Engineer Boots, Harness Boots...

[sasquatch]

Once you get the boots broken in they should work fine. Heavy leather, especially pull on boots, tend to do that- ride up your heel.

Or if you really want the boot to mold to your foot(quickly) do what I do, pour water in the boot- preferably on a warm day- and wear them all day or until dry. Don't fill them completely full, just a water glass will do. Take them off for the night, put a fan on them to finish drying and when you put them on the next day they are molded to your foot.

Course, if the boots are not top quality leather and stitching they will fall apart when wet. But with a good quality boot it works.

Or just wear them dry, day in and day out and they will eventually break in on their own.

 

[GriffDeLaGriff]

Thats a good tip but Its snow here right now so I dont
know about going all day with wet feet

Im gonna just walk with them everyday in the snow and
if they still slip after breaking in Ill adjust with a heelcup
or something like it.


Thnaks for the link to the heelcup.

 

[GriffDeLaGriff]

Just want to clarify that my boots are the RedWing 2268.
I dont think I specified it.

They look alot like the Work america boots.

 

[marineabilly]

WORK AMERICA BOOTS - MADE IN AMERICA

marineabilly,

How long have you been wearing your Work America boots? I was a little surprised to see that "Work America" boots are made in China. I'm curious to see how they hold up. Do you know if the company is also Chinese?

Have yours' held up well?

I have proof that my Work America Enginer Boots are made in the good ol' U.S. of A.

The original box:

 

[jon z]

Boot Fit and My Boots

Griff. You mention your boots are hard to get on & off. I too have that problem with Engineer Boots & my research found that this is a problem experienced by those 'blessed' with high arches/insteps. Basically this means the circumference measured around the top of the instep & the back of the heel is too big to fit down the boot shaft. I've found a way to alleviate this to a great extent. When putting on my boots I use a strip of thin plastic which I place down the back of the shaft before putting my foot in. Then as I push my foot into the boot I pull up on the plastic strip. I find my boots are far easier to put on this way. It helps in two ways.

1) The plastic offers far less in the way of friction for the heel to slide against than does the rough side of the leather.

2) It also prevents the back of the shaft folding under the heel as it is pushed in causing an obstruction.

I fashioned my boot horn out of a paint guard used to protect carpets when painting skirting boards. These can be bought in UK DIY stores in packs of five for very little money. They have a natural curve which is ideally suited to use as a boot horn. I also use this to make the boots easier to get off. Below is a pic of mine.

With regard to heel slippage I find this is only noticeable with new boots. The slip occurs when the foot bends but the boot doesn't. I bet your boots are pretty stiff at the moment & the sole is resisting bending with your foot. This will soon ease off as the sole becomes more pliable & the slip will not be a problem.




Here's my two pairs:

Toys McCoy 'Beck's'






Xelement's





These are an absolute bargain on LeatherUp.com (no affiliation) at the moment. $71.95 for the 1440's & $69.95 for the 1915's. OK they are made in China but getting this kinda quality at those prices I couldn't give a damn.

 

[GriffDeLaGriff]

Thats a smart device.
Maybe Ill make one

THose boots look very good.
I especially like the becks, they are beautiful!
Leather looks really thick and lovely

 

[jon z]

Thats a smart device.
Maybe Ill make one

I'd recommend it if your boots are tight to get on. Not only does it make the process easier but it will prevent the heel caps being crushed over time due to excess force required to get your foot in place.

THose boots look very good.
I especially like the becks, they are beautiful!
Leather looks really thick and lovely

Thanks. Yeah the leather is thick & these are a high quality product. I didn't find it easy getting them out of Japan. I eventually used a proxy buyer who I can't recommend highly enough but of course this service has to be paid for on top of the already high purchase price of these boots.

 

[PoohBang]

one thing that maybe sometimes we forget, is we can unbuckle our boots to put them on and off. I know it might sound silly, but for while I wasn't and it was an ordeal to get them off, now I unbuckle and it's much easier.

these are my custom wesco's

 

[South]

I have proof that my Work America Enginer Boots are made in the good ol' U.S. of A.

marineabilly - that's good to hear. I was going by reviews of the boots on a site or two (Zappos, maybe or Amazon or some such) that stated they were in China.

So, Work America boots come in a box labeled, "Sequoia by Redwood Sportswear"? They don't say "Work America"?

I may have to try out a pair, myself.

 

[South]

one thing that maybe sometimes we forget, is we can unbuckle our boots to put them on and off. I know it might sound silly, but for while I wasn't and it was an ordeal to get them off, now I unbuckle and it's much easier.

these are my custom wesco's

Those are great looking boots. Would you mind giving some details on your custom options on these boots?

Thanks.

 

[marineabilly]

marineabilly - that's good to hear. I was going by reviews of the boots on a site or two (Zappos, maybe or Amazon or some such) that stated they were in China.

So, Work America boots come in a box labeled, "Sequoia by Redwood Sportswear"? They don't say "Work America"?

I may have to try out a pair, myself.

Well, that's the box they came in, at least.

Here is a pair I just listed in the Classified's They are a pair of rare 1940's Chippewa boots.

 

[PoohBang]

Those are great looking boots. Would you mind giving some details on your custom options on these boots?

Thanks.

regular Boss Boots. In Brown, brass hardware, lowest sole they offered, and motorcycle toe.

I think you can get even more specific with them now but a few years ago, this was the best you could do.

Tell them you want the poohbang special!

 

[South]

regular Boss Boots. In Brown, brass hardware, lowest sole they offered, and motorcycle toe.

I think you can get even more specific with them now but a few years ago, this was the best you could do.

Tell them you want the poohbang special!

Thanks. It's a good combination.

 

[celtic]

I have never had a pair of engineer boot fit me well. I've pretty much given up on them. I have one pair I still have and use them once in awhile on the bike when I know I won't be walking much - they're super comfortable when riding but otherwise kill my feet. (I am blessed with having high arches and instep, narrow heels and slightly wide up front.)

Anyhow, if I was going to try another pair I'd spring for these:

http://www.bakershoe.com/shop-by-brand.cfm/brand/whites-boots/product/open-road-by-whites-boots/

They're made in the USA by Whites, come in different soles and seem to be a steal compared to wescos and bucos.

$249.99 + free shipping conus.

Jon Z needs to get a pair and tell me how they work with his high arches!

 

[jon z]

Damn Celtic. They are fine looking boots & jon z would love to give them a go. Right now though I have another pair of Japanese origin Engineer's in my sites. Thanks for the link though. I've not seen these before.

 

[HDRnR]

I have never had a pair of engineer boot fit me well. I've pretty much given up on them. I have one pair I still have and use them once in awhile on the bike when I know I won't be walking much - they're super comfortable when riding but otherwise kill my feet. (I am blessed with having high arches and instep, narrow heels and slightly wide up front.)

Anyhow, if I was going to try another pair I'd spring for these:

http://www.bakershoe.com/shop-by-brand.cfm/brand/whites-boots/product/open-road-by-whites-boots/

They're made in the USA by Whites, come in different soles and seem to be a steal compared to wescos and bucos.

$249.99 + free shipping conus.

Jon Z needs to get a pair and tell me how they work with his high arches!

Just get a pair of custom made Wesco's, not sure about the high arches but if Wesco cant accomodate for that you could always get inserts from Heel-the -Pain, which are made for plantar fasciatus. Also Carolina boots has fantastic arch support in their boots.

 

[jon z]

Carolina's

Nice boots. I bought this NOS pair on eBay knowing they were marked a size smaller than I wear but hoping they ran (no pun intended) big as they were too nice to resist. Unfortunately they were too small. With major effort I got them on & my feet felt as if they'd been wrapped tightly in wet leather bindings which had then shrunk as it dried. Nice quality, styled how I prefer my Engineer's with a high, blunt-ended toe box.

Now sold on thanks again to eBay.

I paid $130.50 for these in March last year. If you compare them to my Beck's shewn previously in this thread I think you'll agree they are not too dissimilar. OK the Beck's have the edge on quality but it's not that much as to be anywhere near in proportion with the purchase price. Just an observation, not a moan as I love the Beck's, have no regrets about buying them & would again without hesitation if the need arose.

 

[BigHairyFinn]

Dang, I just got an ancient pair... "Longhorns" it says.
Would need to grease them up a bit,
they were in the garage with the other motorcycle gear a bit abandoned.

But for winter I scored these off ebay; German navy sheeplined "deck boots"

 

[GriffDeLaGriff]

So i took the advice about water and filled my boots halfway up
with hot tap water, let them stand for a coupple of minutes
and then poured it out and took a 20min walk with slightly
thicker socks.

When I got home I took them off and started to blowdry them.
As I did this, i noticed where the boots had creased both on the
foot and also on the high part (that goes up the leg) and started to
fold the boots back and forth making all the natural creases bigger.
I kinda agressively folded the entire boot back to get the
fold over the heel.

I folded the boots many times during blowdrying as they were very stiff.

But then I realized, why couldnt I shape the heel? I saw no reason
so as the leather was still wet I agressively pinched the entire heel
together making it very narrow. I did it many times during drying
and creasing the rest of the boot.
To try and explain, looking at the heel from the back I shaped a sharp
triangle so that the heel would get snug, and I also pinched it in alot
from the sides.


Then I let them dry for 2 days and now they fit me good.
The heel is still slipping, but not at all like before.
The biggest problem right now is uphill in snow, this makes the heel
slip alot, but on even ground and no snow the problem is almost gone.

The thing about theese boots is that the inside is really suede-like
in a very non slipping kind of way. The foot is actually slipping inside
the sock wich is sticking to the walls like there is no tomorrow.
I suspect this will gett better when they are more broken in as the
inside will get wear.

 

[HDRnR]

Jon Z, those Carolina's are amazing. Not sure if modern one's are of the same quality, the modern one seems to have a thinner sole. I have a new pair of Carolina Linesman boots and they are fantastic boots for the money. Excellent fit in a wide for my foot. Also that toe style you like is still made by Wesco as a special order, its called a bump toe.