Land Surveyor, so I walk a lot, on all kinds of ground.
For over 40 years I have worn Red Wing 10877's . . . plain leather, no gore-tex or other B.S.
after break-in they are like wearing moccasins comfort-wise.

A year and a half ago, I spent a winter with plantar fasciaitis. If you've had it, I don't need to tell you how painful and annoying.
I got through the winter with a pair of too-big Muck boots with thick gel insoles and heavy wool socks.
Somehow, whether age or the fasciaitis, my feet grew a half size or more...

Now I need good work boots again - and my Red Wings seem to not be available near me anymore. Stores are closed or they are on back order.
If I gotta mail order boots, I'm wondering if there is an as-good or better boot. I've strayed once or twice to Rocky's, or the Browning Kangaroo boot in the past, but always end up back to those plain, moc-toed Red Wings. Bought a pair of Keens after my foot troubles because of the soft soles, but I destroyed them in no time! NOT durable at all . . .

Feet never ever bothered me in the past, but now I go to bed every night with sore feet, and they are very painful in the morning til I warm 'em up . . .
Any good, no B.S. suggestions??

Check out Danner. I have worn Danner boots for decades, for work, hunting, and casual. Many of their boots are not US made but some of the better models still are. The better boots are pricey but still of decent quality.

https://www.danner.com/

Do you wear steel toe boots?

In the 70's I wore wolverine Boots and quit wearing them when they started making them in china. they became not wearable.

Then, I wore Red Wing steel toe boots. I quit wearing them in the 90's as they did not last a year for me. At which time I switched to White's Steel Toe boot and they were the best. I was fitted for the boots and after a short break in time they fit like a glove. They will rebuild them when it is time.

I always had 2 pair of steel toe boots and changed them every other day, I never wore the same pair two days in a row.

They also make a pack insulated hard toe boot that is outstanding. if you are working in cold weather. or you can get by with a good pair of rubber over shoes.

I was hard on boots when I was working.I'd wear out a pair in about three months.I was around a lot of water daily and a lot of walking.Those glue on soles are junk.The best ones that work for me are the Irish Setter Elk Tracker.They are a well made boot and my feet stayed dry everyday. https://www.irishsetterboots.com/hunting-boots/big-game/Elk-Tracker-00861.html?cgid=hunt-big-game

Georgia boots. Hammer model.

Rather wear them than regular shoes. They are
that comfortable. Next to zero break in required
other than adding boot oil for protection.

No steel toes . . .
Always kept 3 pairs of boots - New Sunday boots for Church, daily work boots, and the worn out ones for around the farm & shop.
Just rotated them out as appropriate. Gonna check out the Whites and the Georgias. Danners maybe, but I don't think they make a plain field boot.
Also, usually like a plain crepe sole. Vibrams are just what my Dad calls "dogsh*t draggers".

27 pages. Minimum.

Yah . . . sadly oiled up work boots seem to be the thing with the straight-leg jeans and man-bun crowd.

Agreed

Thorogood Moc Toe for me. 814-4201 is soft toe 8”. The fire turned me in to them 7 years ago. Wear them daily.

https://thorogoodusa.com/american-heritage-8-tobacco-moc-toe-maxwear-wedge-814-4201/

I bought a pair of Danner Bull Run boots for work. Bought them mainly because they are made in US.

will be lucky if they last 6 months. The soles are so soft they are losing big chunks

I have a pair in steel toe - most uncomfortable boot I've ever owned. Definitely is an individual thing, person to person. I really wanted to like them. US made etc but damn if my feet just hate them.

I am a fan of the Irish Setter boots as well. I have the same pair as Baldhunter for hunting, but for summer, these are my summer boots. Waterproof, uninsulated, extremely comfortable. I work outdoors and walk a lot. Boot leather is wet from dew in the morning and they dry through the day but my feet stay dry. I bought a second pair for when these break down, but they are on their second summer and holding up very well.

https://www.irishsetterboots.com/casual-footwear/hiking-boots/trailblazer-00878.html

For a person on their feet a lot foot size will change over time. Never take for granted & buy what you always have. Get measured.

If ya like the crepe sole moc toe Redwing I suggest you look a Irish Setter Wingshooters. Lots of my buds wearing these.

I have a pair of winter Danner Pronghorn and a pair of Irish Setter Wingshooters. The model of the Wingshooters is 807 and they are 7” tall. Heavy and waterproof. I wear them year around in Wisconsin. I like them so comfortable for me from the start. My pair weigh about 4# did I mention heavy? I still like them.

Most likely age. I wore 12 regulars for many years. When I hit about 60, my feet started to spread. Now I wear 12W if I can find them, usually 13's because very few good boots are made in 12W. I've worn a lot of Keen boots because they make some models in wide. The last ones I bought were Lowa. Their sizes are kind of screwy. I have 14 regulars and they're the same size as Keen 12W's.

Another vote for Thorogoods.

Readily available in 2ee width that i wear.

I wear them on concrete all day.

Steel toes.

If not for that, I’d wear anderson beans to work.


I’ve got an older pair of lace ups. Soles are worn down. Leather still in reasonably good shape for 2 or so years old.

Got a pair of Wellingtons in the batters circle.

Good luck.

Speaking of boots.

Hauling hay now in a '74 IH with a leaky master cylinder.

Goddddamn brake fluid trying to get my Cape Buffalo's!

Got a sammich bag to wrap around your foot?

Look at Nicks https://nicksboots.com/ or Whites https://whitesboots.com/. Back when I was a young man I spent my summers working on a forestry crew and I wore Red Wing boots. I would wear out a pair every summer. Nicks and Whites are expensive but will last much longer that anything Red wing ever made. They are rebuidable also when you do wear them out.

Surveyor= hiking..... most surveyors aren't doing work like a plumber or electrician.... when I was a grade setter (similar to surveyor) I wore Meindl or Lowa all leather hiking boots OR you can go with the Whites/Nicks/etc. but they are heavier.

I have a pair of Nick's and 2 pairs of White's boots. They make great wheel chock blocks when working on or under a vehicle.

I'm not masochistic enough to put 'em on as daily wear boots.

I am hard on work boots, and I get sore feet easily. For me, the insole makes more of a difference than the boot. I will pay 75-100 bucks for a cheaper pair of work boots, then pay another 50 for aetrex insoles. For me, those insoles are worth their weight in gold. Make sure to pull out the old liner before installing new insoles.

I've been a Danner guy for so long I can't remember when I wasn't. However, there were times when I was short of cash or other reasons and I wandered into different boots and always came back to Danners for work, hunting, and working on the property. Tried Irish Setters several times when I worked for a company that gave us a discount there for their boots and they always came apart on me in short order.

In your position I would look at the Danner military style boots. Very comfortable and relatively light and usually priced very attractively. Those guys put some serious miles on boots and they tend to hold up very well. I usually wore Danner GTX for work and they help up pretty well on the raw concrete, mud, rocks, and other conditions we put them through. My hunting boots are the Danner Pronghorns and they are very comfy and I put lots of miles on them all year round.

Don't even look at Keens. I've had a couple pair and a buddy has had a couple pair and they fell apart in less than six months with light use. Their customer service sucks also.

As I've aged my feet have widened also. With the Danners I had to go up a half size and go to a DD or E width boot to solve the problem. Made a world of difference. At 69, comfort is a big thing to me these days...

I will always recommend Red Wings.

Another vote for Danner. Mine are steel toes and they are the most comfortable I have worn. YMMV

Thorogoods like Cheesy recommended are all I buy anymore. They are murderous for the first two weeks while you get them broken in. But once they’re broke in they’re as comfortable to me as tennis shoes and they’ll last me right at double the time the comparable model of Irish Setter/Redwing will.

I learned my lesson years ago working in the oilfield.

When you gotta have a new pair isn’t the time to be breaking them in.

2 wks in a brand new pair of redwings will have them dogs barking.

I put a lifetime of use on a pair of Lowa Zephyr Mids one summer in Afghanistan. They saw every imaginable type of terrain and held up very well. I tore the leather trim of one boot on a sharp piece of rebar that was exposed from the bottom side of a T-Wall. An Afghan PA who was a tailor before he joined the ANA sewed the cut with the thickest piece of Dacron suture material he could find then covered it with Dermabond. It's still holding 10 years later.

I like my Lowas alot!

I had PF in both feet. Tried inserts and other "cures". I started rotating between different boots a few days at a time and the problem went away in a few weeks.

And I thought this was going to be jokes about the only things left in the stores after the riots and looting.

Wesco Jobmaster's or Packer's... Way better quality and longer lasting than mass produced boots... And no long and painful break in process like Whites or Nicks... And when they wear out they will rebuild them... Just my experience...

This has been my experience^^^^^^

I like my Ariat Sierra’s