Cowboy Boots

[Bamaboots]

Ive always been unclear on the connection between Tres Outlaw & Falconhead.

This caused me to drag out some books this morning and to do some website looking as well. I've never understood the relationship either or if they were just one in the same. When Art of the Boot was published in 1999, Beard wrote that in 1980, Scott Emmerich, who was not a boot maker, started contracting companies in El Paso to make his designs which he sold to retailers up and down the CA coast. In 1983 he opened the retail store Falconhead in LA. In 1994 he took on partners and that's when the Tres Outlaw Boot Co. was formed. There are separate websites for Tres Outlaw and Falconhead. It seems today that Tres Outlaw are OTR boots though those boots can be MTM as well and Falconhead is where the over the top custom work is sold. The Tre Outlaw site makes no mention of Falconhead that I could find but the Falconhead header says The Tre Outlaw Boot Company.

 

[Buick]

Chisos no2 boots and a Resistol hat that I dropped just before the photo, so excuse the dust and dirt!

 

[Hurricane Jack]

This caused me to drag out some books this morning and to do some website looking as well. I've never understood the relationship either or if they were just one in the same. When Art of the Boot was published in 1999, Beard wrote that in 1980, Scott Emmerich, who was not a boot maker, started contracting companies in El Paso to make his designs which he sold to retailers up and down the CA coast. In 1983 he opened the retail store Falconhead in LA. In 1994 he took on partners and that's when the Tres Outlaw Boot Co. was formed. There are separate websites for Tres Outlaw and Falconhead. It seems today that Tres Outlaw are OTR boots though those boots can be MTM as well and Falconhead is where the over the top custom work is sold. The Tre Outlaw site makes no mention of Falconhead that I could find but the Falconhead header says The Tre Outlaw Boot Company.

I would take what Tyler Beard wrote as accurate then. Thanks for taking the time to review all that, BB. It’s interesting because the lines of his boots are nothing like the typical flat arched & wide Valley boot. My pair has to be a very early pair & I’m left to wonder if they were made under contract or in-house with his own boot makers? My memory tells me I was there a yr or two before 1994, but maybe not. I’ll have to think on that.

 

[Bamaboots]

Every so often I'll look through some makers that have an online presence, often just to see if they're still there. Many aren't. Paul Bond was always a mainstay, even through Bond's death, multiple management changes, "website redesigns" and apparent mismanagement, they stuck around.

I had not been on their site for awhile and a couple of weeks ago I looked them up and found nothing. No online presence at all, not even a phone number. Their FB page hadn't had an update since 10/23 when they announced they were under new management and a notice from Meta on 06/24 showed a notice that they were shutting their FB page down if 'certain' corrections weren't made. There was zero information regarding a closing. I figured they were done.

Today, I went back to their FB page and found this from Paul Bond.com, Paul Bond Boots | Dandy Little Boots and a few updates. It seems the barn did close for awhile but is open again. Still no website.

 

[Bamaboots]

Unless you're a boot geek, collector or have had some TX boots made before 2017, you've probably not heard of this maker. I was surprised to see a couple of pair show up on OFAS. I won't bore the uninterested with facts about him but I've provided a couple of links. I will say that he made boots for 7 Presidents as well as Queen Elizabeth. The list of folks is crazy for a guy that had a 'regular' job for 30 years.

Somebody owned a vineyard.

Vintage Rocky Carroll Custom Grape Vine Cowgirl Boots 6-6.5 Texas Americana | eBay

Rocky Carroll Boots | Cigar Aficionado

RJ BOOTS (ROCKY CARROLL) | oldrebelboots

 

[Trenchfriend]

@Bamaboots
They look AWWWWESOME!!

 

[AbbaDatDeHat]

Unless you're a boot geek, collector or have had some TX boots made before 2017, you've probably not heard of this maker. I was surprised to see a couple of pair show up on OFAS. I won't bore the uninterested with facts about him but I've provided a couple of links. I will say that he made boots for 7 Presidents as well as Queen Elizabeth. The list of folks is crazy for a guy that had a 'regular' job for 30 years.

Somebody owned a vineyard.
View attachment 628449
View attachment 628450
Vintage Rocky Carroll Custom Grape Vine Cowgirl Boots 6-6.5 Texas Americana | eBay

Rocky Carroll Boots | Cigar Aficionado

RJ BOOTS (ROCKY CARROLL) | oldrebelboots

I want to see Queen Elizabeth’s boots!!
May she rest in peace.
And Queen Elizabeth Taylor’s. Preferable in just boots!!
B

 

[Bamaboots]

And Queen Elizabeth Taylor’s. Preferable in just boots!!

I've looked around before and never located the pairs. I did find a pair of the Prince's. No mention of the maker but it
was a Texas one.

I'd say era dependent but yes, sir!

 

[Bamaboots]

Sometimes we need to go back to the books. I’ve probably overlooked these a dozen times.

Edit: From The Cowboy Boot Book by Tyler Beard.

 

[mullitt]

Got a pretty “holy grail” pair of boots at an antique mall yesterday (for under $50!). 50s/60s Nocona boots, not quite peewee style but have all the characteristics I like about peewee boots. No inlay but the stitching is fantastic, good higher heel and great toe profile. I don’t really like the roper style flat heel and profile. Lightly worn, stored well. The leather is incredibly thick and these are HEAVY boots.

 

[Bamaboots]

Pretty cool, @mullitt. Finding something you prefer is most important and though simple, those boots are about as unique as they come for the era. White label Nocona's are rare enough now but this pair looks like a boot someone ordered when they did MTM/MTO boots. No toe wrinkles or bug, the heel you mentioned. Have you measured it? And the single row stitching I don't ever remember seeing on a stock boot. Somebody will want to call them ropers but they ain't.

 

[mullitt]

Pretty cool, @mullitt. Finding something you prefer is most important and though simple, those boots are about as unique as they come for the era. White label Nocona's are rare enough now but this pair looks like a boot someone ordered when they did MTM/MTO boots. No toe wrinkles or bug, the heel you mentioned. Have you measured it? And the single row stitching I don't ever remember seeing on a stock boot. Somebody will want to call them ropers but they ain't.

View attachment 628742

About a 1 3/4" heel hight. Interesting thought about the MTO! The lack of toe bug combined with the toe profile and the leather used all lend credence to that theory and they're what I like about them!

 

[Bamaboots]

Website is back under construction. Be interesting to find out who's managing now.

Paul Bond Boots | Dandy Little Boots

 

[Hurricane Jack]

Website is back under construction. Be interesting to find out who's managing now.

Paul Bond Boots | Dandy Little Boots

The Bond family was a big extended family but I wonder if the business hasn’t recently been sold after George Bond’s death 3-4 yrs ago? I’m wondering if the 2 guys in the video at the link are the new owners?

 

[Bamaboots]

The Bond family was a big extended family but I wonder if the business hasn’t recently been sold after George Bond’s death 3-4 yrs ago? I’m wondering if the 2 guys in the video at the link are the new owners?

I was wondering about the two guys as well. No mention of names anywhere that I could find. I wonder if the days of shops that size are over. Legendary closed a couple of years ago and looking around this morning, it looks like J. B. Hill has gone down. It was sold a couple of years ago.

 

[BobHufford]

Thought about it …

 

[BobHufford]

The granddaughter’s 1st birthday celebration had a “First Rodeo” theme. Some members of my family had differs levels of commitment.

Top, then counter-clockwise:

My youngest daughter (mother of the guest of honor) in 1930s “Justin’s Make”.

My wife in Tecovas.

Me in Black Jack alligator hornback.

My oldest daughter in glitter Doc Martens — sort of a space cowgirl.

 

[rogueclimber]

Picked these up and on the first day these white/pink lines appeared between the scales (?) of the Hornback Caiman

Black Cherry Walters from Luccheses

Is this something I should warranty?

 

[Hurricane Jack]

Picked these up and on the first day these white/pink lines appeared between the scales (?) of the Hornback Caiman

Black Cherry Walters from Luccheses

Is this something I should warranty?

View attachment 636366

It is what it is. Caiman is not as soft & as pliable as alligator. It is not very pliable & does not like to bend. You will need to constantly condition them to keep them as soft as possible.

Black cherry is common & not the greatest either. I had one pair (not caiman) & I had to start polishing them to keep them looking nice. Alternated between cordivan color polish & next time black polish. But don’t polish caiman as the pours get clogged up & will crack.

 

[Bamaboots]

What HJ said along with the lack of flex in Caiman because it’s the boniest hide of all the reptiles used in boot making. Also, Caiman doesn’t take as well to the tanning and dyeing process in the same fashion as alligator and crocodile. Probably why there’s no color saturation in those seams.


Maybe get them warrantied or become proficient with q-tip polishing.