Random questions to which you seek an answer
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My first pair get worn through the long Norwegian winter and I specced them to live with that. I walk about 4km everyday in them from November until May through snow, sludge, grit and saline solution. They’re going into their fourth winter soon. They’re in good shape.
I think that if you spec them right and take care of them they’ll last you a good few years. They’ll rebuild them for you too.
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Thanks Neph.
That’s interesting to know. So what if the soles are hanging off after a year they will get repaired for free?
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Don’t know about that. But I know they offer a rebuilding service for trashed boots.
Check out the Wesco thread and find @jdl1279 pair of Packers in black oil tan that he uses for work. They’re battered but intact. He’s a metal worker. @steelworker works in Wesco’s too I think.
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I have the actual work boot line of RW with steel caps and shanks and if you're doing tough work I don't see why you'd not go that route or similar such as Wolverine's work line. Absolutely treat them like shit and they don't seem to care, and if they get trashed I'm not out $700. Plus I don't wince every time I scrape them on rebar or something. It's important to me to be able to not think about my footwear when I'm working: That's a distraction that's unwelcome to me.
Then again, my hiking boots are Vibergs and I trash them, so perhaps I'm inconsistent.
YMMV, etc
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I would highly recommend a Wesco purchase as work boots. I've got over a year in my Warrens, they get soaked with oil, covered in steel shavings and all sorts of debris from machining, and while you can tell they're worn hard 10-12 hours a day in harsh conditions, structurally I'm probably a couple years from them needing attention. My midsoles have shrank from oil saturation and they're not pulling apart anywhere either. I can't get 6 months out of a pair of Red Wings for comparison
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Thanks for the replies guys.
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Did you mention cement/concrete. Isn’t unset cement really alkaline?
googles
Yes, very! Its’s caustic so can ‘burn’ skin. That’s maybe why your boots are getting trashed…?
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Huh, I missed that bit. Yeah, wet concrete is hell on leather. All the construction guys I've seen use cheap rubber boots for that sort of work.
But I'm sure our resident construction types can provide more informed responses.
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You definitely don’t want to Get concrete on your leather boots. The lime in concrete will suck
All of The oils and moisture out of the leather. A little can add to the character of the boots but any significant or prolonged amount that isn’t washed off very quickly will destroy the leather. Wet concrete has a few chemical Processes going on while it dries. Also bagged concrete mixes will have chemical additives. Beware -
Yep and there lies the problem. Is it worth the extra investment if they are going to suffer the same problems as cheaper boots because of the cement….
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Yep, all the concrete guys I see use rubber boots like Chris said. I think it would be crazy to buy a custom pair of Wescos to do concrete work in.
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Quick question — who here has shipped a pair of jeans from the US to Ireland (or England or Europe in general)? Who did you use for shipping and how much did it cost? USPS wants $69 and UPS wants about $100 more than that. Surely I’m doing something wrong.
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Quick question — who here has shipped a pair of jeans from the US to Ireland (or England or Europe in general)? Who did you use for shipping and how much did it cost? USPS wants $69 and UPS wants about $100 more than that. Surely I’m doing something wrong.
Damn, I've never spent that much. I've shipped overseas quite a bit…actually just shipped a pair of jeans to the UK a few weeks ago and I think it was $37 with USPS. Never use UPS unless your buying the pre-paid shipping through IHUK to return something to them. Other than that they are usually pretty ridiculous.
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What shipping method did you use? Priority mail or something else? And did you use one of their boxes or did you use your own packaging? Box or padded envelope?
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What shipping method did you use? Priority mail or something else? And did you use one of their boxes or did you use your own packaging? Box or padded envelope?
As for shipping method I'm not entirely sure but I always do the cheapest so whatever that is. I used my own packaging which was a padded envelope to ship them.
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@spitfiredealer I've worn Wesco Jobmasters (with steel toes and 100F soles) working on drilling rigs for the last ~12 years. I'm just now on my 2nd pair which was rebuilt roughly 2 years ago. The boots themselves have held up great, my main issue now is that the soles are pretty much slick at the balls of my feet. I rarely clean them or treat them and they commonly get chemicals and all sorts of fluids on them. The weather looks a little worse for wear but in an environment where most guys get new boots every 6 months, I think it's pretty amazing given my lack of care and maintenance.
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What shipping method did you use? Priority mail or something else? And did you use one of their boxes or did you use your own packaging? Box or padded envelope?
As for shipping method I'm not entirely sure but I always do the cheapest so whatever that is. I used my own packaging which was a padded envelope to ship them.
Ok thanks. I was pricing Priority Mail because it’s automatically insured. I’ll check standard shipping tomorrow.
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Yeah, I've sent lots of things to Europe via USPS and I always specify "cheapest method possible" when they price it out for me. Clothes usually are in the $25-40 range, I think. I like using padded plastic envelopes, so contents are a little less likely to get water damaged and/or ripped.
Even the least expensive choice will be trackable using the number off the customs form, by the way.
