What other made to measure boots are there?

Ray B

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Now that Russell boots have gone to Hell, what other choices do I have for a quality, made to measure shoe/boot- reasonable price being somewhere less than $600.
 
I believe they have new owners... maybe a bit of a shake-up along the way?
 
I have 3 sets of Wesco boots and love them. They are not cheap, but you will get what you pay for. There are offerings of "stock" fit boots, but I highly recommend going with the bespoke option. Other top quality brands are Nicks and White's. These are the major companies that provide footwear to the logging industry, smoke jumpers and US Forest Service in the PNW.

https://builder.wescoboots.com/
https://nicksboots.com/
https://whitesboots.com/
 
James Leddy Boots in Abilene…
 
I ordered a bespoke set of Whites more than 20 years ago. They cost me $420 then. They had impeccable quality. But they did not fit...............FWB
 
With the current advances in performance footwear, most of the vintage makers have died out. The tech in Salomon, Lowa, Hanwag, Crispi, Asolo, Zamberlan…it’s just plain better than the vintage boots that came from small shops.

Sad deal as I am attached to the history, but emotion doesn’t compete with healthy feet.
 
The Kenetrek Safari for a factory boot for Africa.
 
I ordered a bespoke set of Whites more than 20 years ago. They cost me $420 then. They had impeccable quality. But they did not fit...............FWB
I picked my Wesco boots around 2005 for about $500-600 per set. I will say that I was measured by a person who worked at the Wesco factory and had a booth at a motorcycle convention. I believe this made a huge difference in the fit that I received, which was perfect. I still have them and wear them on a regular basis. One set is about ready for a full rebuild from doing tree work.

Sorry you had a bad experience with White's. Did they refund your money or make some other arrangements?
 
Lathrop and sons will build you a pair. One of my feet is half size bigger than the other (high school football injury) so I had a pair made for me. But I agree that any of the serious boot makers build a very good product.
I did not like the kenetrek safari boots-basically an elk hunters boot with a different sole.
Whites are awesome-they require break in and are made to use with good wool socks-also built to be resoled periodically but the uppers will last a lifetime. I would not/do not consider them a hunting boot-maybe they make a hunting version, other than their wildland firefighting boot
 
With the current advances in performance footwear, most of the vintage makers have died out. The tech in Salomon, Lowa, Hanwag, Crispi, Asolo, Zamberlan…it’s just plain better than the vintage boots that came from small shops.

Sad deal as I am attached to the history, but emotion doesn’t compete with healthy feet.
Have to agree. After two tries with Courtney and foot pain finally realize my $150 Lowas and $175 Columbia boots support my feet have gone 10 miles a day both pair for 10 days with great support total comfort and fairly quiet
 
Limmer. Check them out.
 
I've just recently became a Kenetrek fan and have not used Safaris yet on trip to Africa. I used Danner Light II's on my last trip and was very pleased with them.


I overlooked the "made to measure" part of the original question, so I'm a little off message on all my responses.
 
I've got a friend who would give me his Courtneys, but there are many better made and much more comfortable boots out there.
 
What happened with Russell??
Russell has new ownership and they have stopped all made-to-fit boots/shoes and are selling what inventory of readymade shoes/boots they have. At some point in the Spring/Summer 2023 they will resume made to fit shoes/boots with the starting price of $1500/pair. I'm not sure what happened to their staff of skilled shoemakers but I fear the worst.
 
I agree!!!!! I had a pair of custom safari boots hand made by Russel and very disappointed with the wear and feel after walking several miles a day in Africa.
 
Now that Russell boots have gone to Hell, what other choices do I have for a quality, made to measure shoe/boot- reasonable price being somewhere less than $600.
What happened to Russell? James Leddy in Abilene, TX is a good option. I also would like to hear if there are others.
 

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