WESCO-MRLOU-BLK - Wesco® - 10" Horsehide Pull-On "Mister Lou" Engineer Boot - Black

[neph93]

@GC:

Just where needed @Giles

Come on then, black or brown?

[GC]

Aha! I opted for black in the end @neph93 , in the hope I'll still occasionally wear my preexisting, albeit lesser, brown boot collection.

Is it right to be having heart palpitations whilst I wait? I'm proper excited pal.

[neph93]

Being excited about this is entirely correct. They are ridiculously beautiful boots and a pleasure in every way. This may not be a good thing but the expectation and pleasure remain the same on your third, fourth and fifth pair [emoji51]

[GC]

That’s, as always, reassuring @neph93 thank you.

So…After all this fuss, I’ve only just gone and ordered the wrong blinking size. US/UK blindsight. Gosport hopefully to the rescue. X

[WeirdowithaBeardo]

Hi there
Sorry for the delay. I can’t decide which pair I prefer, like you I have mostly brown boots but after I bought these in brown and were so good I went and picked up the black too. I think, and just my view, the black look a little smarter, the brown more rugged. Both fit really well and are wearing in pretty much equally. I think subconsciously I go to the black first for some reason.

[GC]

Thanks @WeirdowithaBeardo , it’s brilliant you’ve added more pics too, I’ll certainly not be the only one to appreciate this. If mine build the character yours are displaying, I’ve a fear that a brown pair may one day get a look in too. 

[WeirdowithaBeardo]

Thank you. I look forward to seeing your choice(s)!

[Giles]

@GC:

I’ve a fear that a brown pair may one day get a look in too. 

What about the Natty's?

[GC]

They’ve crossed my mind @Giles believe me. However I can lack imagination, and some visual stimulus to see how these products would fare would help, hence me pleading here for pics.
The nattys no doubt possess the greatest potential, but as I’m personally buying into how they’ll look in 2 years time, a picture of a time worn pair would certainly get my slippy finger sliding again! I know these are new, so that’s not gonna always be possible, but to make my point, Redwings USA once included, alongside pics of a fresh pair, a photo of a totally broken in pair of their 8083’s, I was immediately soled,  my first pair of boots in fact.
Only a few things in life grow more beautiful with wear than a pair of Wesco’s.

[GC]

Well, to put it mildly, after some 'initial wrestling' I feared these were just not right for me as I simply could not get my feet inside.

Gotta share my gratitude to @Chesson without your help today man, I think I may have given up, or at some point soon passed out!

Now my feet are in, I love em!

[Chesson]

Looking good, Glenn!

[GC]

Little 2 week photo update, modelled beautifully by my 5 year old. They've been worn almost every other day and are already taking in some character. I'm stoked 

[Baba-san]

They’re looking real nice already @GC…how did you manage to overcome getting them on???🥵

[GC]

Cheers @Baba-san I am delighted how quickly they’ve taken.

To get them on I simply had to remove the inner soles for a week. Doesn’t sound much, but just a few mm, helped me articulate my feet in. Once in they fit a treat. Inner sole has since been replaced, which took me back a step, but I can already remove the left boot with relative ease. The right is still playing hard ball. 

[Baba-san]

ah… good to know I am not the only one struggling with the initial fit on Wescos.

I had a similar problem with my Jobmasters.. not the 'getting them on' part, but with the fit of them once my fit was in. Like you, I experimented with having foot soles in, out and different socks etc. I managed to get them broken in but it took me a while.... perhaps I should have gone for the slightly wider 'E' fitting rather than the 'D' as they were tight across the toe box.

The Engineers will be my next purchase so I need to carefully consider the width... did you run with the standard 'D's??

[GC]

I went with the D fitting, on the basis all my RW's are and I've never considered the width an issue. On reflection, perhaps I should have tried the E, as it might have eased the breaking in process. Having said that, and as I said before, now my feet are in, they also fit me perfectly. I just need the area atop of the foot, beneath the strap, to soften a little more, its after all only been a week, and I'm sure the initial struggle with them was worth it. They truly live up to their rep.

"Nothing worthwhile is easy, as they say'' 

[Baba-san]

Thanx for the response… I wish I could try both widths before taking the plunge :-\

[Giles]

You could buy both and return either 1 or 2 pairs.  As you're in the UK that'd cost you about 7 quid…...

[Baba-san]

thanks Giles… that sounds like a plan....

[Appfaff]

For what it’s worth, my ideal Wesco fit is a 10D on a MP last, and I’d do the same for a boss last and enjoy the extra room.

However, I have engineers on both ends of the spectrum - I have the 1940s boss with MP toe in a 9.5E and the mr Lou in a 10.5E.

Going down did cause a ton of break in discomfort, but after a few months of wearing them one or twice a week - where the leather seams are stitched were the main areas of discomfort - they stretched a good amount and I have very comfortable boots / especially with thin socks.

The mr lous sized up have been a dream to break in. Yes they have some give and wiggle, but I just tighten the straps down and am good to go. I’m sure after years of wear, I might get a bit of uneven wear due to a bit of sliding, but it works for me and gives me a little bulkier boot to wear with some of my wider pants.

Not giving advice so much as sharing experience.

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