Help me find an engineer boot
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Even though I have quite a few Wesco engineer I’m by no means an expert, but I have boss boots that fit exactly like Mr. except for the toe box. But I don’t know if these are traditional boss boots as they’re collaborations with Ship John and iron shop provisions. I don’t have any old school, rugged boss engineers.
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@Bobcat-Sig the Wesco width thing and Boss vs Lou are indeed sort of odd. I once emailed with an order question saying what all I wanted, thinking it was essentially a Mr. Lou with a couple tweaks, and he wrote back with “oh cool so you want a Boss with x and y.” I’ve also seen custom Boss that pretty much look exactly like Lous to my eye. I’d email Wesco and ask — if you do, please share the answer! I wouldn’t mind knowing the actual difference. Maybe Lous are just a LTD Boss, since Boss are the only one of those two available in the custom builder.
As for the E thing, I’m a normal D width in everything except Wesco pretty much, and I’ve followed the suggestion of going to an E because their last fits narrow. They’ve always fit me perfectly in terms of width, and I imagine a D would be too slim for me.
I’ve never really had any trouble with the toes of the Wescos being enough room for me width wise, but I will say that it’s a pretty flat toe box with not a lot of vertical room. Also the ankle area of mine seem snugger than the TFH, so that’s another thing to consider if you had trouble getting the latter on at Self Edge. One option would be ordering a pair of the stock Mr Lou they have on the site and see how they fit. As far as I know, they’re returnable, but I’d just email to check.
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Sanity check here for those of you with any flavor of Wesco pull-on boot: do your boots have some sort of counter stay or support? That is to say, in the heels of your upper, is their structure, be it veg tan or celastic?
My custom engineer boots have sent me on this quest have absolutely no support in the heels or uppers. As best as I can determine, there's a counter cover in the interior and the horse hide on the outside. With very little effort, I can nearly push together both sides of the heel cups. This would also explain how the leather in the heel is collapsing near the sole. I checked my two pairs of lace-up Wescos and there's prominent structuring in the heels. Same goes for all of my cowboy boots, my pair of Trumans, and even a bit in my Redwing Moc Toes.
I know many of you are afflicted with multiple pairs of Wesco engineers, be it the Boss or Mr Lou, could you do me a huge favor and check the heel structure of the counter? Is there any manner of support in there? I have a call into Chris at Wesco and he's out today... Lucky guy in on the four-day work week program.
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@Mlwdp yah, I’m seeing that as well. Do your boots have any sort of structure in the heel?
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Interesting of all my Wescos, only the natural IH horsebutt pair and the brown CXL are the ones that don’t have any sort of structure in the heel.
@selveldgesteps
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@Bobcat-Sig yeah my black chromexcel doesn’t have any support also. I think the fashion leathers are done like this on purpose.
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@northsouthdenimguy @Mlwdp Thank you both for checking your boots. I appreciate it.
My boots are the horse tea core, so perhaps those are meant to be without any sort of heel structure. I can’t but help think that some structure back there gives a bit of a heel cup.
In any case, I’ll see what Wesco says next week.
This has been a bit of a science experiment. Thanks to all of you for lending your experience /
Safety third
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Just an aside to say thanks to @Bobcat-Sig for starting this thread and to all the forum members contributing. I’m “engineer curious” and there’s been a ton of useful information here.
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One thing that isn’t mentioned is socks. These can make or break a great fit on any engineer boot.
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There’s also some slight variation on the height of the structures. I thought at first my black CXL horsebutt did not have structure, but it was much lower than my other boots.
All that being said, the lack of structure in the two pairs doesn’t bother me. truth be told all my Wesco engineers I wear casually. I’m not wearing them on job sites like I do with some of my other engineers so they’re all in pretty good to great shape
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I probably have way too many Darn Tough socks, but I adjust between lightweight cushion, medium cushioned and heavyweight full cushion depending on the time of year and whether I’m retaining water, lol. Of course, there are some boots I could never wear with Heavy full cushion, but I definitely move between the three types.
And I can’t remember if we talked about this already, but removing the Wesco insert and putting a thinner leather insert in sometimes helps too with fit. I’ve gone back to the Wesco after they’re broken in.
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@Mlwdp said in Help me find an engineer boot:
One thing that isn’t mentioned is socks. These can make or break a great fit on any engineer boot.
Very much agreed about socks. I learned that lesson long ago, alpine ski racing.
@northsouthdenimguy said in Help me find an engineer boot:
There’s also some slight variation on the height of the structures. I thought at first my black CXL horsebutt did not have structure, but it was much lower than my other boots.
All that being said, the lack of structure in the two pairs doesn’t bother me. truth be told all my Wesco engineers I wear casually. I’m not wearing them on job sites like I do with some of my other engineers so they’re all in pretty good to great shape
That’s good detail. My engineers are, or were, worn casually. And that’s my intent for whatever I end up with next, be it a new pair or if Wesco can get mine fitting better.
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@northsouthdenimguy You got me thinking about swapping my leather insoles for Rose Anvil thin foam insoles as I’m getting older and I wear my Wescos a lot.
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@SKT My pleasure. I didn’t intend it to become a live blog, more that I wanted to tap into the vast knowledge and experience of the crew here. And in so doing, help other along the way. I’m glad it’s helping.
Related, I did come across this video from our friends at Wesco with a deep-dive on lasts, fit, and toe-styles. No better source than the manufacturer itself, no?
There’s some great detail in there about toe profiles, last sizing, and how tall and low heels fit differently. I aimed to parse it out, but I risk confusing you more. Watch it if you’re unsure or want the details between the Boss last and the Mr Lou last.
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Update! (sort of): My pair of boots were a Covid pair, and there were some differences in the heel structuring used based on availability and so forth. Mercifully, Wesco is down the road, so I'm bringing my custom engineer boots into the shop with the idea that maybe the heel can be replaced, the counter peeled back, and a thicker structure inserted for more support and an actual heel cup.
Updates to follow since this is my new boot quest blog...
Related, I've been deep down the John Lofgren and The Flat Head rabbit holes. I'm irrationally tempted to source a pair of JLs in the hope that I can stretch and break them in. What I've read tells me that counter and heel construction will make it a commitment. I'm trying to be sensible here, but my, those are some handsome boots!
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Update! (Since this is my chronicle) I had the chance to get up to Wesco HQ yesterday afternoon and spend 90 minutes with the world-famous Chris Warren. The short of it is that Chris is a model for peerless customer service because Wesco is going to relast my boots from what was a 9 EE with a short heel to a 9 EE with some build-up at the arch, and adding a taller heel.
Should be a few weeks.
I also had a chance to try on a couple pairs of Mr Lous and 7500 Boss engineers. Mr Lous are still probably a no-go for me given their smaller shaft and my tall in-step. But I was able to size out to a 9.5E 7500 Boss, so mega bonus there. I also foot-fondled some Romeos and I’ll be putting in for a custom build. I loved that slipper-shoe-boot thing.
I’ve also been trading some emails with Standard & Strange since they stock so many different boots. We’ll see if I we can something in addition to Wesco. More to come!
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@Bobcat-Sig sounds like a good information gathering trip. I’ve been very curious about the Romeo and have thought many times about putting in for a custom build. How did they fit compared to the tall boots you tried on? Same ballpark?
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@SKT said in Help me find an engineer boot:
@Bobcat-Sig sounds like a good information gathering trip. I’ve been very curious about the Romeo and have thought many times about putting in for a custom build. How did they fit compared to the tall boots you tried on? Same ballpark?
Great question. And the short of it is, sort of.
Chris shared the story of me that they wanted to produce a tough slip-on shoe or slipper for the loggers wearing the corked boots, or for those wanting something easy to get on and off. Apparently, they sell tons of them in Japan.
Expect a firm handshake around the mid and forefoot with some wiggle room in the toes. If you have a high instep and PTSD from boots over the years giving you hell in that area, that won't be a problem in that area of the shoe, mercifully. To put some detail to it, I size out to a 9.5 E in the Hendrik and Johannes boots, and the same in the Boss engineer boots, including the 7500. I'm probably the same in a Mr Lou, but that's an all-around super tight boot on me, to the point of being too painful to wear.
When new, the Romeo does take more effort to get into than you'd think, given the gore stretch panels and low nature of the shoe. But I'm sure that loosens up over time, where you'll be able to step right into it. The best part is no pressure at all over the instep.
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Romeo do loosen over time; adding a toe cap makes the break in longer. It took me awhile for my break in but they’re comfy now (with toe cap). I wear mine working in a shop, errand, etc.
