Durable Work Boots?

[ScaleLifeNewbie]

For all of you that work outside a lot, what brand boots do you wear? I work landscaping/lawn care and walk at least 1-2 miles a day on all types of surfaces from grass to rock hills; wet and dry. I had a pair of Keen Pittsburgh for around 8-9 months and the soles on those started peeling about 4 months after I bought them and deteriorated over the past few. I really like Keens due to the comfort, but the durability just can't keep up.

Has anybody had experience with Carhartt's boot lineup? Local HPM carries all Carhartt for pretty decent pricing.

TIA

[DRED805]

I haven’t worn anything but red wings in ~15 years. I’m a carpenter, so the style I wear on the job site everyday is probably different than what you’d want… https://www.irishsetterboots.com/wor...=work-soft-toe

I wore these during the rainy season when I lived/worked in Northern California, and they’re definitely worth the price tag… https://www.redwingshoes.com/work/me...ens-work-boots

They’ll help you find the right boot for what you need to do.

I’ve been tempted to switch to danner boots for years, but there’s nowhere to try them on near me. Red wings get the job done at a reasonable price, so if it ain’t broke, why fix it. Plus, if you break a lace or something, you can take them into one of their stores… they’ll replace the lace and clean up your boots for you.

[indybama]

I wear justin boots with steel toe. I work at a concrete plant, doin maintence, workin on trucks, drivin, pretty well everything. They fit good n not that expensive.

I had a pair of carhartt boots, they didnt last long at all. My dad got them for me for christmas one yr n within a few months they were comin apart from the soles.

My grandpa wore redwing lace up boots for as long as i can remember. He worked for the gas co. walkin around readin meters. He put ALOT of miles on his boots. He'd wear out the soles before the rest of the boot lol. But he'd take them in n have them resoled every yr or so.

So id go either justin boots or redwing...

[mikemcE]

Have had Justin and Redwing, solid boots. I wear a narrow width, Bates Gortex are the bomb!
My feet stay dry in the 100 degrees
Many Bates light weights available.
I’m on my dogs all day long in wet grass to offices I’m currently on my third pair in 11 years, soles wear out , not the body

[hpiguy]

There's a trade-off in my experience between weight and durability. I'm a big fan of US made Danner boots with stitched on soles. Just had my hiking boots re-soled again, I think they're 22 years old now. Still watertight, still going strong. I also have a pair of their Ft. Lewis for a taller insulated boot for winter time. Neither are true lightweight options, but they'll last a long time.

[ferp420]

i havent wore boots in a long time not since i left the carpenters union i had to replace my boots every 3 months no matter what kind of boots they were even my redwings dident last 3 months i took them in to have them repaired they just laughed at me sead they were unfixable i started using the cheapest boots i could find after that after i left the union i went back to flip flops ive been workin in steel toed steel shanked flip flops now for almost 20 years heck ive poored more concrete bearfoot than most people poor in a life time i dont need much for foot coverings i usualy dont even shoe up in the snow ive been known to shoval snow in flip flops lol
i guess the only real exception would be ski boots im probably the only guy to go in to lost and found at the ski resort to pick up a flip flop
it fell out of my pocket on the lift lol
me and boots just dont get along heck me and shoes of any kind dont get along lol never have never will

[hpiguy]

^^Steel-toed flip flops. Sold right next to the blinker fluid.

[Speedy-Triple]

redwings for the win. soft comfortable leather once broken in and great soles.

[Browneye]

Yep, Red Wings FTW.
If you get the soft white soles you can have them replaced with something more durable on re-sole. Any good cobbler will replace them at a reasonable cost, or just send them back the factory for re-soling.
I've learned to re-sole myself, for glue-on ones, I don't have a stitcher (yet).
I have five pairs and I don't even wear them for work. LOL

For work I would do their standard 875 moc-toed work boots. Yeah they're more than walmart crap, but the leather is good, they're durable and comfortable, and you can resole them so they end up being cheaper in the long run.

My self re-soled chukkas. I even bought a bench top belt sander for finishing soles, have done a half dozen of them, and all my leather dress shoes. These came with the white crepe soles which I didn't care for:

[Mike Flea]

Red Wings for 40 years, and these: https://www.redwingshoes.com/work/me...ork-safety-toe, are the most comfortable, like walking on a cloud, imo. I've worn out the Loggers, went through 2 sets of soles before the uppers just couldn't be sewn anymore. Their 10" Wellingtons are extremely comfortable as a driving boot. I currently have 8 pairs of Red Wings, all with safety toes, and all but 1 pair that are waterproof.

I'm in the Water Dept, so we're required to have safety toe boots, and Red Wings have been the most durable boot I've found.

[ScaleLifeNewbie]

Thanks everyone for the replies. I ended up going to s local boot store and he sold me on a pair of Red Wing Ely's. They fit perfect and were decent priced with a lifetime warranty/repair pass. He does in house repairs so i can go in there and get a sole glued back on or whatever the case may be for free. They are the mosy comfortable boots ive had and they arent even broke in yet.

I tried a pair of Red Wing flexbonds but didnt like them at all due to how skinny they were and the wire lace system felt corny to me lol.

Thanks again!

Bonus pic of my old Keens https://postimg.cc/gallery/DGKtRgS

[Panther6834]

I know I'm "late to the game", but you can't go wrong with Red Wings. Many years ago...before I became a Professional Chauffeur, and before I worked for crApizon, I worked in shoe sales (no, not self-serve, but full-service...if anyone can remember what that was like). Red Wings were ALWAYS the top-selling work boot. At the other end of the spectrum, and one of the WORST, is Caterpillar. People bought them, trusting in the name of but they are garbage.


~ More peace, love, and kindness would make the world a much better place

[Browneye]

Originally Posted by ScaleLifeNewbie

Thanks everyone for the replies. I ended up going to s local boot store and he sold me on a pair of Red Wing Ely's. They fit perfect and were decent priced with a lifetime warranty/repair pass. He does in house repairs so i can go in there and get a sole glued back on or whatever the case may be for free. They are the mosy comfortable boots ive had and they arent even broke in yet.

I tried a pair of Red Wing flexbonds but didnt like them at all due to how skinny they were and the wire lace system felt corny to me lol.

Thanks again!

Bonus pic of my old Keens https://postimg.cc/gallery/DGKtRgS

On the next go-round consider a goodyear-welt boot - the ones that have the sole sewed onto the uppers. In most cases a new sole can be replaced on the existing welt, but it can be removed and a new welt sewn on to completely restore the boot.

The bonded soles on the Ely can be replaced, but not indefinitely, and they do wear out. You also don't have any options on a replacement sole - it has to be the same one in order to fit. With a goodyear welt you can choose from a variety of soles to suit your use.

And an all leather boot is obviously much more durable than one that has fabric panels and trim. Good price for those Ely's, the moc-toe work boots tend to run closer to $200. Sometimes you can find factory seconds on ebay for a lot less - I've gotten a couple of pairs that way, my moc-toe Briar Oil Slick ones were about $150. The Briar Oil Slick leather is simply awesome - just re-oil to restore, amazing.

I think I got my Iron Rangers in oxblood the same way and they're awesome boots - more for style than work, although guys do wear them for certain applications. Unfortunately these are over $300 a pair, I think I paid about $250-$275 from an ebay seller.

For daily wear I really like the work chukkas, I work in an office. I've had a couple of pairs for several years - they are so comfortable and just last and last. I've resoled both with darker soles - I think they look better than the white crepe soles they come with. These run about $200-$275 a pair depending on the style. The original 595's you can only get at a retail store are simply awesome, under $200 when they're on sale, and just super comfortable.

A really cool guy in LA puts out a series of youtube vids on restoring boots - Brian The Bootmaker - check 'im out if you have interest:
https://www.youtube.com/c/BrianTheBootmaker

Red Wing Boot Company has a nearly cult-like following. Old American quality that is so rare these days.

[MaX-D]

I've had good luck with Red Wing boots in the past. Very comfortable and lasted me a long time before I had them re-soled

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[CREEPERBOB]

Lol, its been said over and over.
For a pull on boot, Red Wing Pecos' for the win. With the snake on the sole.

[Timmahh]

Had RedWings when I worked Utility Construction and when I Trimmed Trees. Best damn boots I ever had.
Hard sometimes to justify cost, but when in a tree, wielding bigass chainsaws you want the best you can get.

Wolverine or other 50-80.00 boots are ok for a few months when I used them in general constructoin. Maybe a year. Like Ferp, I'm Brutal on boots and shoes in general.
however the Redwings were great. And when you're in boots for 10+ a day, Gaffing/Climbing Poles and Trees, Comfort is a HUGE important often overlooked part.
This is where my Redwings shined, and the cost became a nullity. I have 5E wide ass feet. lol but only size 8 in a boot. lol Local RedWing Dealer got perfect measurements and they specially modified a set of boots to fit a bit better. This was in the 80s, when Customer Service was Job1, thankfully with companies like RedWings, it still is.

if I had to drop money on new work boots (try not to do that 4 letter word too much, lol) I'd be back to the local dealer and my dogs would love me for it.

[ferp420]

when i tryed the redwings i waz working the san fransico airport extention waist deep in the swamps building train tracks overpasses and underpasses and bridges so my boots were under mud 8 hours a day straight i might have gave them another shot but the a-hole at the redwing shop killed it for me

[Levi]

I'm required to wear steel toe boots for work. I've tried a bunch of different brands over the years. I hate keen, their quality is crap amd probably the worse. I'd rather wear a pair of Walmart boots than wear keen again. I use to really like carhartt but the last few pair I had were terrible and was killing my feet. The last last few boots I've had have been merlin. I've really liked them and they have been a good fit.

[Unclelee]

When your done messing with Redwing and you want some real boots. ARIAT.
I've worn em all, and Ariat is hands down my favorite.

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[indybama]

I was goina buy a pair of ariat this last time, but they didnt have them in my size. Justins i wear a 12 wide, ariat 12 wont fit, even tryed a 14 n still to short smh