Shoes

I just ran across a brand that was new to me: Asolo -- apparently a european boot. I bought a pair of their FSN 95 GTX light hikers. They are suede, cordura, and Gore Tex. They are more comfortable than my beloved Danner leather and cordura boots, and a whole lot lighter.
 
I don't mean to hijack the thread, but what do you folks think of the new composite toes/shanks vs. traditional steel toes/shanks or none at all?

Apparently they shatter on impact (absorbing and dissipating energy) instead of slicing the toes off. Or at least that's what they're "supposed" to do. :confused:
 
Yup - those steel toes serve two purposes:
1) To protect from moderate impact
2) To protect the wearer from being trapped with a caught foot... by cleanly amputating the toes under heavy impact.

Ouch is right.....
Click to expand...

I personally favor steel toe boots because if something weighing 2500lbs is going to land on my foot, I'd much rather have the toes cleanly amputated by steel instead of having crushed toes. The fact is, in a SHTF scenario, if soemthing weighing over a ton lands on your foot, your going to find yourself in 1 of 2 scenarios:

#1 With steel toes: Your toes are cleanly cut off, leaving a more or less even wound across the foot. This wound is rather simple to treat with first aid, and infection is easily fought. The wound can be treated, bandaged, and then maintained like any other wound.

#2 Without steel toes: The toes are crushed like grapes. Some may be raggidly amputated, while some remain attached, but grotesquely wounded. As any docter would tell you, in a modern hospital, the toes would be amputated, as they pose to great a risk of infection. After cutting off your OWN toes, you treat the wound as any other wound, clean, disinfect, and bandage.

And how did I find this out? In three ways:

#1 Taught in battlefield first aid, which was a british military class I was able to attend.
#2 My uncles personal experiance with scenario #2 (happened at work, toes surgically removed.)
#3 I called my docter, and asked which he'd prefer. He chose #1 from a medical standpoint, and provided me with a lot more detail about scenario #2.

My docter also had this to add about scenario #2: Read about Gangrene


Choose which you'd like.. But I'll keep my steel toes on. amputating my own toes is NOT on my list of things to do.
 
Wanted to add: The 2500lb quote on steel toes I gave was for ANSI Z41 C/75

Look Here for more on steel toe classifications.
 
Yeah? Go back and ask your doctor freind about learning to walk again without any toes. There is such a case in trial here in SA even as we speak. After three years and with an orthotic shoe, and with the best rehab care available, we have a 6' 4", 230# former shop teacher staggering around like an invalid.
 
Actually, If you READ my post, you'll see that my uncle went through crushed toes, and then no toes after they were surgically amputated.

And they both suck. but according to my uncle, it was harder to try and walk in the time before surgery then it was after.

Which, I dunno... seems pretty obvious.

In terms of learning to walk without toes.. your obviously not listening. If something weighing 2000 pounds lands on your foot, steel toes or not, your going to learn to walk without toes.. end of story.
 
Anything 2500 lbs will probably take your leg off and kill you anyway.

If you hike any distance in steel toes you will soon wish they were amputated.

In winter you will freeze your toes in steel caps and they will be amputated anyway.

Either way save yourself from heartache and forget the steel toes.

Don't take my word for it. Strap on a pack and go bush wacking for 10 miles in your steel toed boots and report back.

Skam
 
That's why you wear Duty boots with steel toes. (See the bates I linked on the first page) I have hiked over 10 miles in them, and not had a problem with blisters or other abrasions from the steel toes. Then again, maybe it's the good socks.. who knows.

And as far as winter goes... I'm lucky if I ever see temps below 40 degrees F in the winter. Much less snow.

But I guess the real point here is the weights under 2500lbs.. Say something weighing a half a ton smashes your foot.. (a car, for instance) see the pros and cons to steel toes there.

Then again, i guess I'm just overly opinonated about the subject.. I've seen what happens without them... It's not pretty.
 
Ok, I'm gonna weigh back in on this one, simply because I have personal experience with this.

3 Years ago, I was taking a land navigation class taught at the local college. While taking the final, a boulder broke out from under me as I stepped off a rock face to a lower boulder... to make a long story short, my foot and leg were crushed by an estimated 700 pound boulder. I was wearing a pair of Columbia hiking boots at the time. They had a semi-rigid sole, a hard plastic toe cap and a hard plastic heel cup. My tibia and fibula (shin and smaller bone located on outside of ankle up to the knee) were both crushed lengthwise; that is to say, I had 1" gaps in my shin from the missing bone and what was left of the bone was mere shards. Several of the tarsals and metatarsals in my foot were crushed, lengthwise. Fortunately for me, the wide, tough sole of my boot and the stiff heel cup kept my leg from being pressed too far into a crevice, thereby saving my ankle bones from being sheared off or crushed. From that experience, I learned several things:

1) good boots, when in the wilderness, are a must. Prior to taking the land nav class (which was preceded by a wilderness survival course), I hiked and backpacked in Adidas running shoes. After taking the classes and getting my leg crushed, I now realize the extreme wisdom of wearing good boots in the wilds.
2) there is no single boot that can fit every role we need boots for. My summertime needs are different from my wintertime needs. In winter, I need much more insulation. In summer, I need support without unnecessary insulation.

If the boulder that crushed me had weighed 2,000lbs+, I probably wouldn't have been able to avoid it crushing my torso... I probably wouldn't be here, now. The 700 pounder that got me would've killed me, had I not been able to get my head, neck, and torso out of its path. Add 1,000+lbs and, even if it did "only" get my leg, it would've ripped my leg off my body.

All this happened to me 3 years ago (in May, in fact) and my shin still hasn't fully filled in. 3 years of brokenness is not fun. On the plus side, I am almost completely healed in the bones and, after a surgery to remove massive amounts of scar tissue, thereby restoring much-needed range-of-motion, I should be back to nearly normal... my leg is about 1/2" shorter than it used to be and it bows outward between the knee and ankle, and I've got a steel plate and some awesome scars (people can't help but staring :eek: :rolleyes: ) and I can tell when the weather's about to change, but... I'm alive. I can walk. I have my own leg. It's been a loooonng road, but I'm nearing the end. And now, I have much more insight into a lot of things, one of them being the need for basic survival tools and safety precautions in life. Things like wearing good boots and having a good knife with you wherever you go.

Oh yeah, the class was taught by a group of retired Air Force pararescuemen, 2 with silver star awards from Viet Nam. When the crush occurred, I had an instructor with me. He was able to quickly locate the lead instructor and, between the two of them, they did a traction job on my leg tha, according to the surgeon in the hospital, saved my leg from amputation. Thank God for miracles such as that!

Ok, that's my story... wear good boots :eek: :D
 
Temper said:
I second the medium weight boots. I got some The North Face boots from an outlet (Damned if I could find any real problem with them) They are light, break in almost immediately. Have Gore-Tex liners and Italian leather. The sole is stiff enough to prtect your feet from walking over small rocks. (After a 2 day hike last week wearing Timberland day boots we had to walk about 2K down a mountain that was strewn with 6-12" rocks. The softer/thinner soles of the Timberland really strained the tendons in my feet) The TNF boots would be fine for this and I kicked myself for not wearing them. The only downside to them is that the sole looks irreplacable. I have worn another pair daily for two years but now they are relegated to outside working jobs. Still, for the price they were well worth the money.

They look a bit like this, although these have the Vibram soles which are replaceble

APQ0-23H_mag.jpg
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I got some similar to these from sierra trading post. Very nice, I treated them with scotchguard and have since hiked about 150 miles in them (usually with a 30-36 pound pack with no problems. Sometimes I feel theat socks are more important than the boots when it comes to comfort.
 
How about Pro Safety Soles? They're a flexible stainless steel insole that is claimed to be puncture resistant. Seems like they would be useful in an urban disaster. Anyone try them?
 
randjack said:
I just ran across a brand that was new to me: Asolo -- apparently a european boot. I bought a pair of their FSN 95 GTX light hikers. They are suede, cordura, and Gore Tex. They are more comfortable than my beloved Danner leather and cordura boots, and a whole lot lighter.
Click to expand...

yes asolos are good boots i owned a pair of them. they go the distance.
 
I just cant abide the one piece uppers. To me, they might as well be ski boots.
 
Having been in the military and currently out but doing related stuff, I'm a big fan of light and med hikers for all around footwear. I feel comfortable wearing them in combat as well as on the street. You'll see that a lot of military personnel that have the option of what to wear are pretty fond of light and med hikers like the Merrel Sawtooths, Salomon, Asolo, Vasque, etc. Obviously they are not as supportive or offer the protection of say Danner's or other heavier boots, but what they lack in those aspects they more then make up in comfort and lightness - two very important things when you've got to travel long distances with a load. I usually carry 2-3 on a deployment depending on where I'm going. Usually one that is mid high with Goretex, a lighter one that is lowcut, etc. Just my 2 cents
 
For the woods: Asics Wrestling Shoes
For a city: Matterhorn Miners Boots
For a little bit of both: Altama Mil Spec Jungle Boots
 
This is my all around go anywhere boot I wear.. they are pretty awesome..
ICON motorcycle boots..
3e1b1mi.jpg
 
For walking in the woods nothing will beat a properly fitting pair of hiking boots. Steal toes are inapropriate, uncomfortable and unnecessary.

For an urban disaster it is going to depend on a million things and in the end probably won't make much difference. There are many arguments for and against the steel toes, many have been mentioned, and don't feel like dragging on the debate.

A side note on Asolo boots...

I have been using Asolo brand boots for the past 10 years and they are the most comfortable boots I have ever worn. I love them! Unfortunatly the model I have now (I am on my second pair) has been discontinued (AFX 520 GTX) so I will have to try on their news models and hope they fit me as well.
 
I have the Asolo AFS 95 GTX. The're great.
 
I usually wear business type men's shoes in the city to match my usual attire,
but when out in more harsh conditions, I don my Haix Airpower P3:
00000000764.jpg

Admittedly a bit "commando", but damn fine footwear, even for the somewhat high price. Shoelaces are lightning fast to lace, a property that for it's part made me choose these over a competing product. I also looked for water resistance, and the Gore-Tex XCR, which is supposed to breathe more than the usual kind, has worked fine. My feet sweat quite a lot, but with these it is only slightly more than with regular shoes, mainly due to a different, thicker kind of sock. The construction seems to be very strong, though the leather on the toes got a little scarred at an underground-ish rock concert. The toes are hard, but not steel-capped. And these are light! Easily the most comfortable boot I have evern worn or tried on. The only complaint I can think of is that the soles get slippery in wintertime. But these are really not made for those temperatures, so that cannot be held as a fault to be honest.

I think they now offer a model with olive green fabric parts, which would look pretty damn nice with the olive paracord I replaced the original laces with after wearing them out. I would have used black cord to be more subtle, but the availability of any paracord here is abysmal, and I had some olive green laying around.

Other boots I have worn extensively include a cheap pair of supermarket steel caps and the Finnish Combat boot m/91. The cheapos were surprisingly good quality and did not cause blisters or fall apart. They didn't offer very good support though, and thus were tiring. The combat boots... well, let's just say they're military issue, tough as nails, and you have to polish them a lot. :rolleyes: :)
Either one had nothing on the Haix P3.
 
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