The worker seems to know what he is doing but the boot? Pfah. Tchah. Odds and bits of leather sewn together. Bound to leak and break up. Needs a one piece vamp.

One finds quality men’s shoes and boots in unusual places, and price is not necessarily an indicator of quality. I Have a pair of made in China hunting boots which were cheap but are nearly perfect. Bought them from an operation called ‘Mark’s Work Warehouse’ in Canada, which mostly sells junk. Before them I had an expensive pair of Remington hunting boots which were OK until the sole of one boot broke, in half, lengthwise.

Sperry-chukka-high-vamp-4-eye-boat-shoe seem to have quality. So do Kenetrek Men’s Mountain Extreme 400 Insulated Hunting Boot. Look for a one piece vamp and you can’t go too far wrong.

Doc Martens are for urban pretenders.

Maybe hunting is the ultimate test for boots, but for this urban pretender, Docs held up. I used to cater 10-12 hr shifts in my oxfords, sometimes walking over or splashing greasy/oily/soapy substances, and they still looked fine and felt comfortable. Not a comfortable outdoor boot for winter, though, I agree. Lowas are my hiking boot.