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Thread: Need New Boots
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6 February 2012, 22:28 #16Contributing Member
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My biases against "feels like a tennis shoe" and "flat front to back" are the only thing preventing me from getting the Rocky S2Vs. Aside from those design aspects... USA Made, Vibram soles, and a reasonable price are all very appealing. I may end up with a pair eventually, but right now I am too conventional to make that leap.
I decided against the 5.11 Taclites after taking a closer look at a coworker's pair. They are constructed like a tennis shoe on the sole.
I'm going to see if I can find some of the BLACKHAWK! Desert Ops to look at in person. They're imported, but aside from that fit the bill nicely if they're built like a boot.
These Danners are on their third lace on the left boot. Replacing laces with paracord sheathing has fixed the problem temporarily.
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12 February 2012, 23:20 #17Contributing Member
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Update: My brand spankin' new pair of factory second Danner RAT boots, hot weather edition, no Gore-Tex arrived Friday. I wore them all day at work Saturday. Today, in an effort to let them air out and rest in hopes they will last, I wore my old pair of Danner Vandals today. I don't think the Vandals are as comfortable. My feet hurt.
It's unclear how well they will hold up in the long run at this point, but my first impressions on the RATs is very good. The quality appears to be excellent. One strange thing is the sole kind of bows outward in the middle/center. It takes some getting used to. I have not had a chance to see how slip resistant the soles are. They treads are the perfect size for collecting .40S&W brass.
I'll wear these for a few months and provide an update on how they are doing. As of now I have high hopes. Thanks to everyone for their input.
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13 February 2012, 20:45 #18Member
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Another company to check out is Matterhorn boots. My current pair of duty boots are matterhorns and they're great, waterproof, insulated, tech toe, made in usa, and meet navy boot requirements (more restrictive than most). I had a pair of danners a couple pairs ago and these compare favorably.
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13 February 2012, 22:15 #19Contributing Member
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20 February 2012, 14:49 #20
Just got a pair of the Danner Melee.... very nice light weight boots.
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21 February 2012, 22:46 #21Contributing Member
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These will probably be the last pair of Danners I ever buy.
Upon hearing of the company's good reputation, I bought the Vandals. I liked the feel, but popping stitches after two months while simply being a student is not exactly durability, and that isn't hard use even. I blamed it on them being imported.
Got these RATs, and albeit they are blems off of eBay, they are made in the USA. Retail at $340, and even for blems I paid $175. I've had them just over a week, and the fabric sides are already unraveling at the seams. The stitches are not coming undone, the fabric is just of such poor quality it's coming apart after 10 days of use. (They were not even worn all ten of those days, and I spent much of a few of those days sitting at a desk.)
I'm really just sickened by their quality. I've had WalMart tennis shoes last longer. A receipt is required for warranty service, so I'm SOL on the Vandals. The RATs I bought off eBay, so that's a no-go through Danner I'm sure. Since it is the actual material the boots are made of coming apart, and not an assembly issue, I probably can't get them repaired very effectively.
I guess I'll just wear them until they fall apart (at this rate, I'm guessing that will by sometime in the next few weeks) and then decide what to try next. I like the look of the Wellco USMC, and also the Corcoran Desert Tan Marauder.
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22 February 2012, 13:14 #22
I had two pair of Danners that I used in Afghanistan. They were very comfortable right out of the box, and had no break in time. But their wear out date was short - around two months. Also, they both developed holes in the stitching on the swell on the side of my foot were my pinkie toe attached. The stitching snapped and the tan suede started to separate.
With the dozens of boots I have worn, I would recommend OTBs or Rocky IVs. They both have great service life, are very comfortable, and have little break-in time. The OTBs I really prefer because they are extremely lightweight and drain decently well.
Also, Belleville makes some good boots. I would recommend them except that they are heavy. Really heavy compared to the above boots. They do have excellent Vibram soles though.
Sent from my Xoom using TapatalkLast edited by Mamba6; 22 February 2012 at 13:20.
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22 February 2012, 17:58 #23Contributing Member
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What's ridiculous is that these are sold as being "recraftable"... which I take as meaning you can resole them. No way these are going to last long enough to need new soles. For a boot that retails at $340, they should not be falling apart after a week.
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22 February 2012, 19:16 #24Member
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Instead of bitching about it on the internet, why don't you contact their customer service dept.?
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22 February 2012, 21:07 #25Contributing Member
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Their customer service department can't do anything more than tell me "for warranty service, return your boots with the form printed off our website and a copy of your receipt" when I ask if they will warranty them without a receipt.
Besides, boots of the reputation and expense of Danners (of which I have two pairs now) should not need warranty service after such limited use.
To put the icing on the cake, now the stitching on the RATs is unraveling, too.
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22 February 2012, 21:44 #26Member
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I've owned 4 pair of Danner's over a 20+ year career- I don't have a bad word to say about them, I learned prior to buying my 1st pair from a buddy in the military to only buy Danner's that are made in America. Sorry to hear about your experience with the Vandal's- looking at their web site I see that the Vandal's are part of the 'Import" line.
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22 February 2012, 21:48 #27Contributing Member
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The Vandals lasted two months before busting stitches instead of two weeks. Currently, the imported model has a more impressive track record.
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23 February 2012, 10:44 #28Contributing Member
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I have been wearing various models of LOWA's. My newest pair is the zephyr. The tread is soft but they lasted me a year in AFG. They fit like a hybrid sneaker hiker and I have no problems running in them. The ankle support is great too. I honestly love these boots and will buy a third pair when one goes down.
SOS
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25 February 2012, 12:12 #29
For the guys that have Corcoran boots, can you tell me if they have a lining?
I've had Bates and Rockys, and the thing that wears out first for me is the lining, so I'm looking for boots that are just one layer of leather. My boots will have a lining in them - they're called socks!
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22 May 2012, 21:52 #30Member
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The Danner Striker boots I wear for duty are the most durable I have ever worn.