Levi Strauss Signature Men's and Big and Tall Bootcut Jeans

The color of these Levi's is just a bit odd, as if the blue dye has a touch of black in it, but they fit as well as blue jeans are supposed to fit and "boot cut" Levi's fit over my Western boots perfectly. My 2" belt only has a problem going through one belt loop, but that is not a deal killer.

Levi's Signature line is largely similar in appearance to Levi's regular jeans, just at a lower price point. Signature 501s are like regular 501s, Signature 505s are like regular 505s etc. The cut, seams, and feel are largely the same. I switched to Signatures after dropping a size last year and now happily wear a mix of 501s, 505s, and 511s. The biggest plus is that they look and feel like the regulars but cost much, much less. Regular Levi prices fluctuate much more than they use to (I'm 68, so been wearing them 50 years), but I'd guess that on average 3 pairs of Signatures cost less than 2 pairs of regulars. A huge savings. All this said, there are some noticeable differences that help explain the cost difference. The most important to me are: 1) the fabric itself is somewhat lighter, though it's still a true blue jean material. If I did heavy work in them everyday this might be a deal breaker as I suspect they're more likely to tear and wear out faster.. For me that's a non-issue. They hold up fine even when I work outside or get involved with projects that do involve tough wear. 2) The waist band very visibly curls up, although that doesn't seem to affect how they feel around my waist. I wear a normal-width belt so it's not noticeable. It would be an issue if you don't wear belts or want to wear them with belts narrower than, say, an inch in width. 3) Levi uses a somewhat different waistline patch with the Signature line, and on some the trim piping seems to be a bit noticeably different color and pattern wise. My guess is this is Levi's way to subtly let people know they're not true regular Levis. I don't find this especially off-putting because, well, the patch is largely covered by a belt. You'd have to be looking for a difference to notice them. All said, I'm happy wearing Levis that cost much less but have the same cut, feel, and appearance as regulars, the minor trade-offs notwithstanding. To me they're just Levis, and that's all that matters.