Footwear to go with our jackets

Downunder G Man said:

Yes powerserge. This is my last pair of Tasmania Australia made Blundstones. I wore "Blunnies" exclusively for 20 years. All slip on elastic sided round toed oil kip leather. Some suede pairs on the journey. On the Harley and with shorts and they still looked good ! Soles were solid non air type and lasted the life of the boot. Production moved offshore and longevity declined maybe 10 years ago. I bought up a few pairs but all have been worn and gone bar these. Now Rossi still make a good boot and 100% Australian. My wife wears those in "winter". I have Rossi desert boots in my roster.

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powerserge said:

The Made in Australia Blundstones are drastically better than the Blundstones made today overseas. I work in shoe repair, and one of the most common repairs we do are Blundstone resoles. The shape and quality of materials are night and day between the old and new ones. The Australian just look so much better, actually closer to the RM shape. The new one are bulbous and not appealing in my opinion, also the soles rot and disintegrate after 5 years of so. I really enjoy working on the older ones but man I do despise the new ones.

That pair in particular would look much better with dedicated sole and heel. I feel that the boot or shoe needs to be more bulky to pull of the wedge sole. It works much better on your White's I think

It's how they were promoting the model and I pretty much only change the sole and kept the leather and design pretty much intact. Gotta put some miles on them!!

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powerserge said:

I had to look up Rossi as I wasn't familiar with the brand. Very similar to the Blundstone design and nice to see they are still made in Australia. Any experience or thoughts about Baxter boots? They seemed to be a nice RM alternative but have yet to come across one.

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Mrfrown said:

First time out with the new Wesco Boss 7500. Worn today with a duck canvas chore coat from Epaulet

The leather has a soft hand and more matte appearance than the pics may suggest. A lot of pull-up effect which you can see in the lightening toward my instep.

It is pretty tight across that instep, especially on my right foot which is a bit larger. Expected it given that Kyle at bakers recommended a snug fit. Really looking forward to breaking these in.

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Woodtroll said:

Those are some great looking boots - I've wanted a pair just like that for some time but getting a good fit on engineers by mail-order is intimidating.

I think that's just about the perfect make-up in my opinion. Do you feel that the MP toe cramps your feet any? And would you post a couple of photos of the Nordic Brass buckles, please?

Thank you for sharing these!

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JustinW said:

Baxter are ok. Very limited range, but on par with RMW. I was hoping that they would expand their line back when Louis Vutton bought out RMW but they never really capitalised on the opening.

Between the casual Rossi/Blundies and the dressy Craftsman style boots, the Gardener and Lachlan are really under appreciated IMO.

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Woodtroll said:

Thank you, JustinW and MrFrown, much appreciated.

Indeed, it's the instep fit that has me buffaloed. I have a high/full instep that requires a "close instep" adjustment withn most White's boots. I don't know how to translate that to a boot that will slip on and off, but still be snug when worn. I HATE a sloppy/loose boot, having worn lace-ups since my early teens. I thought that I could stretch the instep out with the strap loose, then tighten the strap to a snug fit, but that plan did not play out with a cheaper pair of engineers I was using as a test case.

I really do like the look of that aged brass with the brown leather - much, much better than nickel!

Thank you both again!

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Blackadder said:

I find the straps on Wesco to be pretty useless. Mine is Wesco domain leather and it is simply too thick that no matter how hard I pull, it won't fold or budge.

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Jin431 said:

Fist wearing of these benzein olive badalassi with black overdye lace to toe boots. The upper leather looks really green especially with sunlight. Hmmm not the best idea to wear brand new boots on a hike right away but I never learn anyways. . .



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powerserge said:

Are these not Sagara Cordmasters? Either way these are really spectacular, love the variability in color. One of the reasons I’ve been so drawn to shell cordovan is how much it can change with difference in viewing angle

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Jin431 said:

Sagara Cordmaster lace to to boots in badalassi olive with black overdye

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Ayeteael said:

What else ya got in the works? I went a little crazy this year. Got a benzein coming soon, 2 flamepandas, and an onderhoud. Merry Xmas to me.

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Jin431 said:

Glad to know I'm not the only one who went a little too far lol
Aside from the 2 Chelsea boots from Benzein that I am awaiting delivery on. I recently ordered the Truman Java Horse Rump (c55 last with flat GYW and 430 full sole). I'll try not to get more service/monkey boots this coming year unless onderhoud gives me a slot. How did you get so lucky to get one from him? I'm so jealous lol. I do want to try an engineer boot so that is the only boot on my list for next year.

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