hi there at all.
first I'm sorry for any writing errors English isn't my native language.
I stumbled on this discussion searching for new Meindl boots.
Actually I'm dutch, living in the Netherlands.
Both Hoffman and Cabela have contracts with Meindl, so the boots they sell are made specifically for these companies. I never saw any of these models before.
A.J.Brooks sells the (normal) Meindl boots, I know every model and they're available in Europe.
I highly doubt there is a quality difference between the boots, but like any large buyer they will get a discount buying in bulk.
Meindl supplies many armies, Dutch marine corpse uses Meindl high alpine boots for many years. (I own a pair of this model)
I actually currently own 4 pairs of Meindl boots, and thrashed some over the years.
The issue of the Cabela perfect and the (regular) perfekt might be that Cabela can give any name to their boots.
It's just a completely different boot but it has the same name.
There actually is a model called perfekt and there is the super perfekt.
The perfekt is a class c mountain boot.
The super perfekt is a class D high alpine boot, 100% suitable for crampons and ice climbing.
I can assure you the super perfekt has no steel reinforcement.
For the (closet rot)issue, Meindl guarantees only 5 years on any sole and advises to resole the boots after this amount of time.
It's like car tires, if you park your car always the same way and one side would be in the shadow and the other side would be in the sun, the tires on the sunny side will start to crack sooner.
But the island can be resoled, just like most models.
Down side to having your shoes resoled by Meindl is a long waiting list.
Even over here a couple of months is normal.
I hope I helped you a little bit finding your answer and feel free to reply.
