Indy, Iron Ranger, White's or ???

[pipvh]

Then you get they buyers who over spec them so they end up looking like a farmers disco on your feet, they really are too much for me.

:eusa_clap

 

[Highwaymanman]

Farmer's disco, I love it. I have a pair on order....

The trick, I think, is to avoid lace to toe construction, get the heel lowered a quarter inch,make sure the sole isn't too thick and stay well away from the exotic leathers and the temptation to go two tone. I've seen many examples which kept to this that looked spot on.

 

[bretron]

Ya can't knock the lace to toe action!

 

[nabottle]

I'm waiting in a pair of White's right now. I can't wait. Unfortunately, they aren't lace to toe.

 

[Highwaymanman]

Dunno, something about lace to toe construction just bugs me.

 

[pak]

I wear White's and have since the 70s. I just got a pair built on the farmer/rancher last. For a lighter boot I got a lighter leather in red dog color, 6" tops and a mini vibram sole. I pre treat my boots by melting beeswax into the leather with a hair dryer. This turns the red dog color into dark burgandy color. I wear them for work and with the beeswax base they clean up very well. Good boots for a fair price and great service.

 

[coloradorider]

Farmer's disco, I love it. I have a pair on order....

The trick, I think, is to avoid lace to toe construction, get the heel lowered a quarter inch,make sure the sole isn't too thick and stay well away from the exotic leathers and the temptation to go two tone. I've seen many examples which kept to this that looked spot on.

White's cordovan Semi-Dress boot in burgundy is my favorite White's boot. Horse might not be considered exotic around here though. White's also offers sharkskin, water buffalo, bull, CXL (horse and cow), and bison. I think all their semi-dress leathers are pretty reasonable and even the two-tone can be done well. Wesco's two-tone shoes are probably the best examples I've seen although they're a little too heavy duty for my tastes. I haven't seen the sharkskin IRL but it looks pretty interesting on the website. I have a 1.5" black sharkskin belt I really like but I'm having a hard time imagining a boot made out of it.

I think Wesco or Whites are great if you're looking for a true pair of work boots. They're built like tanks. For those who are looking for more of a rugged "dress boot" style, I'd recommend Alden, Wolverine 1000 mile or some of the Red Wing alternatives mentioned here. In my opinion, the "W" boots out of the Northwest never really escape the hard core work boot vibe and the two biggest markets for these kind of boots are those who use them as work boots and the leather fetish crowd.

If you're looking for something a bit more reasonable for street wear, then I like some of the other options better.

I like Highwayman's recommendation to buy a White's boot you can dress up slightly and wear most of the year. The only other recommendation I'd add is to add close trim if you wear a small size. This reduces how big the sole looks.

I know a thin guy (6' / 160'ish pounds) who wears a pair of double sole bounty hunters with a Vibram lug sole. They're a pretty hard core work boot vibe and he tries to wear them with khaki's and a golf shirt in the middle of summer. It looks like his feet are outfitted to go out and climb the Eiger. I don't know how he bends the soles and they look stiff enough to strap on crampons.

He bought them for his motor bike and they look more appropriate when he's wearing thick denim and a leather jacket. I kind of feel the bison, bull, and water buffalo leathers would fall into this camp too since they're so grainy.

 

[simonc]

Heavy lug soles? Yes I hear they're all the rage with a certain hairy leather clique in San Francisco

 

[Highwaymanman]

Forgot about mentioning the close trim, good call. I went for that on my order too.

 

[frussell]

Coloradorider - I've got a pair of shark cowboy boots custom made from the Paul Bond Boot Co. that are about 30 years old, and the shark foot has outlived the extremely well-made uppers, which I believe are high grade cowhide. If you shine them up, they hardly show a bit of wear. Exceptional stuff, not as stiff as you'd imagine for something so durable. Can't speak to the shark used by White's or any other company, but my own shark boots will outlive me easily. Frank

 

[OneEyeMan]

What's "close trim"?
Any pix?
Lenny

 

[bretron]

Close trim refers to a boot built with one row of stitching (instead lf two) where the vamp is stitched to the sole

 

[Grayland]

Close trim refers to a boot built with one row of stitching (instead lf two) where the vamp is stitched to the sole

Wow, what leather is that? I love everything about that boot.

 

[Dav]

It's British Tan.
http://www.eastwestapparel.co.uk/Whites-Boots/semi-dress-british-tan

 

[bretron]

I am obsessed with these right now!!!

 

[Highwaymanman]

Perfect example of how White's don't have to be ugly. Far from it!

 

[bretron]

^^Haha,

the only concern with this configuration is that the last was built for a higher Cuban style heel. Lowering and moving the heel back changes the way the boot fits. Ive read many differing opinions that its no big deal, and vice versa. Im still on the fence between this configuration or with the standard heel (Cuban, 1/4" higher)... Definitely no regular height block, or 1/4" lowered Cuban- both look too funny to me.

 

[Grayland]

I am obsessed with these right now!!!

I can see why. What a beautiful boot. Never cared for the standard White brown color (too dark with zero flucuation in color) and always thought the British Tan may be too light.

 

[OneEyeMan]

Thank you.

Close trim refers to a boot built with one row of stitching (instead lf two) where the vamp is stitched to the sole

 

[Highwaymanman]

I went with 1/4 inch lowered Cuban. The full height Cuban looks insane and the block heel in both heights is a bit clunky.