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Engineer Boots, Harness Boots...

Allwood

New in Town
Messages
15
Location
Manchester, England
Cheers Handymike!
They were worn as safety boots daily for 2.5 years protected with clear boot polish at least once a week and polish stripped and conditioned once a month. I have a new pair of the same and I am now waiting for a reply from Brian at Role Club to get the steel toe cap removed, brass buckles installed and have a resole, I'll post a picture when they are done:)
 
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Allwood

New in Town
Messages
15
Location
Manchester, England
Hello Lost Ronin,
My boots are the Red Wing 9268 tea core or 'Klondike' leather which is a reissue of the pt91 red wings made exclusively for the Japanese market. The leather is painted with multiple layers of brown until they appear black so with wear the natural colour of the leather starts to come through. I am getting these resoled and will post the results soon,
Allwood.
 

jonesy86

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,610
Location
Kauai
Wescos are among the best made. They are VERY pricy, but you get what you pay for. All made in the USA.

Chippewas are a great boot, especially for the money. They have begun to contract overseas for some of their boots, so make sure you get a pair that is made in the USA...they are much better quality.

Also look at Frye 8R and 12R. Again, make sure you're getting the USA made, because they're better quality.

Just ordered some Frye Sutton Engineer. Don't think they are made in USA, but the price is right for me.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00IM5BR02/ref=od_aui_detailpages00?ie=UTF8&psc=1

One commenter on the ebay site seemed to think that they were knock offs. They look pretty much the same in the pictures

http://www.thefryecompany.com/sutton-engineer/d/88000

Will see.

I've been wearing a pair of Frye ropers made in USA for over 25 years. I remember thinking at the tine that they were really expensive. I'd love to buy a pair of Wescos.
 

jonesy86

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,610
Location
Kauai
Anyone ever tried Helstons boots? http://www.helstons.net/vetements-homme/messenger-335.html Nice looking, though I'm undecided about the zip. I quite like the zip-backed Lewis and such Brit-type boots, but somehow putting one on a classic, American-styled engineer boot to my eye makes it abit neither fish nor fowl?

Just getting into these type of boots, so don't know much first hand. My impression of zippers on classic pull on hard wearing, motor cycle/work boots (even though they are now really expensive high fashion), are no way José. :)
 

jonesy86

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,610
Location
Kauai
Hello Lost Ronin,
My boots are the Red Wing 9268 tea core or 'Klondike' leather which is a reissue of the pt91 red wings made exclusively for the Japanese market. The leather is painted with multiple layers of brown until they appear black so with wear the natural colour of the leather starts to come through. I am getting these resoled and will post the results soon,
Allwood.

Really beautiful boots. Are these them?

https://global.rakuten.com/en/store/pirates/item/redwingshoes-9268/

Can't find anything on the USA Redwing web page.
 
Messages
10,977
Location
SoCal
Jonesy, they have these at Standard and Strange. The sizing is a bit wonky...The only other places to order from are Japan and Germany.
 

jonesy86

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,610
Location
Kauai
Jonesy, they have these at Standard and Strange. The sizing is a bit wonky...The only other places to order from are Japan and Germany.

Thanks handymike. I saw some klondike on the S&S web page, but they don't have my size. I also was looking at some eye candy John Lofgrene Eningeer Boots - black Horween CXL $950. Good thing that they don'e have my size in that either, or I might have to get a second mortgage.
 

Grayland

Call Me a Cab
Messages
2,059
Location
Upstate NY

I have a pair of these in black and really like them. Made in the USA. I was able to get them much cheaper through some shady website (that I've long since forgotten), but they are nice quality and one of the boots had the Horween stamp inside. People seem to prefer the soft toe (as do I), but I bought them to see if I would like Engineer boots and I've never had the desire to pay $700-1$1000 for another pair. I have lots of shoes/boots, so I don't wear any of them nonstop. The only negative is that I feel that they could be a little tighter at the top of the boot. Since I've never tried on another pair, maybe that is how all engineer boots are made.
 

jonesy86

I'll Lock Up
Messages
4,610
Location
Kauai
OK, so they aren't Wesco, thats for sure. But my new Frye's came in for only $190. The are made in Mexico. Don't have much experience with Engineer boots, but I doubt they are going to show any beautiful patina like horween leather. but they seem pretty decent for the money. I like that the heel isn't too high. A little loose, glad I ordered 1/2 size down. Probably put some quality insoles in them and they will fit snuggly. Looked into Frye engineer boots made in USA and they were going for $388

Hand-burnished and waxed for an antiqued, well-worn look, this take on the iconic Engineer boot offers the best of all worlds. Whether paired with faded jeans or a bespoke suit, the Engineer is all attitude. A tribute to the great American working man, it has become a cult-like favorite of bikers and creative alike. The more beat up, the better.
- Leather lined
- Rubber outsole
- Antique hardware
- Goodyear welt construction
- Stacked leather heel

IMG_3010.JPG
 

Lost Ronin

One of the Regulars
Messages
153
OK, so they aren't Wesco, thats for sure. But my new Frye's came in for only $190. The are made in Mexico. Don't have much experience with Engineer boots, but I doubt they are going to show any beautiful patina like horween leather. but they seem pretty decent for the money. I like that the heel isn't too high. A little loose, glad I ordered 1/2 size down. Probably put some quality insoles in them and they will fit snuggly. Looked into Frye engineer boots made in USA and they were going for $388

Hand-burnished and waxed for an antiqued, well-worn look, this take on the iconic Engineer boot offers the best of all worlds. Whether paired with faded jeans or a bespoke suit, the Engineer is all attitude. A tribute to the great American working man, it has become a cult-like favorite of bikers and creative alike. The more beat up, the better.
- Leather lined
- Rubber outsole
- Antique hardware
- Goodyear welt construction
- Stacked leather heel

View attachment 86717


Those look great. My brother had some Frye engineer boots and they aged well. For the money they are great boots.

I'm a EE or EEE width foot. So I had to go custom. Wesco made my boots. That being said I have some Chipewwa engineer boots that were $200 new. They just about fit me. They are also nice for the money.

My Wesco boots feel like big lead filled slippers. Very comfy. Break in was not fun. One of the drawbacks to such a heavily made over built boot is that break in is brutal. It took 4 or 5 weeks of wear going a little longer each day until they were comfortable. Now I can wear them all day and night. I did put some flat gel insoles in them. That helps a lot with any footwear. Nothing fancy. $10 insoles for some cushion.

The bottoms of me feet still sometimes hurt after a long day but I think that is down to my still being overweight. I've lost 170lbs now but I'm still a good 60 to 70 lbs off of my ideal weight. I think that it's not helping with my boot or shoe comfort LOL.

I like the lower heel as well. I had my Wesco heels lowered 1/4" and it's a much more natural feeling to walk in.

Nice boots. Wear them in good health.
 
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