.

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by Brendan Dunne

Images by Andy Hur

The Air Jordan 10 "Double Nickel" is nearly here.

The sneaker will release tomorrow, March 28, as the first Jordan 10 release to get the remastered treatment. The colorway is of course an original one, which is traditionally known as the Jordan 10 "Chicago" thanks to its straightforward white/black/red palette. Since Jordan Brand has promised that remastered retros will be as close to originals as possible, it seems appropriate to pit the 2015 version of this Jordan 10 against the 1995 original.

The midpoint between the two, the 2012 Jordan 10 "Chicago" that marked the sneaker's first return, deserves to be looked at in the same light. How do the pairs differ over the years? Did Jordan Brand deliver on the promise of a shoe that's as close as possible to the original in terms of details, materials, and shape?

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Heel Branding

One obvious difference from the retro pairs and the original is the orientation of the Jumpman logo on the back.  The 2012 and 2015 both feature right-facing Jumpman logos, where the original's faces left.


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Insole Branding

The original Air Jordan 10 "Chicago" features a red insole with black a "Nike Air" hit. The 2012 retro has a black insole with a red Jumpman, and the 2015 has a black insole with a white Jumpman.

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Tongue Tag

The original Air Jordan 10 "Chicago" has a straightforward tag under the tongue, featuring the SKU, barcode, and sizing info. Both the 2012 and the 2015 replace this with a patch that reads "Air Jordan Collection."

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Lining

The original Air Jordan 10 "Chicago" has a red lining with black under the tongue. The 2012 retro has a checkered red and black look for both the liner and the under-tongue area. 2015's Air Jordan 10 "Double Nickel" brings things back to original form here, with red and black showing up again. The original pair also designates its size with a singular number printed onto the liner. The retros instead have full size tags on the liner with the SKU, barcode, and all.

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Midsole

The original and 2012 versions of the "Chicago" Jordan 10 have a flat matte finish to the midsole. The 2015 is shinier, but it's unclear if the difference has to do with the aging on the older pairs.

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Ankle Embroidery

Unlike previous pairs, this year's Jordan 10 "Double Nickel" has "45" embroidered on the ankle. This detail is actually a throwback to Michael Jordan's player exclusive version of the "Chicago" Jordan 10, which had the same embroidery.

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Tumbled Leather

The original Jordan 10 "Chicago" had a tumbled look to the white leather of the upper as well as the black leather running around the collar and laces. The 2012 version has a tumbled look, but the texture isn't quite as rich as that on the original, and almost looks printed on in some places. The 2015 "Double Nickel" pair is closer to the original in this regard, with a richer leather–especially on the black pieces.

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Shape

The toughest of qualities to discuss is the overall shape of the retros. The 2015 version seems to have a sharper, more angular shape, which is more in line with the original. The 2012 stands out in this regard with its slightly curved silhouette.

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The Air Jordan 10 "Double Nickel" releases on Saturday, Mar 28.

Air Jordan 10 "Double Nickel"

Release Date:
03/28/2015

Color: White/Black-True Red

Style #: 310805-102

Price: $190