My quality Craigslist dogs, helping me out on Sunday while I brushed some local single-track motorcycle trails.

And for when things get serious

I've been in acquisition mode the last few months.

First, I've long coveted the Foot Patrol. And now, they are mine. I did just wee bit of prep on them; burned a few threads off, conditioned the inside of the tongue to speed up break in, and trimmed off the rubber whiskers from the rubber sole. I also flipped the kilties over after trimming off the fringe. I'm anxious to see how this will look after some break in.

I've been eyeing another pair of moc toes with a lugged sole. With a pair of Trumans already in the closet, I wanted to see what other owners were raving about. I snagged a pair of Double Stuffed Charcoal.

As you'll see, I have a penchant for cowboy boots and western wear where it intersects with Japanese heritage and selvage denim. I've had my eye on another reptile-skinned boot. The chase was focused on rattlesnakes, but those are proving to be both popular and hard to find. Rujo is a newer brand, with boots handmade in Mexico, and often features a sale. I picked up these water snake boots. The hides don't quite match as I'd like, but they are hard to beat for the price.

And most recently, work took me to El Paso. I've long been looking for a pair of Lucchese Boots and of the few times I've had a chance to stop into a store, the selection wasn't what I was after or they didn't have my size. I scored three pair on this trip. I'm super stoked!

The first pair is sueded hornback caiman with a goat leather shaft. Mega bonus here is that these boots are my second pair in what is becoming my Montana State Bobcats collection - I'm a sucker for anything resembling blue and gold.

The second picture: left, is a tumbled shark. Next to it is a pair of ropers in Lucchese mad dog goat.

And the one that's likely more fitting here, my '94 900 SuperSport with all manner of cool bits and trick parts

The IH forum is both an excellent resource and a terrible menace to my spending account. Diving deep on this thread is bad for my wallet.

I posted these in the Mr Lou thread, despite the boots being a custom order Boss:

And since we're talking Wesco, my Guildsman (fka the Alex):

With work style boots, two others that I'm quite fond of, Red Wing Moc, a classic. Admittedly, it's on their narrower last, and I should really be in a wide last, but the CRT leather is tough to resist.

Because I'm in what seems to be a great region for many things, including bootmakers, I made a trek down to Truman Boots for sizing and was able to convince them to build these out of the last bit of Waxy China Blue. They are part of my Bobcat boot collection, with the Bobcats being the mascot of my alma mater.

And on the topic of my Bobcat boots, I have a thing for western wear, and boots in particular. These Ariats from their Futurity series, built in Mexico, also sport my university's colors.

Lastly, for now, my party boots, python belly from Tecovas:

The conditions were all-time this weekend in Oregon's High Desert. Heavy rains blanketed the region the days prior, and with the temps cool, the dirt was perfect. And I do mean perfect. Like all-time best conditions, perfect.

I was on my KTM 350 XC-F, which I have come to call my desert sportbike. It's dumb how good it is in the fast stuff.

I've been busy! I've acquired a few pairs, and there are a few I haven't yet posted.

My new favorite Grailed score is these Brooklyn x Wesco Custom Hendrik Charcoal Roughout boots. Timing lined up with a deep dive on boot fit tips, lasts, and a full send into Grailed. As my IH x Wesco Guildsman boots have been a favorite and fit well, I took a flyer on these. They're a 9.5 D and have only seen a bit of use. They'll take some breaking in as a 9.5 E fits me well.

I had a pair of Chippewa loggers for years that were going to cost most of the way to a new pair of handmade boots. So those went in the bin, and I opted for a pair of hand-made-in-Mexico 8-inch bison loggers from Drew's Boots. Bonus here is their last features a wider toe box and more accommodation in the instep - both things I struggle with. Not only do they fit well out of the box, but they also smell amazing. The shrunken bison is thiccc and will take a beating. These are intended for work, and while they won't be making me money, they will be working the local single track of my favorite motorcycle riding areas.

I'm a bit of a slut for Tecovas, mainly because they offer an EE width and their boots fit me well. These full-quill ostrich boots were my first from the brand. I get comments nearly every time I wear them.

These Fryes have been with me for 14 or 15 years and predate several changes of the brand's ownership, back when they were well-made. I think these were hand-made? Maybe in Mexico, as well? In any case, a reheel and a thin half-sole were added for traction. They're a bit long as I sized them to fit my instep, and they were acquired long before I was aware of all the great, hand-built brands we know and love today. I've often thought of selling, but given the recent brand reputation, I don't know that they're worth anything.

I am super stoked! I was down at SE PDX for boot things, which I'll cover in another thread, and lo and behold, not only did they have this shirt in stock, they had one in a tag L. My oh my, is this fabric cool! Because I'm a total neophyte to this whole sphere, many of these non-denim fabrics are new to me. Kersey is no different. I'd never had it in hand, and despite best efforts, the shirt is so much more striking in person. And it's so soft!!

All of this, I'm sure you all know, but I had to share my enthusiasm.

On the other end of the spectrum...

The rain returned, and riding off-road in it isn't my favorite, so I got out and worked some trail. It gave me a chance to start the break-in of my Drew's Loggers. Forgive me for the top-down shots. I did the best I could...

The dogs were quite interested in what was happening

@Appfaff Hell yes! Love it. Almost all slim cut is a no-go on me, unfortunately. Much to the delight of my wife, I'm blessed with a proper backside. And a lifetime of skiing, hiking, mountain biking, and motorcycles has left me with properly meaty thighs. I even have to watch knee measurements. Otherwise, if that's too small, my calves take up all of the lower leg and I get all manner of boot printing and bucketing.

Nonetheless, I'm digging the experimentation and look forward to seeing the results.

I'm glad this thread exists.

Elsewhere here on the forum, I saw mention of someone removing and then restitching the leather patch to keep it from shrinking or taking too much of a beating in a super hot soak. While I'm not intending such punishment on a pair of jeans, I do want to relocate a patch for a bit of customization. Are these things you're doing? Or are you having a local shop or seamstress perform this reattachment? If so, what sort of equipment do they need or that I need to ask about, to properly restitch a leather patch?

Again, this is the content that I've been after here on the IH forums since I joined. Lots of gate-keeping elsewhere on the ol' internet around cowboy boots and western wear, so I'm stoked to see this level of sharing and discussion. Love it

@injunjack I do love a treasure hunt! I'll take a look. Thanks for tip.

@Appfaff My man. Thank you. I'll slide into the ol' DMs about hats and other western things. I don't want to run afoul of the hygiene we have here on the forum.

You've sent me down a rabbit hole on comparing my 25 oz 888 and 13 MWZ. My sweet wife is going to wonder why I have my jeans spread out on the island.

Back to IH denim. I'm all but convinced that some flavor of 634 would be a great way to find the intersection between Japanese denim and western wear. What was it about that cut that didn't do it for you? Was it the lower rise?

The thread I’ve been looking for all of my (IH) life! Ok… more like recently. Love it all the same.

@Appfaff great break down. Just what I’ve been after. In fact, I write this as I wear a black pair of Wrangler 13 MWZ and Lucchese blue sueded hornback caiman boots, on my way home from El Paso.

On the 888 and 13 MWZ comparison, I would not have likened those two together. While the 888 is a glorious jean with a high rise, I find the taper too much for my western preference. While the hem fits over boots, it just doesn’t jive with what I’m used to. I think this means I need to give it another look.

I tried on some Cinch White Labels at Starr yesterday. Good value and spot on the more relaxed fit.

I’m absolutely keeping your notes on hats. That’s my next frontier. My Red Bull KTM is a good look, but isn’t quite up to the level of a proper U.S. hat.

Thanks again for the awesome detail here!

I'm way late in responding to this thread. Three days out of two, amongst a very frothy time at work, and business travel on top of it all.

First, some gratitude to @goosehd for breaking this out into its own thread. I appreciate it. An apology is also in order. I'm sure you see more than your fair share of frequently asked questions from low-post count and new members. I know I've been guilty of that in the past. So all good, my friend, and thanks for all you do here.

As to the evergreen content of denim, I was after a discussion of the 634, in general. And among the greater topics, its suitability for western wear. While jeans like the Wrangler 13 MWZ and Levi's 501 exist, they've left me wanting more from jeans I intend to wear with cowboy boots. Some boot manufacturers (Lucchese and Tecovas, to name a few) have started to produce their own denim, but like their established cousins, they leave me wanting more. Of, in the case of Lucchese, the price simply does not match the quality.

So, like many things in this game, most roads lead back to Iron Heart.

I seek a heavier pair - 16 oz and heavier - that I can pair with western boots. I also prize the straight cut of the 634, as it's similar to the 13 MWZ. When some manufacturers have tried to mimic vintage style, which I appreciate, the knees get tightened, and the fit goes out the window for me. And while there are other manufacturers that produce a suitable pair of jeans, the fabric quality of Iron Heart is preferable. A broken twill gives a clean hand, so I like the superior weave of most of Iron Heart's denims. Even the slubby versions have tidiness I rarely see in other Japanese denims - mainly S'dA, Samurai, and Oni.

The tl;dr is that I'm leaning towards a 16 oz version, a LHT, 19 or 21 oz version. The 18 oz vintage looks super cool, but I might be waiting a while for a restock.

What's been your favorite 634 to wear with western booth? (besides all of them, of course)

Intentionally, I asked an open-ended question based on the three or four 634 jeans that are available. I want the different answers. I want to hear why denim heads chose that particular fabric, based on use with cowboy boots.. And because we don’t have a general 634 thread, this seems as good a spot as any for some open dialogue.

It would’ve been helpful to mention that I’ve been down those rabbit holes of the jeans I’ve mentioned. And many more I didn’t mention. The Hall of Fades is under my frequently visited sites because I’ve visited it so much recently. Good times.

I’m looking to talk 634 at a general level, that’s all.

This has been a great discussion around Iron Heart and western denim.
As I mentioned earlier in this thread >> https://forum.ironheart.co.uk//post/990816 I ended up with two pairs of Wrangler, one of which is Japanese selvage. Pretty cool. They are currently line drying after an initial cold soak.

But let's talk picking a 634, as this is the Iron Heart forum, after all. [@goosehd if there's a general 634 thread where this is better served, I'll gladly move this discussion there]

I'm leaning towards a heavier fabric, something more than 15 oz. I was sold on the 16 oz slub indigo over-dyed black, but wasn't quick enough with the trigger last week. The 16 oz slub indigo looks like a great option, although I have three other pairs of slubby Japanese jeans that work with boots.

The 19 oz seems like a great option; an atypical twill and a fade that seems to streak vertically a bit, which I dig. It's also not a weight I've had in Iron Heart or any other denim.

The 18 oz vintage seemed super cool, but no restock in the near future.

What else might I consider?

@twinning Sweet! Good catch. I'm gravitating towards heavier denim; 16 oz plus, but I'll for sure give those a look. Thanks for the heads up.