Custom White's Boots ... Thoughts?

[milkbaby]

anyone has some custom nomad ideas? like fit, height, last, leather

For some ideas, worth checking out the White's Japan Instagram account. Also look around emptygarage.jp for ideas too.

 

[milkbaby]

I'd always go the Baker's route for the much more extensive customization options. I don't think any of my White's boots are "standard", except perhaps my first pair (brown dress SDs with commando sole).



Yeah, aside from the staggering upcharges for some leathers I feel there are definitely some other upcharges that did not used to exist. All the toecap options, for example, are now $50, but they used to be different prices before (some less than $50).

I'm still puzzled by the leather costs. Order the vamp or shaft in bison, for example, and it costs $170 more (it was only $60 more a few years ago). Order just bison toecap and counter, however, and apparently it costs nothing extra.

The customization pricing is weird to me too. One tip is that you can make a 10" custom Smokejumper for a lot less than a 10" custom Bounty Hunter because it's $40 upcharge for 10" shaft and $35 upcharge for celastic toe on Bounty Hunter whereas both these options are free on the Smokejumper. Plus the base discounted price of the Smokejumper is already $20 cheaper than the Bounty Hunter...

The only thing is I want to customize the backstay leather which isn't an option on the Smokejumper, and I'm debating whether it's worth $100 upcharge to be able to do it on the Bounty Hunter which isn't listed as an option on the Smokejumper. First world problems!

 

[chicagoan2016]

Baker's Black Friday White's sale has started so I briefly wondered if I needed a second pair of Vibram 100 lugged sole BHs and then I looked at current pricing -- dear lord, they can get so expensive now! The upcharge for some leathers is astronomical. Needless to say, I noped right out of the configurator. I shall for now remain happy with my half dozen pairs of White's that were bought before the age of inflation insanity.

I hear you.
I am close to a dozen pairs of White’s and I think that will be enough …. but it’s an addiction…

 

[chicagoan2016]

Hey guys ,
I am placing an order for a custom plain toe boot. I am torn between the horsehide and the tan latigo .
Coz of the unpredictable break on the horsehide , I am leaning towards the tan latigo . Anyone has some photos of how the horsehide ages . I am not really a fan of creases , I love a rolled vamp .
Thanks guys

I have seen pics of tan Latino on various Facebook groups

 

[GentlemanJeff]

I have seen pics of tan Latino on various Facebook groups

Gotta love those tan Latinos!

 

[theofficialhung]

Hey guys ,
I am placing an order for a custom plain toe boot. I am torn between the horsehide and the tan latigo .
Coz of the unpredictable break on the horsehide , I am leaning towards the tan latigo . Anyone has some photos of how the horsehide ages . I am not really a fan of creases , I love a rolled vamp .
Thanks guys

Definitely don't get the HH then I've seen many pics of terrible creasing on whites HH boots

 

[wordfool]

The customization pricing is weird to me too. One tip is that you can make a 10" custom Smokejumper for a lot less than a 10" custom Bounty Hunter because it's $40 upcharge for 10" shaft and $35 upcharge for celastic toe on Bounty Hunter whereas both these options are free on the Smokejumper. Plus the base discounted price of the Smokejumper is already $20 cheaper than the Bounty Hunter...

The only thing is I want to customize the backstay leather which isn't an option on the Smokejumper, and I'm debating whether it's worth $100 upcharge to be able to do it on the Bounty Hunter which isn't listed as an option on the Smokejumper. First world problems!

It costs $100 to customize the backstay leather now?!! Good lord! That used to be free via an email to Kyle! Half my BHs have custom backstays and tongue leather that didn't cost a dime extra.

I hear you.
I am close to a dozen pairs of White’s and I think that will be enough …. but it’s an addiction…

How on earth do you get around to wearing them all? I have 7 pairs IIRC (even with only 7 it's hard to remember since they're kept in a closet in dust bags) and considering that for two months of summer I go boot free and the rest of the time I don't always wear boots (I work at home barefoot) I struggle to rotate them and feel guilty! And keeping the leather conditioned on even 7 pairs gets tedious.

 

[milkbaby]

It costs $100 to customize the backstay leather now?!! Good lord! That used to be free via an email to Kyle! Half my BHs have custom backstays and tongue leather that didn't cost a dime extra.

It's not $100 for customizing just the backstay,. It's $100 cheaper for the custom Smokejumper than the custom Bounty Hunter with the only difference being there isn't an option to customize the backstay of the Smokejumper. The Bounty Hunters backstay option is free but the total turns out $100 more than the Smokejumper because there's upcharges of $40 for 10" height, $35 for celastic toe, and the $20 base price higher for Bounty Hunter whereas there's no upcharges for those options on the Smokejumper.

The online menus let me make exactly the same build as Bounty Hunter or Smokejumper: same last, height, midsole, outsole, etcetera making the two boots the same (maybe with the exception of flame resistant thread)... with the exception of the backstay.

Maybe just the way their online ordering options and upcharges are set up is why these prices vary so much.

 

[chicagoan2016]

It costs $100 to customize the backstay leather now?!! Good lord! That used to be free via an email to Kyle! Half my BHs have custom backstays and tongue leather that didn't cost a dime extra.



How on earth do you get around to wearing them all? I have 7 pairs IIRC (even with only 7 it's hard to remember since they're kept in a closet in dust bags) and considering that for two months of summer I go boot free and the rest of the time I don't always wear boots (I work at home barefoot) I struggle to rotate them and feel guilty! And keeping the leather conditioned on even 7 pairs gets tedious.

Only brand I wear is White’s. Every single day!!
Granted I do wear some pairs more often than others

 

[wordfool]

It's not $100 for customizing just the backstay,. It's $100 cheaper for the custom Smokejumper than the custom Bounty Hunter with the only difference being there isn't an option to customize the backstay of the Smokejumper. The Bounty Hunters backstay option is free but the total turns out $100 more than the Smokejumper because there's upcharges of $40 for 10" height, $35 for celastic toe, and the $20 base price higher for Bounty Hunter whereas there's no upcharges for those options on the Smokejumper.

The online menus let me make exactly the same build as Bounty Hunter or Smokejumper: same last, height, midsole, outsole, etcetera making the two boots the same (maybe with the exception of flame resistant thread)... with the exception of the backstay.

Maybe just the way their online ordering options and upcharges are set up is why these prices vary so much.

Ah, OK. I was about to get outraged! I do worry with all the new and varied upcharges combined with White's legendary dodgy QC it'll result in a lot of mistakes. Not that QC could get much worse than it was when I was ordering boots up until 2021. Hopefully White's is more on top of things now they're taking longer and charging more to build boots

 

[Contemplatingbalway]

Definitely don't get the HH then I've seen many pics of terrible creasing on whites HH boots Tan latigo it is then .

Cheers

 

[roz77]

Not sure if this is a weird question, but how "beefy" are some of styles from Whites compared to something like a pair of boots from Truman? I'm specifically looking at the Semi-Dress, the Stevens, and the MP-Sherman or MP-M1. I have a couple of pairs of Trumans, and while I love them, they are fairly described as tanks, and I'm looking for something that is maybe a bit lighter/less hardy.

 

[DG123]

Not sure if this is a weird question, but how "beefy" are some of styles from Whites compared to something like a pair of boots from Truman? I'm specifically looking at the Semi-Dress, the Stevens, and the MP-Sherman or MP-M1. I have a couple of pairs of Trumans, and while I love them, they are fairly described as tanks, and I'm looking for something that is maybe a bit lighter/less hardy.

The PNW makers White's, Nicks, Wesco and Truman all produce heavy weight bulky boots.
If you want lighter weight trimmer silhouette boots try Wolverine 1000 Mile or Alden offers several models.

 

[Hellraysaz]

Time for the semi-dress to hit the leaves 🍂🍁

 

[Jpto]

thinking about ordering a pair with the sale going on, has White's fixed the squeaky sole issue?