Shoes that look better with age...

[Duodequinquagesimus]

Phenomenal shoes for reading

 

 

[BrownMetallic]

Golden Hour ... fresh squeezed snapshots of my Viberg Engineer’s “Hopper” in Tobacco Chamois ... haven’t worn these in months, I owe them some wear time once it starts getting less hot in NYC .... edit: wear them home,  if the coronavirus spikes doesn’t let up by end of summer

Edited July 12, 2020 by BrownMetallic

[SLAB]

12 hours ago, eeejayaich said:

@MJF9, here are some before and after cleaning pics. 

 

 

 

Love these, put my deposit down for a pair of these as well. Is this the regular CXL black horsehide? Doesnt seem to patina too quickly

[eeejayaich]

@SLAB, you are going to love these boots. The fit and comfort are amazing.  It is the regular CXL black horsehide. It is pretty tough. I still don’t have any scratches or abrasions on the leather. I use a heavy wax to condition my boots because I live in a place with single digit humidity unless it’s raining. Which is not often. 

Edited July 13, 2020 by eeejayaich

[tod]

On 7/13/2020 at 9:26 AM, eeejayaich said:

@SLAB, you are going to love these boots. The fit and comfort are amazing.  It is the regular CXL black horsehide. It is pretty tough. I still don’t have any scratches or abrasions on the leather. I use a heavy wax to condition my boots because I live in a place with single digit humidity unless it’s raining. Which is not often. 

Do you know if this leather ("regular CXL black horsehide") is different from his "hand tinted HH," which I see so many pics of?  I like yours better than a lot of the pics I see of RC boots with wear, where the HH gets all creased up.  I know some folks like the latter, and I understand why, but this looks better to me.

[SLAB]

@tod the 'hand tinted HH' is the regular CXL brown HH that he hand dyed black. It is still different from the super HH that has the wrinkly characteristic and comes with a serious upcharge

 

[eeejayaich]

@tod, yes, this.^   

[honestpand]

Not sure if anyone would be interested but Skomaker Dagestad is doing a GMTO of their Garen boot in Olive CXL. These are made by Miyagi Kogyo and look similar to John Lofgren combat boots but significantly cheaper. 

 

[hurhur]

Moto Engineers at about 1 year

[BrownMetallic]

Such shame to see these go, but having over a dozen pair of boots is kinda superfluous for the kind of lifestyle I’m leading, at present 

[Unworn] Viberg Burgundy CXL on 2005 last.

Taken w/ indirect sunlight...

Edited July 20, 2020 by BrownMetallic

[Thanks_M8]

^U sold them or u want to sell them? 

[BrownMetallic]

@Thanks_M8 Just wanna share them here for the last time.  I’ve had them for 2yrs ... was planning to break them in with the TCB WW2 contest pair.  But,  as it is, I don’t even start work until November, if I don’t get surplused... I work in the airline industry 

I got a ping from an interested buyer ... just waiting out to finalize the deal.

Edited July 20, 2020 by BrownMetallic

[mlwdp]

Now this is a collection! Damn!!

 

[hurhur]

Brother Bridge 

[mlwdp]

From 2005

 

[BrownMetallic]

Viberg Country Derby: Faux Stitched CapToe :: Black Waxed Flesh CXL on the 2040 Last ...

 

Edited August 9, 2020 by BrownMetallic

[shredwin_206]

Had some issues with the eyelets on my original pair. 
whites was quick to go above and beyond. They built me a brand new pair of boots. 
 

[julian-wolf]

How's sizing on White's? Looking at their 353CH hiker, in particular. I wear a 10.5 in RW Heritage, a 10.0 in RW Weekender, a 9.5 in Lofgren. Feet are on the wide side of normal, but very low-volume.

I know that my best bet would be sending tracings in either direct to them or to Baker's, but White's has a pair up on their eBay page that I'm eyeing…

Been after a new pair of all-leather hiking boots for a while now; thought I'd settled on Scarpa only to find out that they were no longer making their leather models, so here we are

[shredwin_206]

@julian-wolf sizing is pretty easy. 
I never dealt with custom tracings. 
I’d like to someday but I fit perfectly in an 8D in my smokejumpers and these 4q69 boots. 
I am a 7.5D in RW Heritage, 8.0 in converse and 8D in whites 

[erk]

On 8/19/2020 at 8:58 PM, julian-wolf said:

How's sizing on White's? Looking at their 353CH hiker, in particular. I wear a 10.5 in RW Heritage, a 10.0 in RW Weekender, a 9.5 in Lofgren. Feet are on the wide side of normal, but very low-volume.

I know that my best bet would be sending tracings in either direct to them or to Baker's, but White's has a pair up on their eBay page that I'm eyeing…

Been after a new pair of all-leather hiking boots for a while now; thought I'd settled on Scarpa only to find out that they were no longer making their leather models, so here we are

I've found white's to fit a whole size larger than other shoes. I wear 11.5B in Red Wing pecos boots, and 10.5B in white's. I think it might have something to do with the way the arch is - shortening the foot. If you have access to a brannock device, White's measures your feet with you sitting down. They rest the brannock device on a fitting stool and you just put your foot on it like normal 

this is the fitting stool I'm talking about. 

[julian-wolf]

Thanks, both—great info, even if conflicting

That's interesting that they use a Brannock device without weight on it; I'm honestly pretty skeptical of how useful that would be in practice, but the knowledge that they do so will be really helpful

I think I may send out for tracings and go that route—making sure I get a good fit seems well worth the extra $100 and change over buying through eBay

[sensy]

Here's a photo of my Fracaps that I use for hiking mostly.

[Elmer.Richard]

Sharing my Fracaps too. 

[MJF9]

Good to see some Fracaps.  I've got an old pair I still wear - really good, comfortable boots 

[MJF9]

Viberg Boondockers... will probably outlast me (pardon the unintended pun)

I keep cedar shoe trees in them when not in action

[julian-wolf]

Never heard of Fracap before, but the M120 seems like just what I’ve been looking for for the last couple of years now—similar styling to the Mountain Light, but with a lower profile

 @elmer_richard, have yours seen much in the way of water / mud? Are they reasonably water resistant? Conversely, do they breath okay? Around how quickly do they dry out?

[Elmer.Richard]

21 hours ago, julian-wolf said:

 

 @elmer_richard, have yours seen much in the way of water / mud? Are they reasonably water resistant? Conversely, do they breath okay? Around how quickly do they dry out?

A friend in the US got these for me in 2015. She bought this from End. I have worn this during my travels and I have used this in hiking so they have their fair share of rain and mud exposure. I just brush and then wipe this with a damp cloth. It helps take out the water marks. The leather is not oily. It dries out pretty quick, say about a couple hours. 

[Duodequinquagesimus]

lads, sorry if this ethically against the forum rules. Will delete if so.

https://www.sofmilitary.co.uk/victorian-black-ankle-boots.html

what do you think about those? 

[bartlebyyphonics]

no immediate thoughts other than they look one step away from these: 

https://www.rufflander.co.uk/shop/heritage-footwear/town-and-country-boots/world-war-1-replica-boot/

[Duodequinquagesimus]

^thanks!

so are they worth?