Custom White's Boots ... Thoughts?

[meso]

White's are incredibly comfortable and I wouldn't say the leather is stiff... it's basically molded to your foot after being broken in. The tongue is very supple, and the arch support means you can wear them all day and not be sore. Soles on my SDs are vibram. There's a reason they have a following among firemen.

BTW, here's a pair of SDs in 10E for 225...
http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll...m=330520686198

 

[slide13]

The double leather soles are a little stiff to start out, but not as much as you would think and are not uncomfortable in any way. They really do mold to your feet after a while, much more so then Aldens. I have and love both but the White's really are my favorite boots.

 

[milosz]

I hated the Alden Indy's I bought in SF a couple of years ago. The speedhooks bent, the tongue was crooked and they weren't particularly comfortable. For $300 I expected way, way more.

My White's are insanely comfortable even as heavy as they are. Going back to the Thorogoods I wear to work (basically look like Red Wing 975s with a round toe rather than moc, I don't know the model name) is tough. Those are nice boots and broken in, but I've gotten so used to the arch support and my feet never getting tired.

I need to polish my captoes and then I'll try to get new pics. I'm very hard on shoes so they're already getting scuffed up.

The only thing I wish White's would offer is a Cambrelle lining, ala Wesco. I'd love to have a sweat-wicking lining rather than leather.

 

[jackdaw]

If the workmanship and materials on current White"s are anywhere near as good as they were 40 years ago when I bought a pair of Smokejumpers, then these are a good deal. I recently bought a pair of Indy 403 in Horoween Chrome Excel. If I had known about these White's shoe/boots I would have gone for the White's. Should note, though, that the arch is radically high and can be uncomfortable.

 

[zissou]

I think some black dress captoe SDs will be my next boot...

 

[Whacky]

I almost went the black route, but from all the pictures of the Dress Brown, after some use, conditioning, polshing, etc, I thought they looked dark enough to work with black.

Its a very interesting color. Seems quite versatile.

Honestly never fully understood the massive appeal of the Alden 400's...

 

[slide13]

I have both White's and Aldens and love both...but if I had to pick one it would be White's for sure. I do love a good 405 Indy boot though...and looking forward to breaking in my first pair of cordovan Aldens once the snow here in WI melts (yeah...it'll be a while!). Very different look and feel between them.

 

[scourage]

sounds like they mostly do custom/online orders, but wondering if there is anywhere to try on white's. Looking for a more classy boot to complement my katahdins (which I really like) and thinking of these or 1000 mile.

 

[slide13]

Not many (any?) options to try them on I'm afraid. Stronghold used to stock some but I don't know that they do anymore, and I've heard there is a place in NYC that was stocking a model or two but I cannot recall the name right now. For the most part though you just have to send in tracings or extrapolate from sizing comparisons to other boots.

 

[bumgardner]

I have owned a pair of Whites semi dress boots.for over a year. I have worn them pretty much every day. Excellent quality and after break in they are real comfortable.

 

[slide13]

In case anybody would like to see more pics, I did a quick blog post with some more shots of my Farmer/Rancher boots.

http://artfulexecution.blogspot.com/...rough-out.html

 

[Whacky]

Yeah, not being able to try them on was definitely something I was hesitant about.

However, I haven't heard too many people who had them who didn't say they weren't comfortable.
Hopefully in a couple weeks I can be one of those people.

 

[bradster66]

Originally Posted by bumgardner

I have owned a pair of Whites semi dress boots.for over a year. I have worn them pretty much every day. Excellent quality and after break in they are real comfortable.

Same here. One year, almost, of wear in regular rotation and the soles have barely started to scuff. Also, I went a half size down. I'm a standard 12D in most athletic shoes and an 11.5D in Red Wing 877 and Rugged Classics. Probably could have gone down a full size size thinner, dress socks look better, IMO, than the thicker one worn with Red Wings and similar rugged boots. And, yes, they are pretty heavy and the Cuban heel isn't for everyone. My dad even said they looked like something his grandfather wore. Easy on and off with the lace hooks. So much so that I'll wear them when traveling some as they aren't a big hassel to take off/put on at TSA checkpoints

Fortunately, Imogene & Willie is in town and I was able to try them on before purchasing. Wish I had gone with the Vibram sole and will have that put on if I ever wear them out enough for a restoration/rebuild. Lots of comments on them especially with the white double stitching.

Out of the box the best quality boots I've ever owned. Leather is supple and I had no break in period. The did tell me that the Arch Ease would take some getting used to and it did. I finally put a thin pair of insoles in them, White's does not recommend that, a couple of months ago and it's really improved the comfort for me.

The pair referenced earlier that sold on eBay had seen some use in a year. These boots gain character with age and there are some great pics on the forum of some with some use.

I did some Google searching and finally purchased mine from a Red Wing Shoe Store in Bismark, ND. lotsOfBoots.com is the website on my receipt. Called them up and asked if they had what I was looking for. They were selling the Semi-dress for $342 plus reasonable shipping. Cheaper than I'd seen anywhere else. The store didn't stock them but rather placed an order for me directly with White's. Sounds like you could make a custom order through the store as well - heel, leather, etc. The only option I considered was the sole. They shipped right from the factory in just a couple of weeks if I remember correctly.

There is an eBay seller "whitesriver" that always sells a variety of White's. Unique leathers and soles (even crepe).Looks like they are affiliated with White's and maybe are selling factory overstocks and such. Consistently great deals if you can find your style and size. Send them an email inquiry of check their listings regularly and maybe they can hook you up. The smoke jumpers are bad a$$. 28 listings as of now.

I'm not affiliated with the store or eBay seller in any way. Just sharing my purchase experience and where I'd go if I were to do it again. Happy hunting.

 

[slide13]

Originally Posted by bradster66

There is an eBay seller "whitesriver" that always sells a variety of White's. Unique leathers and soles (even crepe).Looks like they are affiliated with White's and maybe are selling factory overstocks and such. Consistently great deals if you can find your style and size. Send them an email inquiry of check their listings regularly and maybe they can hook you up. The smoke jumpers are bad a$$. 28 listings as of now.

I'm not affiliated with the store or eBay seller in any way. Just sharing my purchase experience and where I'd go if I were to do it again. Happy hunting.


That is White's selling those direct. Not sure if they are just overruns or what, but I purchased my Smokejumpers and my Farmer/Ranchers from them that way and both were absolutely perfect (and purchased for about $150 each!) I always check their listings for 11 or 11.5 D boots...unfortunately not a size that comes up often.

 

[Tadite]

What are you thoughts on Bulls Hide/Water Buffalo vrs. Horoween Chrome Excel? In terms of toughness but more importantly wear. With the Chromeexcel they only have black or brown with the others it's a wide range.