New Work Boots...

[blume357]

Except for around the house at night I only wear boots.. I have three pairs... Casual for around town, one I wear for work and then the 'Sunday Go To Meeting' ones... they are all the same 8" construction/work boots just polished different. For years my work boot was Red Wings but the last pair I bought just did not work out and I switched to Thorough Goods... the other two I got years ago from Duluth and I suspect they were Through Goods. So, I've totally worn out the 'Casual Around Town' pair and needed to order another .... I go on the Mid West Boot sight to do this... (Oh by the way have I mentioned that I will only wear and buy boots made in America?) Couple of yeas back I was with my wife at one of these big discount shoe places and in the men's department they had a big sign promoting Georgia boots... all about working and America, Big U.S. Flag and such....... then I looked at one of the Boxes with a pair of Georgia boots in them.. yep, made in China... all the work boots and men's shoes in this store were made either in China or some country close... well there was pair of cowboy boots made in Texas I think.....

Anywho... I go on the Midwest Boot site to order another pair of Thorough Goods... and there is another option... Carolina Boots.... and just like the thorough goods. made here in the U.S.A. and by Union Labor.... So, being a Carolina boy I have to order those... I'm pretty sure they are just Thorough Goods with the name changed.... I also find the irony of naming them Carolina as compared to the Georgian ones quite funny. Intesting part is I ordered them on Wednesday night and they arrived yesterday... Friday!

 

[JackBull]

Thanks for supporting America! When are you joining MAGA?

 

[Kevin]

I agree with you about the Made in America boots. Well a little. I’ve got some made in England that are pretty nice.

But there is one brand, Grant Stone. They are in Michigan I think. But their boots are made in China.

So they send leather to China from the US and from Europe as well. Make the boots then send them back to the US to be sold. What a waste of energy and resources.

Congrats on the new boots. Thorough Good boots are supposed to be good quality.

But why not get your old boots resoled rather than buy a new pair?

 

[contender]

He's already part of MAGA. His actions of buying American point to that.

Just because he claims to be more liberal minded,,, doesn't mean he doesn't want America to be Great Again.

Boots.
And yes,, while I prefer to be barefooted as much as possible,, I do own a few pairs of boots. Mostly for winter, and hunting purposes.

That stated,, I bought a pair of Danners about 40 years ago. They were excellent quality & I wore them for about 20 or so years to hunt in or serious working conditions or wintertime.
Well, they finally wore out, and when I went looking for another pair like them,, Danner had changed. And a lot of what I saw,, if I recall correctly,, they were China made. Didn't buy them again.

Getting American like you have found is excellent. I hope they will be good for you!

 

[Jeepnik]

Ahh, Redwing. Once my go to brand. Then slowly but surely the boots became imports. But the had the audacity to still be an American manufacturer.

Still have two pair of "work" boots that were made here.

 

[eveled]

Good for you Blume! I'm trying to buy only American made boots too. It is a challenge

From middle out, an old pair of American made Chipewa, Red Wing Iron Rangers, Thorogood Roofers.

If you want to go crazy, Nicks in Washington state makes very nice custom boots too order. They start around $750. But they are real work boots. Not high fashion. If I ever wear out my old Georgia loggers, I am buying a pair of Nicks.

 

[Kevin]

Ahh, Redwing. Once my go to brand. Then slowly but surely the boots became imports. But the had the audacity to still be an American manufacturer.

Still have two pair of "work" boots that were made here.

Yeah, it's terrible what has happened. They still make some boots here in the US. The Heritage styles.

But not just Redwing, most US shoemakers are no more.

And @eveled is right, Nicks Boots are pretty awesome. I’d like a pair too.

 

[WAYNO]

As a pipefitter, always wading in water and chemicals, I went thru a lot of boots. Early on, the choices were easy and plentiful. American-made boots from American companies. Then a little at a time, even the stand-by boots I was accustomed to buying would sneak in a little tag saying made in china.
So, I started buying from other companies, until finally, I was pretty much forced to wear chinese boots, as the American made choices with the features I needed disappeared. Danner, Georgia, Red Wing, Irish Setter, they all outsourced to commie sweat shops.

An upside to retiring, is I don't have to spend as much of my money on boots. But still being outdoorsy, I still buy hunting boots, at least every couple of years. And I'm sad to say, the boots I wear now are chinese.

 

[mirglip]

I never thought I would lower myself to buying used boots, but I have found that "Made in USA" boots can often be found in excellent condition on ebay. Of course you can only do this if you are sure the exact size and model number will fit.

It used to be that American boots would last a long time, could be repaired, as long as you slather some neetsfoot oil on them a few times a year.
Fast forward to globalization and Chinese boots, guess what? You put neetsfoot oil on them and the Chinese glue holding the Chinese boots together dissolves. Thanks Internationalists!

 

[MaxMan]

Like everything else.

 

[Hawk-in-Wi]

https://www.theisens.com/products/t...?index=1&category=Thorogood&url_key=thorogood
I tried a pair of these on just this morning , not a bad looking pair of boots but I found a little tag inside that said made in china , so back on the shelve they went

 

[Kevin]

Nobody has mentioned socks! What socks are y'all wearing with your American made boots?

This summer I got another pair of boots, Redwing Blacksmith boots. In breaking them in, I found socks made in Vermont, the "Darn Tough" Socks. Wow! Total comfort. The merino wool socks are very nice. And, guaranteed for life. I ended up buying a couple pairs of them, I want to wear some out to see if they really will honor the guarantee. We'll see...

https://darntough.com

 

[Hawk-in-Wi]

Hollow

https://hollowsocks.com/
from their site>>>>

Our Alpaca is sourced from Peru. The farm is certified Fair Trade, Responsible Wool Standard certified, and USDA Organic certified.

We design and operate in Appleton, Wisconsin; our manufacturing site is in North Carolina.
​

 

[Jeepnik]

I pretty much wear Thorlo brand socks. They are US made, and have some pretty good diabetic socks. I've been using those since my heart surgery. They seem to help with the occasional swelling and are darned comfortable.

 

[Kevin]

Hollow

https://hollowsocks.com/
from their site>>>>

Our Alpaca is sourced from Peru. The farm is certified Fair Trade, Responsible Wool Standard certified, and USDA Organic certified.

We design and operate in Appleton, Wisconsin; our manufacturing site is in North Carolina.
​

Oh! Baby Alpaca! Sign me up! I just ordered a pair. Thanks!

 

[SWR]

The Brunt Boot Co makes a model called "Marin" that is made in the USA

 

[SWR]

Check out Val Tools on YouTube or Google it. See sells some work socks that have some sort of wear guarantee.

 

[Ride1949]

I've been wearing Altama boots for quite a few years. This last pair has lasted ~ twelve years now. Good support, last great and very comfortable.

https://altama.com/
They say Made In America on their website, but the tag inside the tongue says Made In China.

 

[PRichardson87]

Keen makes some really comfortable work boots that are USA made and they seem to hold up well in a construction/paving environment. I've got a pair of 6" for home chores as well as 8" for work.

 

[Richard76]

I have been wearing KEEN for several years now. they're light and rugged. the key is to look for the American built tag on the laces. not all are made in America

 

[Fox Mike]

My 'Sunday go to meeting' boots are Lucchese. I have a pair of Redwings I acquired in 1976 and are still serviceable. I also have a couple pairs of my old GI boots. One pair have never been worn.

 

[Gopher]

I wore Ariat for years when they were American-made. The company forced us to wear steel-toed boots, which opens up another can of worms in itself. My go to were Bates side zip, just for the ease of taking on and off. I would have to go into a customer's house on occasion and they were easy on/off. We've seen more than one cleaning bill for muddy carpets. I rotated them with a pair of H&H boots. Best steel-toe boot I've ever worn.

Have you had a pair of boots resoled lately? Soles and heels for a pair of Justin ropers was $125. I could have bought a new pair of boots for that price if I had looked hard enough.

 

[Hawk-in-Wi]

Have you had a pair of boots resoled lately? Soles and heels for a pair of Justin ropers was $125. I could have bought a new pair of boots for that price if I had looked hard enough.


IF you can even find some place that still does it

 

[PRichardson87]

There is no money in resoling anymore. Been that way for a long time. My father was a heavy equipment mechanic for 41 years. He's never had a pair of boots resoled. The rubber compounds they use today are a lot more durable and impervious to chemicals than 50 years ago.

 

[Yaworski]

Have you had a pair of boots resoled lately? Soles and heels for a pair of Justin ropers was $125. I could have bought a new pair of boots for that price if I had looked hard enough.

I don't wear dress shoes much anymore. The last time I had shoes resoled, it was about $80 to resole shoes that cost $150 new.

Most shoes today aren't designed to be resoled.

 

[eveled]

There are some amazing videos on line of people rebuilding boots. It's expensive, but you get back a boot that's already broken in and is better than new.



An old timer I knew loved his Chipewa hunting boots, but he always said never have a pair re-soled twice. By that time the eyelets are worn and they cut the laces. Made me laugh because a cobbler can easily replace eyelets too.

 

[eveled]

I mentioned Nicks earlier. There is a closet industry in the Pacific Northwest making boots by hand and Nicks is the most well known. They will rebuild boots too.

 

[Jeepnik]

Keen makes some really comfortable work boots that are USA made and they seem to hold up well in a construction/paving environment. I've got a pair of 6" for home chores as well as 8" for work.
View attachment 80593

My favorite outdoor boots are Keen. But like Redwing many styles are now imported.

Sadly, American manufacturers will tout their products as being American made because a very few styles are still produced here.

One of the first multi-tools makes a big deal about their American connection. But in reality the assembly and finishing are done in China.

 

[Kevin]

There is no money in resoling anymore. Been that way for a long time. My father was a heavy equipment mechanic for 41 years. He's never had a pair of boots resoled. The rubber compounds they use today are a lot more durable and impervious to chemicals than 50 years ago.

I’ve had two pairs of boots resoled this year. The first pair did need new soles. They were the Redwing Moc Toe boots. And those soles wear down quickly.

The other pair was the Redwing Blacksmith boots. They were brand new and I wanted a midsole. Which they don’t come with new. I also wanted different soles than the lug soles they come with.

So basically I ended a pair of custom boots which are pretty sweet.

There is a lot of money in getting custom shoes made.

 

[eveled]

My favorite outdoor boots are Keen. But like Redwing many styles are now imported.

Sadly, American manufacturers will tout their products as being American made because a very few styles are still produced here.

One of the first multi-tools makes a big deal about their American connection. But in reality the assembly and finishing are done in China.

One of the boot makers says American made leather, boots

The leather is “made” in America. The boot? Not so much.