Thread: New boots... It's time!!

I've had Salomon boots. Very light and super comfortable. Would not survive the terrain long on which I hunt. Hard rock rivers, snow, mud, steep and up and down country. Not as weather tight as other boots. They only lasted 4 years but were good in that time.

After these had a pair of Vasque from San Franciso. These were the bees knees and so comfortable. These lasted 8 years before soles started to fall out. Got another brand of Vasque in NZ, not the same unfortunately.

I find the outer small right toe rubs on most boots, can't work out why? Too narrow the boot, or I prefer right leg to push off on, or my right leg is shorter than left or something?

I bit the bullet last year - Lowa rangers - best piece of kit, just back from a 35km tops hunting trip re- roar - chopper in walk out - back was fu#ked but feet were mint.

Picked up a pair of Salomon quest prime GTX for a good price, seem pretty good so far!

I've used Salomons for the last 10 years as a daily boot, for the money the don't last (around 8 months)that well....I should add i don't do anything to look after them at all but sure are comfy and offer great support.
About a year ago Ryan suggested La Sportiva Trango to me so I got a pair on sale from further faster for $250 just started wearing them and they are very comfy.
So far I'd have to recommend.
https://www.furtherfaster.co.nz/prod...o-trk-gore-tex

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I'm very happy with the boots I got from Sarvo, Ukraine Army? (coincidentally) I don't use them every day, for an old fella with a dodgy left ankle, they are comfortable and easy to clean.

Like

https://www.nzhuntingandshooting.co....ots-new-69369/

https://backwoodspursuit.com/crispi-...ts-review/amp/

https://crispi.co.nz/reviews/valdres-follow-up-review/

Just pushed the buy button on a pair of these.
Look forward to trying them out.

Originally Posted by bang

Agree, you need to spend 15 mins in each boot walking around the shop. I wouldn't go near hunters element boots personally. I finally upgraded my beloved scarpas after the soles fell off last year to a pair of these: https://www.bivouac.co.nz/footwear/m...ain-boots.html. Similar spec to lowa tibets, but cheaper, lighter and less bulky.

Looks like people have lost interest in this thread, but just in case someone ever comes across it and considers taking my advice..... be advised that a few weeks after posting this, I found that the soles were coming away from both of the boots, after only about 10 days use. I took them back to bivouac and was informed they had seen it before, on about 5 other pairs of the same boot. So, I take back my original advice to buy these.

I echo what people have said about the Salomons. Good flat country and bush boots. I've found them very slippery in tussock country and they're obviously not designed for higher rock and scree - I switch to a full rand boot for that.

Originally Posted by bang

I found that the soles were coming away from both of the boots, after only about 10 days use. I took them back to bivouac and was informed they had seen it before, on about 5 other pairs of the same boot. So, I take back my original advice to buy these.

i have the same thing happening with a pair of vasque boots i bought from hamills manukau closing down sale .......ok it was years ago but these sat in the box unused till 2020 and i have worn them maybe half a dozen day hunts. anyway no chance of a warranty claim wont even bother to try ...... so whats a good glue for these soles (basically a thin rubber sole glued to a rubber upper? sole. they dont let water in its almost like this is a sacrificial sole designed to be replaced or they just glue different treads to the same boot depending on the model....
thinkin i might use F2 or polyurethane adhesive sealant

I’m on my third pair of Salomon’s, have had the eyelet’s pull out on the first pair. Great bush stalking and river crossing boot, drys out a lot quicker than my Lowa Tibets. The scree will will blow the stitching out quickly if your doing a lot of that stuff. I only get 2 or 3 years max out of them.

So

Originally Posted by Sideshow

https://backwoodspursuit.com/crispi-...ts-review/amp/


https://crispi.co.nz/reviews/valdres-follow-up-review/

Just pushed the buy button on a pair of these.
Look forward to trying them out.

Write posting between two iPhone and iPad so please bear with me. I’ll post a full review in the next two days comparing the two.

Originally Posted by scotty

i have the same thing happening with a pair of vasque boots i bought from hamills manukau closing down sale .......ok it was years ago but these sat in the box unused till 2020 and i have worn them maybe half a dozen day hunts. anyway no chance of a warranty claim wont even bother to try ...... so whats a good glue for these soles (basically a thin rubber sole glued to a rubber upper? sole. they dont let water in its almost like this is a sacrificial sole designed to be replaced or they just glue different treads to the same boot depending on the model....
thinkin i might use F2 or polyurethane adhesive sealant

@scotty....try Gorilla grip. 10 times better than Ados f2

Shoe Goo
Recommended by a boot repairer
Amazing stuff
https://www.google.com/search?q=shoe...hrome&ie=UTF-8

I had a chat with a rep from a fairly well known boot company and it's pretty common across all modern boots to have soles delaminate and fall apart over time. Wilderness magazine have done a few articles on this. Like anything, it's a tradeoff between comfort and longevity. Sometimes the boots can sit on a shop shelf for a long time (especially unusual sizes) while the rubber and glue is quietly deteriorating. Ironically it's the boots that don't get used very often that seem to suffer worse.

It's not what you want to hear after dropping big money on boots!