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I don’t understand why you won’t say names. You’re experts being honest. If you talk about a company trashing them is one thing but if you lay all cards on the table then that’s another. Great video 😊

Please mention brands! Id like a good shopping guide with the guess work removed! If the companies dont like, let them make a better boot !

My wife took me to the Boot Barn for my Birthday present and I tried on all the Moctoes. The Thorogood's were great but tight, and the Carolinas were well made, and the Hawx were okay. Easily the Woverines were the most comfortable, had a wide toe box, and have a "pillow like" ride. Super soft and comfortable for us older guys who need that to save our feet and backs! Easily the most comfortable and lightest boots I've ever owned! They are light enough and flexible enough to take out for a long hike or wearing everyday. Who knew that the Woverines were the best!

Hey guys. I just wanted to leave a comment to say thank you so so much on the work you guys do! I used to buy a pair of boots or shoes every year and wear them to death which was heart breaking knowing that’s the end of the road for them. After a few months of research and watching your videos and other channels, I finally bit the bullet and bought myself my very first pair of good quality boots! I honestly love my Iron Rangers and I wear them every day for everything! They were difficult to begin with as they were SOLID! But after a good conditioning and a few weeks of on and off wearing they are by far the most comfortable boots I’ve ever worn! Again thank you guys so much for your insightful content from the bottom of my heart.

I think the best advice I’d give is always ask what type of construction is used on the boot and if it is repairable. Normally that would be Blake stitched, Goodyear welted, Norwegian welted and Stitchdown. The presence of stitches on a welt doesn’t guarantee the construction since many budget shoemakers include it as decoration. Similarly, the absence of stitches on the outsole doesn’t mean it’s not Goodyear welted - aside from the fact that some brands use hidden stitch channels, there are also boots with rubber soles where the midsole has been Goodyear welted before the outsole is attached. Additionally, you should ask about whether it has a leather insole and, if it’s lined, whether that is leather too. I should add that dress boots should have a lining, whereas work boots using thicker leather shouldn’t.

You can never miss with a Trenton & Heath / Stridewise collaboration. Always informative and entertaining. Have a great Labor Day weekend.🙂

I just paid $281 for a pair of RedWing boots. They are just leather with no liner or insulation liner. They will last and be comfortable for 3 years in in a steel factory with sharp metal, sparks, molten metal, various acids, not to mention the natural elements of rain and snow. If I was just wearing them casually, they would last 5 years and look good. Good boots are worth it.

I got a pair of Frye's engineer style boots several years ago, leather sole and what appeared to be welted construction. Only to find out when I bring them to be resoled, it was a fake welt and actually they were cemented. The cobbler was able to resole kindof, so they're still OK. But it was disappointing for $200+ boots, especially compared against the Thursday boots I have at slightly lower price, but fully goodyear welted. So it pays to look very closely and do your research.

Being in the trades can be expensive but being poor can be more so. Saving money now by buying a cheaper boot that doesn't last is more expensive in the long run so it's good to see some brands offering seconds at a discount or payment plans for those that need it. Thanks for the education, it will come in handy.

I've had my Columbia hiking boots for 300 miles so far. Pretty good with no issues. Proper maintenance is always key.

Would definitely appreciate a review of some of the big names in particular. Looking at some Tecovas and curious about how they are built (using good process, materials, techniques, etc.). Your experience and knowledge is definitely valuable!

I appreciate this informational video.. you answered questions I've had but didn't know how to go about them!

I was told by my Dad years ago, fork out the money on a good, well made pair of boots and shoes and they’ll last you a life time. Buy cheap and by the time you’re done you’ll end up spending more buying more over time. Quality over flash or quantity. Good video guys! Just bought some new Julian Engineers! Not cheap but I use em on my bike and just for general wear. Talk about well made. Wow. Horween Chromexel. Same as my Aero 30s 1/2 belt.

Thank you guys for making the wonderful content like you do. You've really gotten me into wanting to make boots and shoes. This collab was great!

I wear work boots every day. I settled on 8" mock toe Thorogood boots. I can get two or three resoles before they are shot. For the price, roughly $250 or so now, I can live with that. Not much break in needed. My old feet like the wedge soles. I have pair of Thursday boots. They don't get much wear but are comfortable and resoleable.

over my years of buying everything in my life, I found that "Buy once, cry once" is my mantra now....you get what you pay for most of the time even though the shock of the initial investments may floor you, it pays off usually in the end

I feel like having Rose Anvil there would add a ton to this conversation. He could show examples of each component discussed in this video.

Because of this guy’s video I found out about two best boot companies in the world: Parkhurst, and Thursday boot company.

I like having boots that i can beat up and gain character. Two leather examples being Red Wing Copper Rough and Tough. The other being Thursday burnt copper leather. I am going into about my 2nd year with Danner Quarrys and if i could replace the synthetic stuff with leather i would.

I just bought Danner Super Rainforest. Danner is saying they are 7oz full grain leather. I know they are comfortable and fill your whole house with new leather smell when you take them off. The first day I wore them it was pouring rain and my feet stayed dry all day. Hopefully they hold up with time

Good deep dive in how to determine what are quality made boots and how to match them to your needs

“Blazing the streets of New York City” - all of the hipsters raised their hands with that statement.

As a contractor I wore redwings for years. But have been moved on to Keens which work for my feet more so than any leather sole boot. I can’t see paying out $300 for a boot and paying out $150 to resole a few years in. I think a few sets of bonded sole boots could save me money over the same time period and feel better on my feet. Not sure trying to think this thru.

I got a pair of Irish Setters (Redwing side brand). They were sub $200. More or less the are outer construction is pretty good with a real Goodyear welt, Vibram sole, and reasonably decent leather. The foot bed is where they skimped. Break-in was a matter of days. They are as comfortable as a decent athletic shoe. That's fine for me, but if they were getting hard use, they'd loosen up quickly and I suspect the foot bed would break down. While a resole is possible, It probably won't be cost effective. By the time they need that, the inside will be mush.

Terry Pratchett, theory on boots 😀 The reason that the rich were so rich, Vimes reasoned, was because they managed to spend less money. Take boots, for example. He earned thirty-eight dollars a month plus allowances. A really good pair of leather boots cost fifty dollars. But an affordable pair of boots, which were sort of OK for a season or two and then leaked like hell when the cardboard gave out, cost about ten dollars. Those were the kind of boots Vimes always bought, and wore until the soles were so thin that he could tell where he was in Ankh-Morpork on a foggy night by the feel of the cobbles. But the thing was that good boots lasted for years and years. A man who could afford fifty dollars had a pair of boots that'd still be keeping his feet dry in ten years' time, while the poor man who could only afford cheap boots would have spent a hundred dollars on boots in the same time and would still have wet feet. This was the Captain Samuel Vimes 'Boots' theory of socioeconomic unfairness.

higher priced hiking boots like Lowa, Meindl, and Kenetrek with glued on soles can be resoled. in fact, kenetrek has a resole service similar to the Allen Edmonds one for dress shoes.

Yeah, Redwing has fallen off in the quality of the leather, since they started importing half-tanned hides. Very loose, soft grain on some of their boots. Though they still have highlights. The rough and tough is very good. Their work boots are solid. I wear a pair for my lovely eighteen hour shifts, and they are three years, and lots of miles in. My previous pair lasted thirteen years, and were still going strong. Unfortunately they were eaten by a dog.

Yeah wearing waterproof work boots for 8 or 10 hrs is often a mistake. My feet will sweat so much it doesn’t matter if they’re waterproof or not because they’re just as wet anyway. It’s like putting a plastic bag on my feet and working. Better to get 2 normal ones and put a tech spray on them, switch them out if I get wet. Most of the time I do not need waterproof boots and if I do I have mud boots.

I had a pair of Red Wing Pecos when I worked in the oil field. Non- Water proof boot, but I stood in a cellar with ~10" of water for around an hour, my feet never got wet.... waterproof? I forgot my rubber boots and the Pecos had been treated a number of times with Obenaufs.

Greatly needed video and the collaboration is always a bonus when guys get together sharing your experience and knowledge is definitely a benefit for me. Being new to the boot lifestyle and needing the knowledge you have will save me much wallet ache. I started with Thursdays, Wilcox, Bourdon and Beckett Simonon’ Chelsea’s just arrived. Big thanks 😊 and I appreciate your willingness to help 👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾👍🏾

Thanks guys. Names in the past associated with "quality" aren't necessarily so anymore ... not all but many; best to know what you're paying for along with what you expect. Great info guys, appreciate it. Be Safe

Much love all!

Nice boot primer, gents! Thanks. And happy and safe Labor Day weekend, all! 🤓🥾

Have you ever thought doing a video on leather motorcycle boots. Brands like TCX, Stylmartin, Rokker, and there are others that don’t look like hard core biker boots so they can be worn to work. I would like to hear what you think on them.

Great video guys!, but is not just which tannery the leathers comes from instead of full grain, pigmented etc.. it's important to know if leather is full grain or pigmented cause if the brand is using a pigmented leather from a well known tannery means a good quality and isn't, that's what fashion brands do. So the quality of the leather is super important even though is a well known or not well known tannery.

Now in my opinion my favourite boots for quality I mean redwing whites boots and if you've got the money a pair of nicks are really good lasted for a good 4 years without wear n tear hard to break in mind you but they're quite class and if yer on a budget for whatever reason I don't know your situation but corolina and thorogood are quite nice for the 200 price range and for under 200 there's timberland there quite nice comfy durable but they ain't work boots there streetware rockrooster I've heard is quite nice for the 100 bucks price range

I think you missed the difference between a factory resole/rewelt and a cobbler rewelting because a factory rewelt destroys the upper so it doesn't make sense to buy a Goodyear welt constructed boot if you limit it to the repairability of a Blake construction

I do have a question. As a tradesman, I have specific needs. I need a waterproof, composite safety toe, oil and water proof, antiskid/antislip, e-rated (electrical safety rated). Do you have recommendation of some companies that are a good true Goodyear welted boots that do this type of boot? I currently wear Timberland and Wolverine typically..

Prime example of a sellout not wanting to mention the bad companies for fear of losing a future potential sponsorship. Selling out before the payoff LOL

Very informative video. In my experience, it’s always the lining that lets me down. Unfortunately, I can’t afford seven hundred dollar boots.

Enjyoyed the video as always Gents. It is also worth mentioning sometimes historically great brands (Red Wing) will experiment with synthetic interiors. I agree to do your research and not make assumptions just due to the brand name.

Every “man” in this video looks like the hardest use to which he’ll ever put a boot is walking to the corner café for a latte. I can’t say they inspire much confidence in their experience of what makes a boot “high quality”.

Your friend talks funny. Where did he learn to talk that way!?

Helpful to know this stuff. Thanks, Trenton and Heath!

A pedantic gripe: a stitch that does not contribute to the structural integrity of the shoe’s construction by keeping the upper and sole attached to one another is not a “fake stitch”; it’s a decorative or aesthetic stitch, rather than a functional or welting stitch. Even a non-functional, purely decorative loop of thread pierced via a needle through a textile, piece of leather, or other material still qualifies as a “real stitch”.

learned a lot gents . Thank you ! great video .

I used to be a huge fan of goretex lined boots, but as mentioned in the video, be careful how water resistent you need. Goretex is amazing in the water, but you pay for that with less breathability on every other day. I realized sweaty feet for a year isn't worth it to have better water performance 1% of the time. Just be honest with yourself about what you really need, and what the trade-offs are.

Do you know Good european Brands for Boots? Should be under 250-300€ at the best way under 200€. Style like a Service Boot

Did I hear correctly that unlined leather boots are more breathable? I live in Arizona…. and love boots but need some that are not so hot!

Ya, there are differences!

Why didn’t you mention Veldtschoen construction? Popular on quality English country shoes, and the nearest thing you will get to a waterproof leather shoe/boot.

Any chance you guys could do a boat shoe video? I’ve got a pair of sperry gold cups that are in ROUGH shape.

One day I will own a pair of Nick’s. I don’t care if I have to get a job in Oregon to justify the purchase lol

Guys, I was thinking you'd actually compare the boots you had on the table. Those seem to be of good quality and it would be great to see the differences.

what are the boots on the far right? they look like president boots but seem a bit different

Namn the five best boots in your opinion

Very timely for me. I'm grateful

Thanks for the videos chaps, enjoyed this one. Maybe one day there will be a pair of Jim Greens heading your way for a resole.

It doesn’t feel closer to the core in the inner lining of it a quality shoes so that it lasts. I always find that the inside of the shoe wears out way before the outside. What should I look for for a long lasting inner lining?

As of late I have found and bought several brands of boots that are under 100 that have a good year welt. Examples are Handpoint boots, rockrooster boots, patron, golden fox, and silver bull. Yes, I know the odd thing between handpoint and rockrooster as I did a video about them but learned more after that video so may make another video about them. Also silver bull are lined with leather and I took one apart that I found was a real good year welt with a gemming ( or however that is spelled). Anyway my goal is to find high quality boots for under 100 or around 100. Personally I think silver bull fits best but it is a plastic welt. Rockrooster has a pair that is leather welt as Rose Anvil pointed out on his channel. I think even Hand point has a leather welted boot. Patron boots are only found on ebay so hard to find any info about the leather and I have several pairs and they are lasting a long time, after a year one pair still looks new. Can not find that patron boot on ebay any more but there is another one under a different brand that looks exactly the same so maybe it is and they are just changing the brand name. That brand is RGM. Also I only recently discovered golden fox and bought 2 pairs and they are inexpensive but I think silver bull is of much better quality.

What boots are on the far right side of the video?

Would it be safe to say that Gore Tex contributes to being non-breathable. For that reason I stay away, as it makes hiking or running a hotter experience and when they do get wet, they take longer to dry out.

I have a pair of Red Wings that have molded soles but I bought them cheaply because I needed a new pair of boots with met guard and these had it they're holding up okay but I can tell they're not going to make it but a year at the best

My redwing work boots were my best pair 270 bucks well worth it

What pair is 3rd from your right? Thanks!!

How much does it cost to resole the shoe?

In my use case, repairability is not a consideration when buying a boot. I will not spend the time to maintain my boots which means a $500 pair of boots will last just as long as a $200 pair of boots. When it's time to "repair" a pair of boots for me, I'll just spend that little bit extra on new ones.

I appreciate this style of content too

Can you recommend a work boot that would be suitable for up size 3 1/2 European 36? I don't want to wear children's shoes when walking on uneven ground and gardening on a large scale. Birdy

The hardest problem I am having is that I am required to have composite toed safety boots. It seems like there is cheap, and then White's, but nothing decent inbetween. Is there anything you can do to help folks like me? I am at the point I hate looking for new work shoes....

My Thursday wingtips feel sort of this and the leather is smooth. Does this mean it is not high quality leather?

12:12 A ghost walks between both of your shoulders in the background. :)

What are the boots on the far left (the ones with the american flag on the tongue)? Thanks

What interests me is finding the point where one gets the most bang per buck. I reckon with high price segment boots one easily wanders deep in the borderlands between diminishing returns and plain old ripoff…

SB Foot Tanning Co?

I am looking for leather Hi Top sneakers, i did look at Crown Northhampton. which are probably the best i have ever seen. just a little too much money. any one else?

2nd and 4th pair brand please??

Hey guys, can I ask your opinion on wide feet with welted boots? I've had several nice pairs of Norwegian welted hiking boots but had issues with where the leather comes around and slightly under the toes, to the welt. Combo of that and sturdy leather would beat up the sides of my toes pretty bad. Any recommendations? Size up to get more volume and hope I can tighten down the rest of the boot?

10:31 This is an opportunity to create a GoreTex liner with cordura, scrap leather, as the counter for these boots. Theres no reason this cannot be done. And even in cheaper models cordura cant be that expensive for a small part.

Boots are better looking than sneakers !

I bought a pair of Red Wing 953 that I thought repairable but I found out the sole was molded. Is there a chance that these boots be Goodyear welted and resoled with a leather midsole and Christie sole. What would be an approximate cost if possible?

Can you recommend one?

I have motorcycle boot Full leather made by held. They were 85 on closeout. They are way better the my other pair of leather that was &,000.

Yes you can resole $500 boots but it costs $150 to do it. You aren't saving money by doing this. I buy Lucchese because I love the way the look and feel and can be resoled but I know I'm not saving money in the long run.

Would you consider JK Boots a good quality boot?

If the boot is held on using laces, it isn't waterproof. Only a zipper over a extremely overlapping gusset it. You find this out in a storm on a motorcycle.

Well done. Thanks gents.

Thursday boots have shifted away from Horween, and their quality control has dropped severely. Many influencers privately admit that you shouldn't buy them anymore, but you don't bite the hand that feeds you.

I love these videos.

Great informative video as always. I'm a small KZfaqr in Nashville and would love to meet y'all one day. Is your shop still open to the public? Thanks!

You guys did not define at the beginning what a good year welt means in terms of sole construction compared to cemented soles which would be helpful for the layman. I assumed it meant fully stitched sole to welt. Also you did not define how you tell veg tan leather by eye or how to tell the quality of leather than asking where the leather comes from which may be flawed also. For obvious shiny plastic leather fine but for mid priced boots leather quality is not so easy. Also the layman cannot see the contruction of a boot when viewing so how to tell if boots are using synthetic materials or made with inferior materials inside the boot.

On waterproof linings like goretex - here in the U.K. we get a lot of rain and a lot of hikers much prefer a non-goretex full grain leather boot. Goretex tends to get pierced by toe nails or grit getting inside, whereas a good full grain leather boot can be re-waxed and last for years. Getting harder and harder to find now but a much more durable and breathable solution that goretex boots.

Don't leave timberlands in your hot car first hand experience.

You don’t want to go cheap on your tools don’t go cheap on your boots that’s good

Looking for a boot company that can make some men's 17 4e wide do you guys know anyone who makes them that big I'm having a hard time finding good boots

What boots are to your far left? What name?

Very informative.

I would also prefer to know which brands worth the price that they are asking and which doesn’t

What are those moc toes? They don't quite look like Red Wings or Thorogoods.