Boots types: Combat or hiking???

[Squid]

What types of boots do you prefer - the high-cut combat-style boots, or lower-cut hiking boots?

I have both kinds - I have a pair of Danner Acadias as well as several pairs of Merrell hiking boots. All are equally comfortable and durable. The rubber treads on my Danners (in my opinion) seem to wear a bit faster than my hiking boots - I have one pair of Merrells that I've had for three years and the tread still looks great! I can't say that for my Danners - which I've had just as long and have worn just as often. The lower-cut Merrells give me a bit more ankle flexibility as well, which I prefer.

Please share you thoughts/experiences.

 

[grnamin]

I had a pair of Danner Acadias when I was in the Army. The Kletterlift lug sole tends to wear out more quickly on regular paved surfaces than unpaved. The higher cut Acadias tend to offer more ankle support than the Merrells, but the latter are better for all-around use, IMHO.

-Greg

 

For jungle or muddy conditions nothing beats a panama sole. Issue Altamas with some Wonder Walker insoles have been my choice for a while. The drain holes keep your feet from rotting if you wear the right socks. The problem with most hiking shoes is they are sealed to be waterproof....and waterproof ain't worth a dman once water goes over the top.

Jeff

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Randall's Adventure & Training
jeff@jungletraining.com

 

[hat]

For me it depends on the intended use. I have Danner Acadias that I generally wear at work (light infantryman). I enjoy the added ankle support when carrying heavy loads over uneven ground. That said, Jeff makes an excellent point about the reduced breathability and limited waterproofness of the gore-tex boots. For hot weather and times that ankle support is not as critical a factor I have jungle boots. However, as most of my walking is on hard surfaces my jungle boots have been resoled with vibram soles. It seems to me that it is just a matter of tailoring the equipment selection to the intended use.

 

[SALTY]

Really depends on the intended use and terrain. Carring heavy loads for long distances requires different boots than rifle and day-pack on sideslope and rocky soil.

Moreover, insulation and waterproofing often counters breathability in design. If you are moving and perspiring, regardless of ambient temps, breathability wins out for me. Wet feet, be it from water or sweat are cold feet if you stop ... and sooner or later you are going to stop. Carry extra socks. The amount of anckle support needed is inversely proportionate to the levelness of the terrain.

I have Gortex and love it. I also have leather boots that I have deliberately NEVER put anything on except miles; depends on the situation and the needs.

 

[Alberta Ed]

Timberline ankle heights for daytripping; Red Wing 10" w. Vibram sole (uninsulated) for fall hunting (take lots of dry wool socks). And for winter, well, Sorels rated for -70 F work great if you don't have to walk more than a few hundred yards.

 

[Donald]

Jeff,
So what do you consider to be the right socks? Polypropylene, wool, ...???

 

[chad234]

I switch between my Danner Ft. Lewis "Go Devils" (winter) and Altama USGI (summer)
I keep a pair of Hi-tech Magnums in my tactical unit callout bag.
In the summer go with synthetic socks, in the winter wool. Synthetic socks do prevent fungus growth (esp. when pre-powdered)
Be safe (or lucky),
Chad

 

[allenC]

I also have a pair of Danner Ft. Lewis "Go Devil" boots. In fact, I bought them in Tacoma while stationed at Ft. Lewis (in 1988). I still have them and I love them during winter. My wife bought some Matterhorns and they are nearly identical but cheaper: the Matterhorns have padding around the tops.
For warm/hot weather I wear either my New Balance sneakers or my Rocky boots (light-weight, just above the ankle, leather, gore-tex, trail-boots).

 

[Shrike9]

For cold weather nothing beats Danner Ft Lewis boots. Got my first pair of them in 1986 and they have been around the world with me in temps ranging from -60F (ground not air) to +110, weather conditions ranging from white out blizzard (3 days), super typhoon's to sand storms. Had them resoaled 3-4 times and finaly replaced them this year with another pair. Extremly comfortable boot well worth the big bucks they cost. I've also got another pair of Danner boots from Cabellas that are my 4 wheeling/camping/hiking/shooting and all around outdoor use boots. Then their's my pair of Buffalo Runner CAS boots

Altama jungle/desert boots are my first choice in summer wear. These boots are also extremly comfortable once broken in (I soak them in water overnight and then wear dry) Then it's the old standby Corcoran jump boots when you need a spit shined boot. The Corcoran boot also wears extremly good and is semi comfortable.

Worn out 2 pair of Hi-Tech booties as these are just black tennis shoes with a tad more ankle support. Other than short range ops where not much support will be needed they are a no go for me. They do not stand up to hard use and abuse, but then again I'm extremly hard on boots.

Socks, who wears them???? Just pour a tad bit of olive oil directly into the boot and wear bare footed

Really now I like cotton tube socks in the summer and wool for winter. However if your going for a real real long hike rub olive oil (smells good) all over your feet and then put on your socks (you can even soak your socks) this really helps in keeping down "hot spots" causing masty blisters. My Danner Ft Lewis boots smelled like olive oil for almost a month once but I never got a single blister.

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SAS RKBA freedom Scottsbluff Cowboy Shooters Cheyenne Regulators

 

[chad234]

Shrike,
You're right on about the Hi-techs, they wear super fast and are basically tennis shoes. They do work good for certain "social" performances though. The Hi Techs replaced a pair of Adidias GS9, which were ruined (bio-contamination).
I'm with you on the Danners, gotta love the Ft. Lewis.
Thanks for the olive oil tip, I've been prepowdering my socks since you suggested it
and it is much easier than packing both socks and powder. (thank god for ziplocks)
Cover your Six,
Chad

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"People sleep peaceably in their beds at night only because rough men stand ready to do violence on their behalf."
George Orwell
"Those who hold the thin blue line keep order, and insure that anarchy and chaos will not prevail."
Chad

[This message has been edited by chad234 (edited 09-13-2000).]

 

[Owen]

Currently, I have a pair of Hi-Tec Transcender boots for light duty, and Herman Survivors for more support. My feet are hard to fit, and not many boots feel "right". Had good luck with Hi-Tec and Herman. I've had several pairs of Hi-Tec Leather Magnums, which I love, but they are not as durable as I would like-tend to come apart at the seams.

Shrike9, what did you do to your jump boots to make them "semi comfortable"? Mine were horrible. When I was in the 82nd, we were on DRF 1, and got called out while I was on CQ. I was wearing jump boots, and like a dummy, decided to keep them on and see how they did. I can only describe that jump and "mission" (drill) as extremely painful.

Chad, didn't see your post or comments on Hi-Tecs before. My best friend is an LEO and his also wore out very quickly. He wrote a letter to Hi-Tec telling them of his two pair that didn't last for crap, and they sent him two new pairs. Have to give them high marks for customer service, anyway.

[This message has been edited by Owen (edited 09-12-2000).]

 

[Griffon]

Originally posted by Squid:
What types of boots do you prefer - the high-cut combat-style boots, or lower-cut hiking boots?

What about high-cut hiking boots?
As I see it, the only difference between the kinds you mention is how deep water you can step in.

Me, I prefer Lundhags and that's mainly hiking boots, but they were bought by the British military for the Falklands conflict, for example. So while there may be a model called "military", there's not much difference in principle between them.

I trust them very much, so much that I've often travelled very far with only <em>one</em> pair of them and no other shoes. (I ditched my pair of regular shoes halfway around the world once.) And not only for cold and wet places, I brought a pair of Scandinavia to Cape Verde once (see the <a href="http://www.canit.se/%7Egriffon/travels/travels.html">travel section</a> of my main web site for photos).
If they do get wet, there's not much that needs drying.

Their site is: http://www.lundhags.se/ (I don't know if there's anything in English on the site)



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Urban Fredriksson
www.canit.se/%7Egriffon/
Latest update: Calypso Jr Lightweight

"I've always been fascinated by Scandinavian knives [...] they're simple, in an advanced way".
- Bob Loveless

 

[Greg Davenport]

I wear the danner arcadia (sp) in the summer and the ft lewis in the winter... unless really cold and then I wear serrels (sp).

However, after 15 years I recently purchased a new pair of Danner Ft Lewis boots and there is a difference between the two. The newer ones don't seem to be as well made... perhaps it is my imagination....

My instructors prefer to wear the newer military issued Jungle boots in the summer.

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Greg Davenport
Simply Survival's Wilderness Survival Forum
Simply Survival's Web Page
Are You Ready For The Challenge?
Are You Ready To Learn The Art Of Wilderness Survival?

 

[Shrike9]

Originally posted by chad234:

You're right on about the Hi-techs, they wear super fast and are basically tennis shoes. They do work good for sertain "social" performances though.

Thanks for the olive oil tip, I've been prepowdering my socks since you suggested it
and it is much easier than packing both socks and powder. (thank god for ziplocks)
Cover your Six,
Chad

I can just see you wearing them to a wedding in your tux (VBG)

Just don't mix the two unless your dusting with corn starch, then you can make a roo while walking BAM!!

Just got a bottle of Gold Bond foot powder to try out, don't want hot stinky feet

I did the water thing with my jump boots and it helped quite a bit. Been using leather luster on them so shine is no problem

My current pair are the nylon sided ones (summer wear) and they are better than the orginal style. However, years ago (pre danner)I wore the orginal style to the field on quite a few FTX's and they worked much better than the issue boot (better ankle support). Just had to have them resoled with vibrum soles first.

 

[Shrike9]

Originally posted by Greg Davenport:

However, after 15 years I recently purchased a new pair of Danner Ft Lewis boots and there is a difference between the two. The newer ones don't seem to be as well made... perhaps it is my imagination....

So it's not my imagination after all, thought they seemed somehow "cheeper" but could not put my toe on it. They don't seem to fit quite the same as my first pair However, they are still much better than matterhorns.

Picked up a new pair of issue desert type II Altama boots today. In them was a tag saying to carry extra wool socks, foot powder and to dry feet as often as possible. It also warned against polishing them DUH!!!! Had a choice of a couple other brands but the Altama boots were the best quality and most comfortable.



[This message has been edited by Shrike9 (edited 09-12-2000).]

 

[Ebbtide]

OK Shrikester, stupid question time...
You soak the boots over nite and WEAR them till they dry OR let 'em dry and then wear them?
Ebbtide out.

 

Suppose to soak them and walk them dry but this has never worked for me. Most good boots need no fitting. I wear Vasque hiking shoes as everyday shoes. Every pair I have ever had fit the minute I bought them with no break-in required. I buy jungle boots a half size large and place insoles in them. This half size helps when your feet swell in jungle climates and carrying weight on your back all day. The feet problems I have seen from first timers in serious jungle or other hard wilderness is usually due to buying boots that fit in the store, or buying cheaper brands that never fit right anywhere, anytime. Your feet are your livlihood down south. The natives are use to sorry foot wear or none at all. Gringos better pay the extra bucks and skimp elsewhere.

Jeff

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Randall's Adventure & Training
jeff@jungletraining.com

 

[Shrike9]

Yep, what Jeff said

This is a habit I developed years ago and do it as matter of fact. While the Danner boots I got did not "need" to be soaked I did it anyway to help the boot form aroung my fat foot. One of these days I'll soak my new desert boots overnight and then walk them dry. I do get all my boots a 1/2 size bigger just for the reason Jeff mentioned.

I'm rather anal about my tootsies cuz so much depends on your feet staying happy happy. After watching friends pull bloody socks & blistered/bloody feet

out of new boots I'm extremly fanatical about breaking in boots before they are needed.

 

[Ebbtide]

I've walked boots dry, but never intentionally

It does work, though.
Now I gotta work on the olive oil thing...