Black boots?

[Big Paul]

Thanks for the replies. I'm still looking for boots.. I'll let ya know what I come up with.

[Avonlea22]

Be careful with the Doc's. Many of them are now being made in China, and I've heard the quality is not as it used to be. Check out www.Zappos.com as great online shoe source. BTW, I bought a pair of boots at Payless for $24.00, and I'm fairly happy with them. I haven't worn them a whole lot, so I don't know how long they will last, but I've heard other board members comment on how good they were.

[phil h]

Hard to go wrong with Doc Martens, but I am biased.

yep dox for me too, black workboot look ok too.

[RockyR]

Those look like Doc Knockoffs. :mrgreen:

Seriously though. Do they have something similar to the Air-Wear sole? Good arch support? They are nice enough to catch my eye.

I have always liked Docs not for the looks, but specifically for what they did for my feet... And their construction. On a wet greasy kitchen floor, I never once lost my footing with Docs... Which says a lot. How do these hold up or do you know?

Sorry it took so long to get back to you... I didn't ask to have an email about this thread...

Grinders hold up fantastic. I've had a pair of 3 holes for 3 years and a 10 hole pair for 1.5 years. Both are holding up like CHAMPS. It took about 1 full day (that's it!) to get them broken in to my feet. They've not worn out and they haven't lost their form... just gotten better with age. Can't speak highly enough of them.

[RockyR]

Rocky - I've been wanting something like Docs, but haven't jumped since I've had two very bad Doc Marten experiences in the past (i.e., boots fell apart after a few months) So yeah, I'm interested in gettin' me them Grinders. How are they in the summer heat? Would you characterize them as being fairly light for leather boots, or on the heavy side?

They're "medium to heavy" leather for boots... DEFINITLEY plyable enough to take the shape of your foot and lower calf, but sturdy enough to hold up. Trick is to tie them TIGHT. Unless you have an unusually wide foot, when you lace them up, the leather on either side of the laces sould touch in the middle. to get graffic... (the 0 is the eyelet... imagine a lace going from 0 to 0)

0| |0 No good
0||0 Good.

Is that clear or is it too late for me to be posting?

[Dreadbelly]

But arch support my good man... I can roll a baseball under my arches...

A shoe is worthless to me with out good arch support, which is why I have always worn specific brands. Birkenstocks or Dox.

I am somewhat interested in the shoes you mentioned, but I want to know more about support...

Nothing hurts like a shoe with no arches.

[RockyR]

I don't know much about arch support... I know that I have relatively flat feet and they are VERY comfortable. They have about as much support as docs

[Silverlake_Punk]

Crystal clear, Rocky. Thanks!

Boy, aren't you the go-to guy on boots! When is USAK going to have its own line of footwear?

[RockyR]

sad thing is... I seriously thought about it.

Problem is... LOT of overhead to buy enough boots to have in stock and sell.

[Hal]

Greetings!
In "casual" mode, if I'm wering boots, I wear "White's".

http://www.whitesboots.com

I wear the "Lace to toe Smokejumper" model (I'm *not* a jumper...I'm a wildland firefighter on a ground crew). They have a clunky, functional look, which I'm fond of. I have wide feet (EEE) and a very high instep, and they fit great. They're a little pricy, but I put mine through some serious abuse, and they hold up great.

While I origianlly bought them (years ago) for firefighting, I now *wear* them hiking, backpacking (hillwalking to some of you, I think), and just generally anytime I plan to spend a lot of time walking.

You can order them in a variety of (sadly, quite similar) styles, and in heights ranging from 8 inch up to 18 inch and beyond.

Just my two cents worth...Your mileage may vary, subject to change without notice, Slightly higher in California, you must ne *this* tall to ride, etc, eyc, etc....