The workboots I have right now are cheap and are starting to hurt my feet. I need some new shoes for work. They don’t have to be “workboots” in the sense that they are rugged with a steel toe etc. I just need something besides my Adidas tennis shoes to wear to work. I invested in some Doc Marten’s, which are supposed to be really comfortable, but they failed. What are some good boots/shoes that will be comfortable and not hurt me if I stand in them all day? I’ll take any and all suggestions please.
I sell shoes as a hobby on eBay and have sold quite a few boots (mostly higher end serious hiking boots) as well. Here’s my opinon FWIW. Timberlands and Doc Martens are vastly overrated in terms of “toughness”. They’re decent shoes, but they’re not serious “work shoes” in terms of being able to take the abuse of serious factory or construction type work.
Any shoe or boot you use for real serious construction work should be considered a disposable commodity. Paying 150 - 250 for a top of the line outdoor hiking style boot makes no sense if you’re going to be working with heavy equipment, caustic materials, and generally beating the crap out the shoe.
Your best bet, oddly enough, is at Walmart, where you can get some decent steel toed (or not) brand name leather work boots that will last at least a year or two (and far longer under non-abusive conditions) for $ 50 - $90. Most Walmart shoe sections have a full separate wall devoted to these hunting and work boots.
A properly fitted modern shoe should not need “breaking in” and should not hurt. Make sure you are choosing the correct width. Some of the above mentioned boots come in “Extra wide”.
no heavy factory work here. The boots I have now I used for construction and I needed the steel toe but now I install security systems for a security company and 1/2 the time I’m in somebody’s house and the other 1/2 I’m in a business, ranging from a dirty shop to a doctor’s office. I just want something comfortable really, but it can’t be a tennis shoe. I bought some Lugz from my friend’s girlfriend who sells shoes at JCPenny. I’ll find out if they do the job or not tomorrow.
As much as I hate WalMart, I gotta agree with astro. I have spent up to $150 on good steel toed workboots, only to freek out when something happens to them. (Duh, they’re WORK BOOTS. Ugly things are gonna happen)
My last pair I got at WalMart for $25, were super comfy, and I can afford to replace them every six weeks or so.
They came in all widths, and had good cushion and heel support. I totally second WalMart work boots.
Two words, dude. Red Wings.
I second Red Wings. Those $25 boots are no bargain if you are, in fact, replacing them every six weeks. Red Wings have a line of boots from steel-toed waffle-stompers to things more resembling, um, shoes. I’ve had my pair for about seven years now (they were $175 new) and they’re still the most comfortable shoes I own. I bought them after a bad slip-and-fall accident and I haven’t slipped in them once.
They do squeak on some surfaces, though.
If you’re really talking about construction or landscaping or stonework or something, Red Wings. If you’re talking about moving boxes around a warehouse, you can probably get by with something cheaper. It sounds like since you CAN work in tennis shoes, you don’t need something real heavy duty.
I’ve actually owned 2 pairs of hiking boots by Vasque and I believe that they’re the same company as Red Wing just the hiking branch. They each lasted about 8 years, and each were work boots and hiking boots.
RW will fix your boots, too, if I’m not mistaken.
I’ve worked in a forge for a blacksmith and worked tons of lawnmowing/landscaping. Red Wings are the only thing I’ve seen that no one ever has complaints about.
Doc Martens are dress shoes.
I’ve tried a bunc and vote for CAT walking machines. I swear by them. Steel toe hiking shoe looking things. They stopped making the workboots. Maybe because it was five or so years of six day a week use before I had to replace them. If I’d had known, I would have stocked up on three or four pairs.
If you are on your feet a lot, every few months get a set of Dr. Sholes (sp?) gell workboot inserts. Well worth the $15. I’ve converted half the guys in my shop.
Not sure about Vasque, but the Irish Setter hunting/hiking label is a division of Red Wing. I just took mine in to get the soles reglued. They stiched up a couple of holes and oiled them for me as well…all for free. I wasn’t real happy about the soles coming unglued but I live in the boots for weeks at a time and they have held up pretty well. Best I can say is that I would buy another pair.
For construction sites, I have a pair of steel-toe Rocky’s. They have been really good so far but I have only had them about six months so the jury is still out.
I will skimp on alot of things… but not on work boots (or rain gear).
do red wings go by width? I think my right foot is a bit wider up at the toe. my pinkie toe or w/e you happen to call it gets crammed under the one next to it and its not very comfortble… i wish i could just wear my adidas shoes lol
I worked for Red Wing for several years. Sizes from 5 to 18, widths from 3A to H (not in every style, though). You can even get mis-mated pairs in a couple of styles (Irish Setters and “mailman shoes”). They are VERY good boots.
I’ve also been real happy with a pair of “tactical boots” - SWAT-team lookin’things that are leather/nylon construction. Light weight and rugged.
I just bought a pair of Red Wings–bought a place on a large, un-landscaped lot with heavy clay soil and figured I’d be walking around a lot carrying heavy things.
The RW shop had a foot-measuring machine thing that measured both length and width, and they seemed to stock a pretty wide range for each of their models. The salesman/owner seemed to know what he was selling well enough (even if he did remind me of Gil from the Simpsons…), and I’ve been happy with the boots so far. I can stand in muddy water up to my ankles and my feet stay perfectly dry, and they look good as new after I spray them off with a hose. We’ll see how long they last, though (I’m betting it’s gonna be a while…)
I’m gonna jump on the Red-Wing Bandwagon here. I bought a pair the day after I got married (June 26, 2004) because we were supposed to go to Las Vegas for our honeymoon and all my shoes sucked, and my feet were killing me due to dancing all night in rented tux shoes. I got some mid-topped boots, no steel toe.
We never did get to go to Vegas (long story, total 'nother thread) but those shoes have babied my feet since the day I bought them.
I’m a big, big guy. 6’5" over 350 lbs, and my feet HURT when I stand on them too long. Well, they used to hurt. Those redwings are incredibly comfortable, and I love them. I can walk and stand for hours out of the day and go home and feel fine. They’re only 6 months old, but so far they’ve held up to my abuse.
They were about 150, and were the most expensive pair of shoes I’d ever CONSIDERED buying (my wife told me I had to. Said I deserved at least one pair of comfortable shoes, god bless her) but they were well worth every penny to me.
Steve
No argument that Redwings are great boots. If you’d like equal quality and are willing to search for an outlet, try Carolina Loggers. When I did forestry firefighting, I bought them instead of Redwings to save some money, and they are still in great shape 15 years later.
For ordinary work shoes, my vote is for Iron Age. They’re not Mall-Wart junk-comfortable on a daily basis and are quite durable. One note is to have more than one pair so the insides can dry out between wearings. Shoes last longer when alternated.
I have a pair of Columbia brand hiking boots that are so comfortable, once I have them on, I don’t want to take them off. They cost me about $120 if I remember correctly.
I wanna second the Vasque comment. Had mine 3 years, done probably close to 200 miles hiking in them, without a single blister or stubbed toe, straight out of the box. They are truly fantastic. They did cost $175, but worth every damn penny.
I guess it depends on what you do with them, though. I was a mechanic in college, chaning oil and such, and my dad bought me a pair of red wings (no way I could have afforded them), and they held up great. Before that, I had gone through three pairs of cheap boots in 6 months on the job, mostly due to caustic chemicals and crap. Lost them in a house move and damn near cried.
But I truly love my Vasque hikers…
Another vote for Redwings. Hubby is a carpenter and is on his feet 12-14 hours per day. He’s also a big guy - 6’7" and the boots hold up very, very well. A bargain at $180 because they last for well over a year!