Engineer Boots, Harness Boots...

[Mich486]

This is a pair of Red Wing 2268 relasted/resoled by Dr. Sole (not mine unfortunately). I think if Red Wing made these I wouldn’t bother with any of the more expensive makers. Isn’t it all about the last?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Rigs]

Wow, they look good.

I think you are right, the last and comfort are key. I like the profile of the Wesco boot as it has the flatter toe profile without the more bulbous steel toe cap bulge, but I know some prefer this on the grounds of comfort and practicality.

The long and short of it seems to be that most engineers just look great with jean's and give their own distinctive look. I love them .

 

[Edward]

I have to confess I have never tried Redwing engineer boots or Chippewa, but the Sendra needed the addition of an insole to make them feel more comfortable than a rigger boot, but can't fault their durability. They are my regular motorcycle boot in all weathers so I would rate them highly as a functional boot, but for looks and quality they are a world away from Wesco.

Sound like they're not far off the Redwings. I tend to find with engineers I often need an insole (the exception being my Chippewas, which became a great fit once I stretched the left leg enough to comfortably pull the boot on. Still can't ear thick boot socks with them). The Wescos do indeed look amazing; if ever the pound recovers against the dollar (it's currently worth about half of what it was when I joined TFL!), I probably will get myself some Wescos - likely in brown, as I'm well covered for black boots for now.

When I look at boots twice the price of Wesco I struggle to see how the quality is substantially better when I look at the 7400 last of the boots I have. The stitching is perfect and wear them all day pretty much every day.

As with anything, after a certain point the law of diminishing returns hits hard; also, given the nature of the market, price is inevitably hit by exclusivity. E.g. there are only so many makers producing the lower profile, earlier-style boot, and they tend to be clustered at the top end while the lower-priced boots are more often the bump-toe style.

In my admittedly limited experience, brands that cost 2xs as much as much as Wesco are not 2xs better. I’ve now owned both Wesco with some beyond stock mods (basically priced in the high 6s) and Lofgren. Lofgren are more comfortable out of the box but not necessarily 1.5 xs as much. The design just Fits me better. I paid near $750 for my Wesco but rarely wore them because for my foot profile they were uncomfortable. I don’t take my Lofgren off. Therefore for me worth the ^$

Certainly that sort of fit thing can make all the difference. I almost gave up on my first pair of engineers (Grinders) until I hit upon slipping in a chunky foam insole with good arch support, and it transformed them for me, from something I couldn't walk too far in to an all-day comfort boot. If it was a matter of a hundred or even two ton on a boot that was totally comfortable on a daily basis versus one that was no fun to wear and so lay in the back of the closet, it's certainly a no brainer. Comfort really does have to come into the value calculation in a big way.

This is a pair of Red Wing 2268 relasted/resoled by Dr. Sole (not mine unfortunately). I think if Red Wing made these I wouldn’t bother with any of the more expensive makers. Isn’t it all about the last?

Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I would agree that's a thing... and if only high end, expensive providers make that style, then it's always going to be one you have to pay big for if that's what you want.

I do wonder about the future of engineer boots, especially if it is true that Chippewa are getting out of that game. The circles in which we move could well distort our view of the size of the actual market, but you'd think if they are doing that, RedWing's heritage range would do well out of a boot like this. I do see some very nice looking, RW level priced boots on Rakuten, but while realtively "cheap" they're still a bit much to pick up to try on the basis that a return would be so impractical.

I still wish Aero would have a look at something like this; I have no doubt they could produce a boot of equivalent quality to those, in the same style, at a competitive rate. Somewhere around GBP300-400.... which is not cheap, but for a pair of serious 'last a lifetime with the occasional resoling' boots, worth it.

 

[Bfd70]

Today I like these. Lug so,es make them look like shit kickers.

 

[Mich486]

Mmm... yeah I wouldn’t use them for anything else [emoji12]


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Edward]

View attachment 200228 Today I like these. Lug so,es make them look like shit kickers.

I really like the variation in the colour on those. Aesthetically I prefer a flat sole, but I wouldn't be without at least one pair with lugs as in heavy rain or snow they really come into their own. S'why I keep my old Grinders around, despite my Red Wings being technically much nicer boots.

Are these yours, or...?

 

[regius]

Dr Sole, I have heard of them for a while & have several pairs of re-soled boots with their product. But I only visited their site today. On their Journal page, most posts are in Chinese. The people in their main page photos also seem to be Asian. Where are they based? What’s their history? They also do relasting & extensive repair, beautiful work.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[regius]

Same level of excellence as RoleClub. At a fraction of the price... https://www.drsole2011.com/blog-1


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Mich486]

Dr Sole, I have heard of them for a while & have several pairs of re-soled boots with their product. But I only visited their site today. On their Journal page, most posts are in Chinese. The people in their main page photos also seem to be Asian. Where are they based? What’s their history? They also do relasting & extensive repair, beautiful work.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I’m pretty sure they are in Taiwan.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Kamotejoe]

Are ebay links allowed? Here's a potential deal for a US size 8

https://www.ebay.com/itm/S-S-X-WESCO-KNUCKLE-DRAGGER-ENGINEER-BOOT-OLIVE-WAXED-FLESH/174115590949

 

[Monitor]

Mini review:

How long have I been a member of TFL? ...and all this time, I never had a really good pair of Engineer boots. Well, this has changed.

Figured if I was ever getting a really good, pricey pair, I'd have to be perfect. So I was looking and looking until eventually discovering I liked Clinch the best. Aw, how cute. Except that a) I wasn't sure I'd could ever pay $2K for a pair of boots and then walk in them and b) I never saw one in a size 12, anywhere!

Plus I'm in Europe.

So I nearly gave up on my quest and decided I'd just be happy with my old Harley Davidson ones until I just the other day, I stumbled upon Rivet & Hide's outlet store and what do you know, they just happened to have one single pair of CXL Cordo Horween Viberg Engineer boots, size 12 at nearly half a price! I know they're not Clinch or Lofgren but damn it all if the pair on the site didn't have EVERY single detail EXACTLY as I would've spec'd it, down to the shaft height.

The boots arrived today and while I admit I know next to nothing about boots but these are miles ahead of anything I've seen. Thousands of miles. The box was 11 lbs how heavy they are. Leather is armor-like. It's pretty much the same stuff Aero's using for jackets only 2x as thick. And there's of course that CXL smell, too. The boots are very well made as far as I can tell but most importantly, they fit PERFECTLY! I don't think I've ever put on a boot that felt this comfortable & right out of the box, no less.

Well in any case, I'm really, REALLY happy with these. Huge gamble not having a clue how they run plus all the websites selling Vibergs giving conflicting info about the size and then there's all that stuff about lasts and all that stuff I don't even understand but sometimes things turn out just fine.

For the record, I'm a size 11.5 - 12 US or 46 EU and these fit absolutely perfectly in every aspect.

Also, another very nice thing is that I got a hand written card from Rivet & Hide which is a... Really nice touch. This purchase wasn't anything special considering how much most of the stuff they're selling costs but they still took the time to write me a note. I appreciate it.

Well anyway, a few crappy photos.

 

[handymike]

Congratulations!!!!!

 

[Monitor]

Congratulations!!!!!

Thanks!!

 

[AeroFan_07]

Absolutley amazing!! Only way they could be better is if I had ordered them. Just kidding! I know you have been looking for a long time and your patience has been well rewarded with these...enjoy breaking these in and loving them more and more.

 

[roadking04]

Nice pair of boots Monitor! Glad you finally found a pair. I think fit is the most important part. I am sure they will get better as they break in. Hope to see more of these boots in the future.

 

[Monitor]

Absolutley amazing!! Only way they could be better is if I had ordered them. Just kidding! I know you have been looking for a long time and your patience has been well rewarded with these...enjoy breaking these in and loving them more and more.

Thank you! I definitely will wear them. Just need to get past the embarrassingly new phase and it'll be good from there. I wear boots all year round anyway so it won't take long for them to look the way they should.

Nice pair of boots Monitor! Glad you finally found a pair. I think fit is the most important part. I am sure they will get better as they break in. Hope to see more of these boots in the future.

Much appreciated. If the fits get any better than they are now, I think I might as well throw my Chucks.

 

[regius]

Thanks!!

Now you know what I mean by I like the 2005 last Viberg


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[red devil]

Mini review:

How long have I been a member of TFL? ...and all this time, I never had a really good pair of Engineer boots. Well, this has changed.

Figured if I was ever getting a really good, pricey pair, I'd have to be perfect. So I was looking and looking until eventually discovering I liked Clinch the best. Aw, how cute. Except that a) I wasn't sure I'd could ever pay $2K for a pair of boots and then walk in them and b) I never saw one in a size 12, anywhere!

Plus I'm in Europe.

So I nearly gave up on my quest and decided I'd just be happy with my old Harley Davidson ones until I just the other day, I stumbled upon Rivet & Hide's outlet store and what do you know, they just happened to have one single pair of CXL Cordo Horween Viberg Engineer boots, size 12 at nearly half a price! I know they're not Clinch or Lofgren but damn it all if the pair on the site didn't have EVERY single detail EXACTLY as I would've spec'd it, down to the shaft height.

The boots arrived today and while I admit I know next to nothing about boots but these are miles ahead of anything I've seen. Thousands of miles. The box was 11 lbs how heavy they are. Leather is armor-like. It's pretty much the same stuff Aero's using for jackets only 2x as thick. And there's of course that CXL smell, too. The boots are very well made as far as I can tell but most importantly, they fit PERFECTLY! I don't think I've ever put on a boot that felt this comfortable & right out of the box, no less.

Well in any case, I'm really, REALLY happy with these. Huge gamble not having a clue how they run plus all the websites selling Vibergs giving conflicting info about the size and then there's all that stuff about lasts and all that stuff I don't even understand but sometimes things turn out just fine.

For the record, I'm a size 11.5 - 12 US or 46 EU and these fit absolutely perfectly in every aspect.

Also, another very nice thing is that I got a hand written card from Rivet & Hide which is a... Really nice touch. This purchase wasn't anything special considering how much most of the stuff they're selling costs but they still took the time to write me a note. I appreciate it.

Well anyway, a few crappy photos.

That is a very handsome pair!

 

[navetsea]

Congrats monitor, the boots have found you!

 

[dudewuttheheck]

Fantastic boots @Monitor !! You got an absolute steal with those. They should take your abuse well. Now show us some fit pics with them and some jackets!!