sproulman

we all got away from boots like RED WING do to cost and comfort.

what we are buying is HIKING BOOTS.

i buy the non-insulated ones and wear a pair of heavy wool socks, if needed but most of time, i LITE pair of woolies works.

i get ones that are not waterproof,they are water resitant.

i take can of silcone spray and spray them..

reason for this you can get them on sale at D.I.C.K.S FOR LIKE 65 DOLLARS.

THEY ARE MOST COMFORTABLE SHOE TO WEAR GROUSE HUNTING OR WALKING ETC

i dont even look at a leather boot anymore,to costly, not comfortable and expensive when they wear out.

instinct

I am from the Red Wing MN area actually from WI. I have alot of friends that work at the shoe and take pride in their job and the product they make. Its an american company and your telling people to not buy and basically put my friends out of a job. Next time keep your opinions to yourself we dont want to hear it.

sproulman

you do have point, for sure.

sorry if i told what i do.

redwing is great shoe but we just dont use them anymore do to cost and comfort of a HIKING BOOT.
no use lying to you.

i was union rep at my shop for years.

i used to tell fellow workers to BUY AMERICAN.

almost all would run to wal-mart.[:@]

sadly, thats way it is now, no one cares for fellow people, we just dont care.

its me, me, me people now.

heck, now i shop there too

even tho i CARE about red wing workers, greed gets me and i also find the cheapest prices ,even if made in china.[:@]

i do still buy american trucks but a lot of my friends dont.

so, i guess i am greedy too but in my heart, i still believe that unions gave me living i have now and we just dont care.

take care,SPROUL

slayer_54

what the hell? they keep the water out. it doesnt claim it sweat proof.

granitesun

I wore Wal-Mart boots and other imported for 20 years. Bought my first pair of Red Wing boots in 1995. Won't ever buy import boots again. The Red Wings are more comfortable and last longer. I buy the water proof ones and they usually stay that way for several years of hard use.

Note I live in KS also, and tell you what, if there is mud or a stream or anything like that, this isn't Colorado, this is cow country and the crap in that water will seep into leather boots and you'll never get the stink out. Get a pair of leather boots in some cow crap, jump in the truck and have the heater blowing on there and you'll never do that again. I carry rubber knee high gumbo boots in the back of the truck to wear if the conditions are that wet - really saves my good boots! Just my two cents not worth much.

Phil from Maine

How many pair do you buy in a uear? I only buy one pair of Red Wings and they last me almost 2 years.. So which ones cost more? Who are you kidding that others cost less..

You make a good point but then again even China made Wal-Mart boots wouldn't do much good in this case.. Just like brook fishing here in the spring you need to wear the right boot for the right occasion..

sproulman

phil, the only boot we bought at work YEARS ago were REDWING.

then came the ROCKY BOOTS, CHINA MADE AND cheaper.

the employees stopped buying the REDWING BOOTS.

now, NOT AT WORK ,i WAS lover of redwing boots, i still am but found no use for them now.

I NOW LOVE HIKING BOOTS i can get for 65 dollars.

they last as long, more comfortable, CHEAPER,no sore feet from walking into my hunting spot or hunting grouse.

THEY ARE JUST MUCH BEETR BOOT THAN REDWING OR ANY OTHER FOR HUNTING/WALKING I DO.

redwing needs to make a leather hiking boot

redwing needs to lower prices, if not they will not sell boots at WORK.

most are buyingrocky boots as they are cheaper, its all about PRICE and not as much about QUALITY .

to me, ROCKY boots are junk, soles fell off.

phil, if REDWING would make a quality insulated/WATERPROOF hiking boot, not charge a lot for it, I WOULD BE FIRST TO BUY A PAIR.

only boot that gets on my feet in leather is HIKING BOOT now,THEY ARE SIMPLY GREATTTTTTTTTT

slayer_54

one thing i havent seen mentioned on here yet. is that there are two different qualities of red wing. there is the "MADE IN THE USA" and there is also one made in china. my experience is that the china made red wings give them a bad name. i dont know what you paid for them but that is usually a good indicator. the cheap reid wings i bought fell apart after a year. my last pair i bought i made sure that i bought amaerican and so far have lasted me 3 & 1/2 yrs.

rshunter32

It took me a couple of months of research to determine which pair of boots I would buy. Seeing how my old boots served me for 10 years, I figured I better buy something as good or close. After all the forum talk, web sites and trying on pairs for comfort, I bought the Irish Setter Tamaracks.After 2 years of chit and abuse they are better than the day I bought them. If I had four arms, I would give Irish Setter four thumbs up.

Doe Dumper

Seems like most of the old boot companies have an American made line and a chinese line to be more price competitive I would imagine.