Shoes that look better with age...

[grouse_allergy]

mrswitch, you're making this way too complicated! All Ed really needs to know is not to get involved in a land war in Asia or go in against a Sicilian when death is on the line. Everything else is trivial.

[ChattyPuma]

On another note, does anyone here own any boondockers/roughout boots?

No but I want more info on those if you can. Please.

[Tarmac]

Life never calls on you to wear a black suit at a serious occasion. Charcoal or navy, yes. Black, no. Black suits are best for clubs and nights out, and you can have more fun with footwear for less money for going out.

In general, you are supposed to wear a black suit and black shoes at a funeral.

Many people don't, and its not a big deal in america, but that's what you are supposed to wear.

[HermitEdge]

When I was on an emergency shoe hunt, i picked up these J&M's. Granted, the leather isn't as good as Allen Emonds, they looked sleek and worked out pretty well.

Quick question on AE Park Ave's, do they run true to size? I usually wear an 8 medium in dress shoes.

[WhiteShark]

They are Replica WWII "Boondocker" boots. They have reverse leather uppers. It was a standard issue boot in the military during WWII.

http://www.wwiiimpressions.com/usarmy.html#buckleboots

The picture I posted previously was a pair of roughout boots that belong to a friend of mine. They are 20 years old, and have been re-heeled 4 times, and resoled twice.

for 140.00$ thats a dammed good deal.

The boots I linked to above are made at the Corcoran factory in the USA. All of them have full steel shanks for support....they are made to Corcoran standards, so the quality is great compared to most repros. WWII impressions was also given permission to have the boots made on the original Munson last, and is the only repro maker to use this. This boot was issued from

there's another boot that looks similar to this one.

Its a USMC Roughout boot, but the changes are that the toe is narrower, and the ankle brace on the back is full length. Its also 10 eyelet instead of 7. The Rivets at the end of the blutcher connection are also absent.

Here it is...actually, heres a show of all the boots WWII impressions makes.

I'm actually suprised nobody posted about this place yet.

There are other makers out there that make these boots, but not to this level of quality. And this is the only shop I've ever found that sells half sizes and wides in these shoes.

The allen Edmonds run true to size as far as i know. I take a size 10.5E in dress shoes, and thats what I wear with AE's, as far as I know thats what I've heard from others experiences as well.

[fre-co]

those roughout boots look pretty good.

corcorans have been mentioned a few times in the thread. I think Greg has a pair...?

[mlproject]

^^ 875s are ok without an insole imo, as the leather insole softens up pretty good. If the boots are tight with an insole, why not just wear as they are?

Some RW boots come with nice insoles though, so maybe try getting the official ones otherwise.

i wasn't a fan of them w/o an insole. tried to wear them in for about a week, but the footbed was just too hard. i got insoles from redwing. they were about $20 and make them feel amazing.

[almostnice]

I prefer insoles in all my shoes,i believe they protect the footbed of wear and sweat.

Have a pair of 1907,they came with a cushioned rw-insole bult felt a bit too tight, replaced them with a thin leather-only insole- perfect!

I am using the rw-soles in my 8138, which came without any and were too large,it does the trick an they are really comfortable now.Both are size 9.5 though.

[Ichiran]

I'm actually suprised nobody posted about this place yet.

WWII Impressions has been discussed here a number of times; crownzip posted a good picture of his roughout boots way back on page 55:

[jack napier]

I have a bit of a question, hopefully this is an appropriate thread.

I'm on a budget, and looking for a good black lace up boot of the shorter variety. Mainly to wear around the city and in winter a bit (with slimmer jeans).

I like the look of the Frye Sid... but that's a bit elusive in black. And I've head the Red Wing 1914 is a bit hit or miss. I also like the look of a couple Kenneth Cole boots, like this: http://www.6pm.com/n/p/p/7336284/c/3.html, or maybe http://www.bluefly.com/Kenneth-Cole-New-York-black-leather-%27Per-Formance%27-lace-up-boots/cat190146/214090300/detail.fly?referer=ca_shopzilla&cm_mmc=ca_shopzilla-_-na-_-mens_shoes-_-214090300 but by the price point, they seem like they could go horribly wrong.

All I really care about is a somewhat refine aesthetic in black lace up. I don't really want anything that looks blatantly like a work boot. Can someone point me in the right direction?

[dibadiba]

out of the two kenneth cole boots you posted, I think the first one looks ok aesthetically. the second pair is hideous though.

[jimmyc]

I have a bit of a question, hopefully this is an appropriate thread.

I'm on a budget, and looking for a.....blah, blah, blah, blah

searched black boots and got this

[jack napier]

duly noted.

[cabl3]

can anyone point me towards some boots like these

http://www.redwingshoes.com/productdetails.aspx?prodid=1901

that are taller? what i love about the gentlemen travellers is how they

look like a boot but have a very thin sole.

any help would greatly be appreciated.

[edmond]

whites smoke jumpers in regular toe cats paws with single leather sole

[cabl3]

so they'd be just like those, high laces, no tounge insert at the end and the sole would be thin like the RW's?

how much would i be looking at for that boot with those specs?

[edmond]

yeah go with single leather sole ask bill aorund 450 i think

[cabl3]

k will do..thanks much demonito.

[Denim Phenom]

k will do..thanks much demonito.

Dude, don't buy boots from Stronghold. They charge their customers $100 more for the same boot you can get some where else. I don't mean to talk shit but it's a rip off. Their is no reason to charge that much more when other stores charge exactly what White's sells them for.

The smoke jumpers are hideous boots. Get the GTs.

[tmadd]

Dude, don't buy boots from Stronghold. They charge their customers $100 more for the same boot you can get some where else. I don't mean to talk shit but it's a rip off. Their is no reason to charge that much more when other stores charge exactly what White's sells them for.

The smoke jumpers are hideous boots. Get the GTs.

Price doesn't always have to be the only determining factor. While I totally could get whites for cheaper from other places, probably even cheaper than Whites sells them for, I prefer to spend a little bit more at the stronghold because:

a) if the order is even a tiny bit custom, I am totally comfortable that Bill will make sure the guys at Whites "get it" and do it right, other places would probably be pretty surprised and likely not very helpful or reliable if I came and asked for a pair of 6 inch ltt smokejumpers with a roughout black upper and a tan bullhide lower portion with triple leather soles with natural edgetrim etc etc.

its a place I am much happier spending my money than most other places that sell Whites that I have come across, and I would rather spend a couple extra bucks there than go to some weird internet place just to save a few bucks on boots.

c) the service at the stronghold is better than 99.9% of businesses I have ever encountered

Those reasons might not work for everyone, but I think its definitely enough of a reason to not demand people not buy their White's there.

Also, with all due respect, recommending GTs in the place of smokejumpers is laughable. Its not that I have a vendetta against Red Wings, but in terms of overall quality, and being a super solid boot that will last forever, upgrading from a pair of Whites to a pair of Red Wings is kinda like upgrading from a Bentley to a Mercedes.

[dibadiba]

I agree with tmadd on this one. coming from a college student where $100 makes a huge difference, I think I'd still get 'em through stronghold. on something as complex as shoes, the difference between good service and great service can be the difference between an okay fit and a perfect fit with every attention to detail taken care of.

[Ichiran]

Getting back to the original point, I don't think of SJs as a taller version of GTs. It's apples and oranges -- the two boots have very different looks. I think the Semi-Dress would be a fairer comparison, but obviously those are low boots, too.

[the Repeater]

Hmmm... I want those WWII-Imp. black 7-eyelets, but I don't see them on the site...?

[coleslawyum]

Getting back to the original point, I don't think of SJs as a taller version of GTs. It's apples and oranges -- the two boots have very different looks. I think the Semi-Dress would be a fairer comparison, but obviously those are low boots, too.

Yes I agree. Smoke Jumpers can be compared to stuff like Wesco Jobmasters or Danner Rain Forest. But Red Wing and White's are at 2 different price points. White's is a customizable hardcore boot company. Red Wing is an off the rack relatively affordable, well made, boot company.

Semi dress just comes with nicer uppers, soles etc than the GT. Except the laces. The GT's have some of the most awesome waxed laces ever.

[Happy Hooligan]

well, all I can add is when I actually called Whites and talked with the guy who actually tells the guys what boots to make, he said he can make anything you ask for.

So why not take a 100 dollar chance by making a free phone call and ask Whites can you do this and how much? Plus you can actually send a tracing of your foot to them and get a pair of boots custom made to your foot and not just your shoe size...

Just seems kinda crazy not to?

[emmitbrown]

The smoke jumpers are hideous boots.

I just needed to see this again.

[cabl3]

I like the responses here, I dont know much about whites, but it did seem a bit odd to compare the SJ's to the GT's. I automatically thought that the semi-dress are much more like the GT's.

Im perfectly okay with spending more money to get what I want.

In this case, its a 9-inch boot with a sole thin enough to double as an oxford....doesn't have to be white's or RW...as long as it looks like that.

[coleslawyum]

I really wouldn't call the semi-dress a pair of oxfords. Dressy work boot, maybe. I would go more the English dress shoe/boot route if you wanted a single leather sole dressy oxford boot. Or a pair of Alden's AF43.

[Ichiran]

In this case, its a 9-inch boot with a sole thin enough to double as an oxford....doesn't have to be white's or RW...as long as it looks like that.

I assume that by "double as an oxford" (we discussed the technical definition of oxford a few pages back) you mean something along the lines of "boot that wouldn't look out of place with slacks". That's the whole idea behind the SD and the GT. But to ask for a 9" boot with those properties will be tough.

Think about what you're asking -- any boot 9" tall would be designed for real work and thus would have a heavy lug sole. You could look into WWII jump boots, which have a leather mid-sole plus rubber heels and half-soles, but the shape of the toebox is much rounder than even the GTs.

Your best best would be to buy a 9" RW (along the lines of those RW X J.Crew 899s) and have them resoled like the GTs by a good cobbler.

[edmond]

booties collection!