Red Wing Iron Ranger Boots - what's the dilly yo?

[buckslayer5676]

I just got a brand new pair of Iron Ranger's in Amber Harness color and have been doing a lot of research regarding leather conditioner/boot oil that won't darken the leather.

Sounds like the mustang paste works well, but I also been reading that the Bick 4 by Bickmore also will not darken the leather. I think I'm going to give it a try since it is much more available and accessible than the mustang paste. I'll update everyone if I end up going with the Bick 4.

Also, I contacted Red Wing directly and inquired about their different products. One rep indicated that the All Natural Leather Conditioner and the All Natural Boot Oil both contain the same ingredients, but the conditioner would darken a little less than the oil would.

I still think I'm going to go the Bick 4 route though as everything I've read indicates no darkening of the leather when used. Again, I'll post back with before/after pictures.

If anyone has only utilized Red Wing All Natural Leather Conditioner or their All Natural Boot Oil on Amber Harness leather, please comment on how much it has darkened the leather since new.

Thanks all!

 

[Captain Insano]

My copper rough and tough in this thread (pics back a page or two) have been treated with the RW natural boot cream conditioner. And LP after that. They did not seem to darken the copper much if at all after the stuff dried.

I just bought some 8181s with hawthorne muleskinner leather. I am going to test the RW boot cream conditioner on the tongue leather to see if it darkens it at all. It will be even easier to tell the darkening affect on the 8181s as the leather is much lighter. My 8181s arrive Friday...

 

[buckslayer5676]

My copper rough and tough in this thread (pics back a page or two) have been treated with the RW natural boot cream conditioner. And LP after that. They did not seem to darken the copper much if at all after the stuff dried.

I just bought some 8181s with hawthorne muleskinner leather. I am going to test the RW boot cream conditioner on the tongue leather to see if it darkens it at all. It will be even easier to tell the darkening affect on the 8181s as the leather is much lighter. My 8181s arrive Friday...

Thanks for the info. Good to hear on the RW natural conditioner. I'm kind of torn between that and the Bick 4. It'll be interesting to see how your muleskinner's fair with the RW conditioner.

BTW...hilarious username...I love that movie. My boys like to watch it, but I had to turn it off when I caught my 3 year old chanting, "Needle dick, Needle dick, Needle dick!"

 

[Captain Insano]

Captain Insano shows no mercy!!

 

[Shazb0t]



On the brannock device I have size 9 on length, size 10 on heel to ball, and average D width.  This sometimes presents an issue as my heel to ball length being larger than my overall length requires that I purchase shoes in different sizes depending on manufacturer or last used.  

I went to Red Wing and they used the electronic sizing machine to tell me I was a size 9 wide width.  They then suggested I try a size 8.5 and 9 in D.  The 9 was too large/loose in the heel and had a lot of toe room.  The 8.5 D felt good, had a little heel slip, still had a good amount of toe space, but was wearable.  I then tried an 8 D which definitely felt a little tight in the heel and around my foot, the toe length was good on the 8 D.  They then recommended that I try a size 8 EE, unfortunately they didn't have it in stock so they ordered it and I'll be trying it on when it comes in.  I also had them order an oxblood 8.5 D in case the amber harness 8 EE doesn't feel right.

I like the oxblood with vibram sole better than the normal amber harness iron ranger, it's a shame it doesn't come in different widths.  My question to you guys, as I'm completely new to boots: is it normal to size this far down for the Iron Rangers?  Is the 8 EE and 8.5 D similar in sizing?  Should the heel be locked down or should there be a little wiggle room?  The IR seems to have a big toe box, should I worry about too much extra toe length?

I know I just wrote a lot of information, but any help would be appreciated.  This would be my first pair of boots, I would like to get it right!  Thanks

I just picked up a pair of 8119 Oxblood Mesa Iron Rangers from my local Red Wing store in size 8.5 D. I tried the 8 EE in Amber Harness and they were too wide. Seems like 8.5 D was my best fit after all. They look awesome!

 

[Sunstealer73]

I use Bick 4 on all my good shoes and boots. It doesn't darken and works great.

 

[1up]

I'm a 42 in CP achilles and an 8UK/9US in most of my dress shoes. What size do you suppose I would be in Iron Rangers, and what is the cheapest place online to order them in Canada?

Also, is it possible to get them steel-toed?

 

[s1rrah]

I'm a 42 in CP achilles and an 8UK/9US in most of my dress shoes. What size do you suppose I would be in Iron Rangers, and what is the cheapest place online to order them in Canada?

Also, is it possible to get them steel-toed?

Don't know about the steel toe mod options .. would be hard to do, I'll bet.

And as far as size? If you wear a 9US, then you could most likely wear either a 8.5US or an 8US. Personally, I've found that a full size down works out to be an absolute perfect fit for me in Iron Rangers. A half size down worked for me but there was a ridiculous amount of length left in the toe box and it made the front of the boots feel sort of "flappy" and like "clown boots." A full size down fit nearly identical but with much more appropriate fit in the toe box area. If you can get to a store to try the sizes on, then by all means do that or otherwise order from a source that you know you can have trouble free exchanges with. Also, the Iron Ranger will stretch out a good bit and so size a tad snug, not uncomfortably so but shoot for a nice "glove" like close fit and within a couple weeks the boot will stretch to be a perfect fit.

 

[Shazb0t]



I'm a 42 in CP achilles and an 8UK/9US in most of my dress shoes. What size do you suppose I would be in Iron Rangers, and what is the cheapest place online to order them in Canada?

Also, is it possible to get them steel-toed?

I'm a size 42 in cp Achilles too. The best IR for me was 8.5 D. The 8 D was too tight and the 8 EE was too loose. You're somewhere in the 8 to 8.5 area depending on your foot width.

 

[Captain Insano]



I'm a 42 in CP achilles and an 8UK/9US in most of my dress shoes. What size do you suppose I would be in Iron Rangers, and what is the cheapest place online to order them in Canada?

Also, is it possible to get them steel-toed?

The IR does not come in steel toe. In fact I don't think anything in the entire Heritage line has steel toe option. You would need to buy something from the RW true work boot line for a steel toe option.

 

[buckslayer5676]

Good to know, thanks! Question on the Bick 4 - does it bead and shed water pretty well (I realize it is more of a conditioner vs. a waterproofener)?

I also may try the Danner Clear Boot Dressing. I've used the black and brown Danner Boot Dressing extensively and have really been impressed with it. If the clear would yield the same results without darkening the leather, I think it'd be a perfect product for my IR's.

 

[Sunstealer73]



Good to know, thanks! Question on the Bick 4 - does it bead and shed water pretty well (I realize it is more of a conditioner vs. a waterproofener)?

No water protection at all that I've seen.

 

[s1rrah]

Because I've had several folk PM me about where I sourced my Mustang Paste (Horse Oil Paste) ... I thought I'd go ahead and post both of my sources ... each of which have come through just fine on two separate purchases:

1st: Original "Mustang Paste" branded horse oil paste: I ordered this from Rakuten Global Market. After ordering, I received an email (in Japanese) from the seller with instructions on how to pay. I simply let my web browser (Chrome) translate for me and it's legible enough to easily make sense of. Once payed, the Mustang Paste arrived from Japan vie EMS shipping in about 5 days. This is the only horse oil paste I have experience with so far, although I have also ordered a bottle of the "generic" brand discussed below. This paste left no significant darkening of my Brooks Bros Iron Rangers which was totally relieving because I adore the stock color. Here's the link for the purchase page at Rakuten Global (remember to expect to have to deal with some Japanese language but if you have any competent web browser you should be able to translate easy enough): Mustang Paste at Rakuten Global

2nd: Seiwa Leathercraft Horse Oil Paste: I found this via GoodsJapan.com. It comes in a smallish 30ml bottle (which I bought) and also a much larger 100ml bottle. I have not used this on anything and so can't confirm it's lack of causing any lasting discoloration but my expectation is that it's probably the very same thing as "Mustang Paste" above and that it's performance in regard to discoloration of leather is most likely the same. If I can find something to test/try it on, I will post an update. All language/discourse with this vendor was in English and the paste arrived in about 10 days. This is the link to the 30ml bottle just scroll down to find the 100ml bottle option: Seiwa Leathercraft Horse Oil Paste

3rd: Original Mustang Paste via DC4 Berlin: Lastly, here is a link to the same Mustang Paste branded horse oil paste mentioned in the first link above. I chose to deal with Rakuten Global and the whole Japanese language thing because they only charged about $25.00. This vendor is charging 45 € for the same exact product which works out to be $60 US and is a Berlin based vendor; they also offer free shipping in the UK. Posted here on the chance anyone willing to shell out $60 on the official "Mustang Paste" might have an opp to do so: DC4 Berlin Mustang Paste

Personally, having tried the Mustang Paste and found it to be completely non-coloring once dried I'm not really willing to use the Seiwa Leathercraft paste until I test it on something non critical. But if anybody does try it, please let me know what you find.

The Mustang Paste does indeed bead water fairly well but isn't nearly as effective as something like Obenauf's LP or Sno-Seal or the like.

Also, any oil/paste such as Mustang Paste will create the impression of darkening the leather when still wet and just after applying. My application of Mustang Paste to my Brooks Bros "Cactus Brown" boots took about 12 hours to soak in and otherwise dry but once that had taken place, I really couldn't see any significant darkening at all. (<-- see link for side by side of treated vs brand new)

Hope that info is useful to somebody.

.joel

 

[Captain Insano]

My 8181s arrived today. The leather is the same as the 8113 hawthorne muleskinner IRs.

I started my test... RW LP spray on one tongue and RW natural boot cream on the other tongue. We'll see in the morning.

In general on the boots.... I really like them. The inside is already comfortable in wearing them around the house for 2 hours so I think the break in is going to be easy street. They interestingly have an arch support on the inner middle part of the shoe. None of my other RWs have this (Brogue Ranger or Iron Ranger). I don't mind it, it def supports under foot more, is comfortable and also for some reason the top of the shoe when laced up feels like it support my ankle a lil more than the IRs without feeling too tight. Fit is perfect in the 9.5D so I'm a happy camper since the RW store didn't have them, and couldn't source them (I think the 8181 might be a Europe only model) so I had to buy them off ebay. So luckily the fitment is spot on without having the luxury of verifying in local store!!

I will post pics in day or two after my test is completed.

 

[s1rrah]

I will post pics in day or two after my test is completed.

Looking forward to your findings ...