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Red Wing Recommendations

sal

One of the Regulars
Messages
244
Location
my own little slice of heaven
I have two pair of Iron Rangers. One in rough out. When broken in they are very comfortable. I do avoid walking in puddles as they are not waterproof. But I do recommend them
 

Destruct

One of the Regulars
Messages
117
Location
San Francisco, CA
I’ve currently got the Moc Toe (#875) and Weekender Chelsea (#3311). Can’t recommend the Chelsea enough, they’re super comfortable and easily my most worn shoe for the past 3 years, they’ll be needing a resole in the near future. I find the moc toe to be a little uncomfortable for extended wears but they look great, though these days it’s either my Wesco Boss engineers or the chelseas.

I’ve owned the #2970 engineer boots and found them to be extremely tight in the vamp so I moved them on.

I’d like to pick up the #877 Moc Toe at some point. Anyone know if the #877 fit is the same as the #875?

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zacharge

Familiar Face
Messages
75
Been wearing red wing for casual and work for about 10 years now. Here are my casual boots
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Edward

Bartender
Messages
25,352
Location
London, UK
How shiny are you wanting them?
Not patent! Would just be nice if i could polish a pair similar to a pair of prewar usaaf service shoes. Nitcgard to find similar boots that will do that way, of course. The IRs are just such a lovely shape.
 

zacharge

Familiar Face
Messages
75
Picked up a pretty much brand new pair of Red Wing 2996 roofer / lineman from a local eBay seller. 400 dollars. I’ve seen brand new in box for 575 - 1200 on eBay (Japan, etc). Got lucky with these
 

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Liam_Og

A-List Customer
Messages
419
Location
EU mainland
I find my IR can handle a lot of wetness and puddles and muck. They’ve turned into my dog walkers as they rarely let wet in and the gussets help keep the dew from the wet grass out.

Here are photos. Look away if you have a weak stomach. They have been cleaned and waxed recently, promise.
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zacharge

Familiar Face
Messages
75
I find my IR can handle a lot of wetness and puddles and muck. They’ve turned into my dog walkers as they rarely let wet in and the gussets help keep the dew from the wet grass out.

Here are photos. Look away if you have a weak stomach. They have been cleaned and waxed recently, promise. View attachment 678917 View attachment 678918
Looks good. I highly recommend not allowing water to get into the boots and saturating the insole. Happened to my very first pairs (mistakenly thought they would be good for the outdoors / my wildlife work) and the leather dried, warped, and cracked. Rendered them unwearable
 

Fifty150

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,335
Location
The Barbary Coast
Did you notice any discomfort from that during break in, and did it go away?


For me, no. It broke in fine.


I’m also the same size in wolverine 1000 mile, as blacksmith/iron ranger


For me, Red Wing and 1000 Mile Boots fit my Brannock size. No half size up or down. I tried one pair of 1000 Mile Boots a half size down. While my toes were not hitting the end, the boot felt too snug. Which kind of fits in with the advice to go 1/2 size down, and go up in width.


Break in was sore. Took a week, or less, if I recall.


I oil the boots first. Generously. Saturate the boot in oil. Then wait. Let the oil soak in a few days. The leather fibers become softer. The boot is usually broken in after a few wears.


Which ones are the most water resistant? Where I live, there are many shallow ponds and streams.


For shallow ponds and streams, you need to buy a waterproof boot made for that.







Screenshot 2025-02-10 22.33.21.png
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BaslerChrysler

One of the Regulars
Messages
110
I have Beckman round toes - wouldn’t recommend as they are very tight and lack work boot aesthetics (smth in between of dress boots and Iron rangers); Iron Rangers - they fit great and overall recommend, especially as they have much space in the forefoot; moc toes - do not fit me well as they’re tight in front but it’s classics; logger - same as iron rangers but with taller shaft; pecos - also recommend as they are for me pretty good fitting cowboy boots; engineers - wouldn’t recommend as they are stiff and not very comfortable; ice cutters - very good and warm option for winter (basically, they are lined iron rangers); supersole- they are like moc toes with a different sole and among few having insole which makes them comfortable due to arch support which other red wings don’t have. They are sometimes called frankfurters.
 

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