Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Hand-made Boots?

Wesco's for me... I bought a pair of Whites once... They were Very High Quality and fit perfect but took months to break in... Lots of pain from the high arches and calluses on top of my toes that lasted for yrs... I took a baseball bat and beat those MFr's till i about passed out (shoulda' seen the look on the neighbors faces)... They were some better after that (the boots i mean)... As a serious side note, The arch supporting forward heel design on Whites and some other brands can be dangerous on ice... Its shifts your weight and your feet can slip right out from under you... Broken wrist the third time i went down.... Lesson learned!

when the soles get hard when cold the boots aint worth schtt, just a hazard.


norm

Just you wait a cotton pickin minute……

Quality has a price……

Don’t forget that!

Wow, pain and calluses sounds great ! Gotta get me a pair a them perfect fitting hand made custom boots ! These cheap ass Carolinas I been wearing are just too damned comfortable.

https://www.jkboots.com/

Awesome boots, easy break in, wear like iron.

Fair question.

My White's hikers cost around $275.00, I don't know how many years ago that I ordered through Kyle. Just over a year old, I was cleaning them and the vibram soles were cracked. Kyle said send them back and he put me new soles on for free and I'm still got them but not wearing wearing them much. Those boots cost over $500.00 now and are not worth it for what they are IMO.

Those lightweight boots took over a month to break in. The sock liner will come unglued and after a couple of years the nails started working through the footbed, then you have to take a pair of needle nose pliers a pull the nail up through the footbed. I don't know how they are staying together because I've probably pulled over half the nails up through the footbed.

Saying that, the MFers are comfortable. Just working or walking around, I never put on a pair of socks wearing them. Probably my favorite boots and the best value in boots that I've ever owned. I couldn't say that it wasn't for Kyle at Bakers.

I bought a pair of White's Farmer Ranchers from ebay for about half price and got around 2 years out of them mostly because they stayed covered in manure and the acid broke them down. The break-in on those was worse than the hikers.

Got a new pair of Hawthorn by White's on ebay. They are Caulks so they haven't been worn much. They are a cheaper made boot so the break-in wasn't bad.

I've got two pair of Job Masters from Wesco off there discount list. They are the most comfortable to me when they are laced up the first time. The Wesco discount list is a joke anymore. They are a long way from being worn out so I can't give a long term report on those.

The Keens are the easy button, especially if you are getting a boot allowance. I bought a pair of insulated ones to drill in when winter came and a new pair when I started for that glorious week I spent at Tesla.

I don't know what is the best. My first pair of handmade boots were Austin Halls. Those things were resoled like 8 times and then I sent them back to be revamped. That was a pretty good experience that biased my opinion.

I have transitioned into wearing flip flops where OluKai is the clear winner. For tennis shoes, Onn's are damn comfortable but don't last.

Peter Limmer & Sons New Hampshire. Limmerboots.com

Thanks Powder, great report

as a climbing lineman for a REA in my day a good pair of boots were a must we never had bucket trucks building line , so i always had a pair of Westco tall length we called snake boots that i applied NEET`s foot oil too couple times a year boots would last about 2 years,. so i ended up buying another new pair of boots and then i would send the beat up pair back too Westco and Wesco would rebuild them so i ended up having two pair most of the year which was best anyway then i always had a dry pair to climb in . a good pair of climbing boots like Westco were a joy to climb in and did make it so much more easy when you got your hooks on.

I bought my 1st pair of Russell's in 1994 and still have them. I have bought 3 others from them and still have 2 of those 3. Overall I really like them. My feet are long and narrow. Consequently for serious mountain hunting boots I need custom made boots. Russell Moccasins have served me well over the years.

I have had 3 pairs of Russell's made. The first pair when I was young and hunted almost every day I was off work and I am off 2 weeks a month. They lasted 18 years. The 2nd pair is a pair of Mt. Boots that fit great and are 10 years old still in great shape. Wearing them tomorrow to deer hunt. 3rd pair lightweight kangaroo leather boot did not fit like the other 2. Had them resoled once. Like them but don't love them like the first 2. They are close to 10 years old and look new.
Both pairs I expect to outlast me. Mine were definitely worth the money to me. I have odd shaped large wide feet and custom is much more comfortable than off the shelf. And if they are built to fit you with quality materials they last

For you guys that have owned boots from several of these companies how would you compare them for initial fit, break in period, final fit and final comfort?

I have 4 pairs of Whites. 2 pairs of semi dress, a pair of Hunters, and a pair of Nomads. The semi dress are like high top dress shoes, the hunters are like combat boots with the recessed heel, and the Nomads are motorcycle style slip-on boots.

As a former military guy, I’ve had to endure some really bad boots, especially as an aviator with limited selection of approved boots. I had severe plantar fasciitis with my military boots, and vowed to buy high quality custom footwear when it got out- so I did.

Whites boots have high arches… took me about 2 weeks to get used to them. They are made of several layers of leather which will eventually squish down and conform to your natural arch.

For each boot, you can select which “last” you want. A “last” is a general shape of a foot- wide/narrow foot box, wide/narrow heal, whatever. When you order a custom pair, the measurements you need to take will help determine which last fists your feet best. Also, they will make minor adjustments to the last to match your foot measurements.

Each pair I have are literally the best fitting footwear I’ve ever worn. After a full long day standing and walking, I don’t even notice them after I sit down.

They do require more maintenance than normal boots. They’re 100% leather, and need cleaned daily, and treated regularly. All of my boots have the vibram “fire and ice” soles which do pretty well on ice, but certainly not as good as studs.

I highly recommend that for your first pair, you go to a dealer/cobbler who knows his chit to do the measurements. Once you have your measurements in the system, you can get with Kyle at Baker’s to buy more (if needed). If you buy generically sized pairs online, you’re missing out on the best part of custom boots.

I know I paid a ton (over $2000) for 4 pairs of boots, but I’ve blown more on chitty vacations and hunting trips, and I’ve never regretted custom Whites Boots.

I really like the whites smokejumpers.... for ME, the high arch is extremely comfy.... to some it can feel like you are standing on a ladder rung. I wore them everyday for quite a few years but since I switched positions at work I've worn them less and less the last couple years. Now I just wear some basic Irish setter flat soles that are comparable to tennis shoes that will probably last 20 years in their current role.

One thing I really noticed, after working 20 years in the field....outdoors everyday. The wear boots are exposed to vs someone who may be outdoors but not really doing anything "manual" is ten-fold. Take this into consideration when one guy says " they have lasted me 10 years" vs "they were toast in 6 months".

If you Google "style forum whites boots", that's probably the best comparison on the web as far as colors, options, fit,, etc. That thread is almost 1,700 pages and over 12 years old. You may have to sign up to see the pictures. TRIGGER WARNING: It's a lot of European [bleep] that ain't buying boots to do a hard day's work in. I'll be disappointed if at least one person here doesn't sign up and start a schiett slinging contest over there.

Here is an explanation of White's lasts and how they fit.. White's Lasts

Anyone tried boots by Origin of Maine?

Kulien boots, my sister town Shawn 👊🏻

We’re not talking about couches

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yep rokin dem Walmart boots in yer single wide living large lol

Nicks are great.