Rose Anvil sent me here. Thank you very much for your great review.

I'm so frustrated at how hard it is to find a decently made product anywhere anymore. Everything has gone down in quality and it's gone up in price. I wish I was around in the early 90's to buy a small stockpile of good vintage Doc Martins. I have a pair of vintage Levis jeans that are likely older than I am and they look brand new after a year of heavy wear and being second hand. My year old American Eagle jeans are trash, they look worn and not in a cool way.

I bought my Solovairs over 5 years ago, wore them daily as soon as it was cold enough, and they are still by far my favourite footware. I resently got some made in Thailand doc Martens. Compared to my comfy Solovairs they feel as if they were made by a carpenter with arthritis, an absolute travesty

I am not a brand snob , and I like quality , Solovair would be my choice . It is getting harder and harder to find decent quality products , even the expansive stuff can be really bad now .

I managed to get a pair of Solovair oxbloods 8-holers about 3-4 years ago - they look great and they are night and day compared to an appalling pair of Thailand-made DMs. The MiE DMs do look good, but would really think long and hard about getting a pair. Fatal mistake by DMs to outsource, lost their...ahem, soul. Solovair keeping the faith.

According to this video i ordered my first pair of solovairs just now.

I've worn DM's every day for the last about 20 years. The last pair I bought 6 months ago I had to return for a manufacturing defect then the replacement pair just seem very poor quality compared to previous. I'm thinking about buying a different brand for the first time. It's a shame. I used to love them

Yes! Been avidly waiting for this update and I am totally in agreement, thanks to you I bought my solivairs and I bloody love them, soon to order a second pair in ox blood

This video literally came out as I was looking to buy new boots and was debating between these 2 pairs. I've had 1490s Thailand docs for 2 years and the sole is completely gone with a small crack forming, an eyehole coming out and the tongue ripped in half. Not to mention all the cracks. Really the only thing that was holding me back was the yellow stitching and groves on the sole. But the fact that the soles can be replaced sold me.

Been going a year in on my Solovair 8 eye Derbies. If they make it passed February, they'll officially have held up longer than any pair of Docs I've ever had.

I bought my first pair of Solovairs in 2013 and they're still in excellent condition. They're very comfortable, they took some time to break in but they're top quality.

Great! Now I can go and buy some Solovairs, I was waiting to see how this turned out first.

Thanks so much for the reviews. Been wanting to get a solid pair of boots to last, so this has been super helpful research. Tired of buying new shoes every couple years after very normal daily wear.

This was informative and insightful. Thanks for doing the work you do.

Thank yous so much for this video! I got myself for Christmas a pair of solovairs and they are absolutely fantastic ❤️

Thank you,from Moscow.

Thank you for your amazing coverage! Watched your 2 month review a couple of weeks ago then I decided to pull the trigger. Just received my Greasy 8-Hole Derby boots this past Friday. Was pretty paranoid if I got the right size cuz my feet are slightly bigger than a size 11 based on their chart, so I went for 11.5 and they fit perfectly. Always wanted a pair of DM's but after watching your videos and reddit, gave me confidence in solovair. I'm from Malaysia and oddly enough the price of a pair of Made in England DM 1460s is much more expensive compared to Solovair's best seller. Suffice to say I love my new boots. (Plus I get to nerd out about the history of this company, when people ask if what I'm wearing are a pair of Doc Martens)

I am seriously considering buying a pair of solovairs when they come back in stock. They look really good quality but then again for the guts of €200 they would want to be.

A most fair, thoughtful comparison. I'll spend extra for quality product. Respect!

Been waiting for this video!

Copped a pair of Solovair a week ago, been loving them since 👍 thank you for your content

I still have a pair of Ox Blood Docs i bought in 1989. the sole is coming up on the heel on one but still look amazing. I think i am sold on the Solovair.

Enjoyed all reviews regarding Doc Martens boots, last few pairs I've owned have been the 7 eyelet steel toed one and I've found the soles at much more hard wearing than both the 1460 and 1914 I've had in the past. Keep the videos coming 😁

Thank you for this. I just bought a made in england pair of docs, after having given up on docs in the early 90s when the quality fell off a cliff, and as soon as I walked out of the store had buyers remorse, thinking of the times I've been burned by the doc. Haven't worn them yet. Did some reading. Learned about solovair. My solovairs showed up today, and now I just can't decide which pair to return. Good to know the Made in england docs are quality again, and I love the yellow stitching and how wide the sole sticks out beyond the stitching to give that sort of 'floating' look when you walk. I just read an article that says the made in england line of docs are actually made by solovair. I haven't figured out if there's truth to that yet, but if so, I'd probably just keep the docs, as I'm just a sucker for the aesthetics of docs. Good to know about the soles. Thanks for doing this.

On the basis of the previous review I decided to treat myself to some Solovairs. I visited their factory, where they have a factory shop, they sell the retail ones but also many well priced pairs in the factory shop side... I ended up buying a pair of their lovely leather desert boots too. Not only that a chum in the ‘States bought a pair each for himself and his wife, all extremely happy to support a traditional, small, English business. Thanks for putting me on to them!

Been looking for a replacement for my Docs. I've had them for only four years but the tread is almost completely gone which is understandably dangerous in the wintertime. So glad I discovered these boots, these are a genuine consideration now, thank you.

I used to wear Doc’s, both shoes and boots but I always found them hard to break in and the soles split on me.

Good job on reviewing those! But I think I'll still go with another pair of BW2007 once mine finally break down (which they have already started after four years of wearing all year round). They might be less fancy, but they are also much more practical and half the price.

I used to be a Doc Marten retailer 1980- 1995 and was never happy with the DM soles. Their advert was "cool in summer warm in winter" while in reality it was the other way around. There used to be a police version which never had the stitching around the welt, the beat "bobbies" used to wear them out completely in six months.Also the soles were so bad in ice, they were useless. They did come out with commando grip soles which I loved and they looked cool. Dunno if they still do them but I would recommend them.

Thanks so much for this detailed review! I have bought my THIRD pair since you started this review because of this! I hope Solovair sends you a pair as a courtesy. The only complaint I have about them is that they are truly a "traditional" fit, so I have a slightly high arch and this means my foot is pressed up against the stitch between the tongue and the toe cap, and that's REALLY painful for break in. I have a pair of Docs with a softer leather and those broke in perfectly at Size 10, these ones are going to be super painful for a while. Also because I'm in the US, returns aren't really an option if you order from the UK, which I did.

Great review! Thank you! I recently found out about Solovair. I'm definitely ordering a pair of Derby boots. I'm glad you mentioned that it's possible to have them re-soled when/if the need should arise

Thank you very much for sharing, this is a very valuable information. Could you please let me know if these Solovair Derby boots you mentioned are similar quality to the Solovair boots you reviewed, or they are too different to be compared?

Thank you for creating and sharing! This is very helpful, I appreciate you giving a six month review showing the wear in the soles. Definitely will go with Solovair, already have a vegan pair chosen. Cheers!✌ This is the third video I've watched comparing the two, and only ads for Dr. Martens come up, no Solovair. Someone's trying to save face.😋

Cool, very interesting and fair comparison!

I've purchased a couple new 1460s, outsourced. I probably won't again. I wish the made in England would make more feminine colors.

i own Dr. Marten made in Thailand which i bought in 2008 in UK. I wear rarely amd its still rocking .

excellent review, thanks!

Great review. I'm going for the Solovair. Those Docs look beat to hell.

It is interesting how round the transition from the heel has worn in the Docs, showing how important even a wooden shank really is!

Hi. Great update. How are they shaping up now? Are they still going strong, the soloviars? Thanks.

Great video propably gonna buy a pair of solovairs now greetings from Switzerland

Greetings from Greece nice video you helped me choose

This is a very good video review, thank you. I bought a pair of greasy black Dr Martin boots the 1919 version. I was not happy with my purchase. The were made in Vietnam. I wanted the made in England version. In watching the real time review l am looking at the Solovair. More research is in my future. I always add a arch support insole as well. Thanks again for the info.

Thanks for your time to review both these iconic boots.Even though I already have 2 pairs of solovair boots,I've found their sizing to be a nightmare especially if you have narrower feet,plus their toebox felt much roomier and longer which I don't really like.Therefore I must have been among the very few lately who went back to Doc Martens.I never had a problem finding my size and a perfect fit with Docs.I still have 1919 steel toed ones and 1460 that fit perfectly.One other thing I ve found is that the Commander type of sole pattern on some Docs is equally durable to solovair and definately more durable than the waffle one.

Thank you for this series of reviews -- love your SKX by the way. Would you put Grinders Cedric in the same league as these Solovairs since they are both made by NPS?

I am ever so glad that I did some research before buying new boots. I've just received two pairs of knee high Solovair boots as a birthday present and will pretty much never buy any more DMs. The two pairs of DMs that I have I bought many years ago and to all intents and purposes it appears to be that DM's standards have slipped but Solovair's have not and so I know who I wish to support.

@Devonreviewer Thanks for your review. I was thinking about buying DM's and came across Solovair ( and your video) while doing that. Your videos were really helpful. I got my boots a couple of days ago and, so far, am very happy with them.

I want to get the docs as I found some MiE’s quite cheap. I plan on wearing them often but not daily, how long would you reckon they’d last for? Also I don’t plan on doing as much walking as you do. Cheers

Great video!

One more thing that makes Solovair better is that the stitching you can see on the welt is decorative, the actual stitching holding the welt to boot is a blind stitch, witch is way way more protected from damage than the side stitch, the leather would fail before the blind stitch, also Solovair sell replacement soles, 3 types - 1 the one you have on your 8 hole derby, 2 a slightly thinner style for their comfort/lifestyle line of boots & shoes, 3 the classic Dr Martens style they call Commando, with a much more thick aggresive tread design that is much more slip resistant. I will be getting a few pairs of the Commando to fix my vintage Dr Martens and for when the Solovair 8 hole greasy derby boots I will be getting eventually wear out. Solovair have a lot more style boots and shoes than I thought, not as many as Dr Martens but most of them are the cheapo China/Thia made, The for Life pair I have are nice leather but the soles are not lasting and of corse the whole for life thing only lasted 3 years, also have the mono black, the left boot is tighter than the right even though label says same size for both, the leather is thin and feels like plastic plus the soles wore out in two months of light walking. Very sad Dr martens got so bad, I still have a pair from 1996 that if my feet didn't grow I'd still wear, soo comfy. My next boots will 100% be Solovair

I've worked security for 3.5 years and I'm looking at moving to a trade as a pipe fitter. For the last 3 years I've used 511 tactical and Bates tactical boots. In that time I had to use a composite toe which has limited my options. With as much as I've walked which is approximately 1000 to 2000 miles a year give or take the soles of these boots has been my biggest gripe with every pair I've used they wear down really fast and have foam in the mid sole and with as much as I walked the outsole will wear right into the midsole. I'm thinking about buying a pair of solovair steel toe derby boots and I'm hoping that these will serve me better than the Bates or 511 tactical. This review has been very helpful.

My oldest pair of docs, not mie, are almost 20 years old. I have 24 pairs of docs now. The most comfortable pair of shoes I’ve ever owned. I have plantar fasciitis in both of my feet and I can wear them all day with no problems at all.

I have a pair of 1460 smooth Docs and I've been wearing them almost everyday for the past 8 years. The past month or so the leather has began to crack quite drastically in the toe crease and the soles have only just wore down to the air cushion sections. Considering my feet usually ruin shoes after a few months I'm surprised my Docs lasted this long! Of course there are better boots out there but I think Docs are still a good option.

Aw... what a shame. I so much wanted the MIE DM's to win because I grew up with them from the early 70's. It makes little difference to me now though at my age. Sad to see a legend die all the same... :(

Recently I finally buckled down and decided that I finally wanted to get myself some Dr. Martens, 'cause I grew up watching my sister wear them constantly all the time. My sister adores the shoes, she's had like three pairs or more over her lifetime. So I wanted some too, because I think the overall design and profile is just super neat. It fits my vibe. But now that I have done my own research... I went ahead and ordered myself a pair of Solovairs instead. I really hope that they work out for me, size wise, since I had to order online; you just never know with that. But I am very excited to give them a shot. Thank you for your thoughts on the brands after 6 months of use, it really helped me decide between the two. Ultimately, I value durability and longterm comfort over any kind of brand loyalty. (Can't really be all that loyal when I myself never owned the shoes though, just admired DMs from afar).

Last year I purchased a pair of Dr. Martens Abandon's MIE, I have worn them a lot and that includes Canadian winter. They still look amazing and the soles are fine, the one different thing about mine than a lot of the ones I have see reviewed is mine are stamped with noth "The Original" and "Made In England" on the sole which seems to be more common on vintage doc's that were better built. Does anybody know if maybe that could be the sole to look for? I would love to try a pair of Solovair's but they charge extra shipping to Canada and once you add that to the US exchange and duty/tax it's considerably more than buying MIE Dr. Martens in person here, maybe next time I am in the UK but for the time being I would spend that sort of money on Red Wings or the new Boulet Casual line.

Thank you for this video! I was so close to buying Docs but this convinced me that Solovairs are the way to go and I have a pair on the way. The sole wear on the MIE Docs is shocking and not what I would have expected from them!

Thanks for sharing from Australia 🇦🇺

Rose Anvil sent me here. Great video

very useful. thank you!

In the early nineties I used to own two pairs of Dr Martens, with a Solovair label. Steel toe. Good leather, the tongues were made of non leather though.

So glad I chose the 8 Hole Solovair Derby over the MIE. I My feet are quite wide across the toes. My Asian DMs are five years old and still hurt unless I loosen the lower laces a bit. My Solovairs are fine and I can cinch the laces up snug with no discomfort. I also assumed the cracking on the toes was a non issue with the MIEs due to the higher quality leather. I believe you can re-sole Solovairs as well. Not sure about the DMs. Pro tip. Next time wear one of each boot, you can cut your test time in half 🤣HAPPY NEW YEAR!

Have to say, I got my first pair of Thailand Docs in 2018 and up until now they were my most worn shoes since I bought them and the soleprofile still looks really good. BUT sadly the mid sole just cracked on the left boot. I wonder if it made a difference in the quality that those were limited edition joy divisions/new order ones 🤔 But after a lot of research I will really consider getting solovairs now

I agree, I have compared the two boots side by side just like this. But I did not wear the Solovair because they did not fit.I wish there was somewhere I could try these on because I don't want to pay shipping again if they don't fit. Bottom line, I do like the Solovair better.

Hey I love your videos! I ended up buying a pair of Made in England boots but I might end up going with the 11 eye derby’s down the road just to have a pair of each. Also you should check out Rose Anvil on KZfaq! He cut open a pair of Docs and Solovairs but also gave your channel a shoutout! Good stuff

Since the soles wore out so fast on the Doc’s did you go ahead & have them resoled?

I purchased the 1460 Made in England Boots 2 Years ago they were good but then I tried Solovair and I was very impressed they are so much more better quality and so much more softer on your Feet I also wear Gripfast as well which are now made by Solovair

Hi buddy, are both these boots true to size, meaning if I wear size 7, should I order 7 or up in size...???

Docs split on the crease and takes ages to break in. Solovair boots last a very long time and you can resole when.they wear down they are comfortable from day one.

Which laces do you have on the red ones ?? I can’t seem to find that color

Make a video after wearing them for 12 months!

I have the same Solovair eight hole derby boot. They are excellent and I’ll never go back to DM’s ever again. The soles on my last pair of DM’s split across the ball of the foot after six months. Very poor wear and tear. Solovair is the winner by far and they are still going strong.

Any chance we could get one more update? Bought solovairs because of this review among others.

I was able to have a pair in 1978, not sure if it was a Christmas present. It was the Red pair. My first memories where a lot of pain for the first 6 weeks wearing them in. The crease of the toes, very uncomfortable, so I think I may have alternated at the beginning between what I wore to School. When they were worn in they were great and very comfortable, my best boots. However I did see excessive wear on the souls like in your video, I do remember that for sure. The Airwear at the beginning was interesting but it was shortly lived and I think they wore through on the heal. I cannot remember how long I had them for but it wasn't years that's for sure , my overall thoughts were disappointing because the soul wore out. The worst thing was at School, some people thought I wasn't " Hard enough" to have docs, it's true it was the Punk era. But deep down I was hard enough I just didn't show it.

Hay, can you please tell us what size in CM you measured your foot at when talking about sizing please. Is your "normal" size in other footwear a size uk8? Because the size guide of solovair is much different than I would choose of the shelf. I would like to compare your measurements to the guide to see where I am. thank you

Hello, I have a pair of docs and the bellow tongue is really hurting my feet. Will this be broken in after time or should I ask a cobbler to cut them up and stich them to the side?

Yay for Solovair. When you are on a good thing stick to it.

I wear a size 10 sneaker should I get a 9.5 in this boot?

Do you polish your boots regularly? I'm not sure what the difference in the conditions of use are between us, mate but I've gotta tell you, my MIE Doctor Martens' soles show FAR less wear and I wear mine on the walk to & from work on the pavements + all day on the workshop floor. Also, I polish mine regularly and don't see that deterioration on the surface of the leather. I do agree, though...the Solovair boots are just a cut above in all respects. For reference, I have Black 8 hole MIE Doctor Martens boots and Oxblood 6 hole Astronaut Solovair boots.

Where can I find that green glowing Rocket lamp in the Background?

How is the toebox in the derby compare to the dealer boot vs made in england chelsea boot doc martins

I really think they need to use some real rubber compound instead of PVC or whatever that stuff is. Even the commando sole Solovairs I wear down too fast. I only weigh about 75kg so it's not like I'm super hard on them.

One thing I know is solovair sell their soles on their shop, £15 for a pair. Maybe you could buy a pair of them, and take your old docs to a cobbler?

Just received my solovair but not shure if this is true that the gresey is a better leather vs hi shine

Based largely on your videos I took a trip to a boot shop in Camden Town yesterday and picked up a pair of Solovair Chelsea boots. I've had bad luck with shoes and these are the most expensive pair I've ever bought, so I'm hoping that they last me a good while!

Which solovair boots would everyone recommend (I would like them to look like the classic docs) so should I go for the greasy matte or the high shine? 😭

Is that a Matt Heafy 7 string Epiphone in the backround?

Do they rub the back of the ankle like docs do? Huge issue for me 😢

You should review some new rock boots, I'm curious what you would think

I missed a review of the inside of the shoes because lot of the times the inside rips apart for me

Is there a lot of room for the top of the foot in the solovair? compared to dr martens please? because dr martens hurt me so much and I even bruise

Does anyone know where I can find the red and brown colorway of docs in this video?

Does your solovair tongue slide to one side when you're wearing them?

I wear size 10 in doc marten boots im shopping on line i want some solovair boots would it be size 10 aswell do they run the same sizes thank you or would u switch to a nine an a half or keep it a ten

I've finally found the Solovairs that Id like to try, but theres so much contradictory views on the sizing vs the sizing of Doc's. I'd rather not have to order 3 pairs just to return 2 😢 but looks like that's my only option.

I've been looking for a solovair boot in size 12 US but they're very hard to find. Solovair website has zero size 12 boots. And it looks like drmartens are everywhere in every size.

My 1999 Docs have the original vibram lug like tread pattern, and they are still going strong after 23 years of fall and winter use with many many more years to go.

funny how im watching both you and rose at the same time, and he sends me back here that chap

Funnily enough, I got a pair of Dr Martens boots and a pair of Solovair boots last week. Straight out the box Solovairs feel so premium compared to the Docs. Granted, they cost me a little more than Docs (£20) and were made in England vs Asia, but Dr Martens have increased their prices so much in the past several years I do not think they are worth purchasing anymore.

Here cuz of Rose. Subbed cuz of u. Cheers Mate