Originally Posted By wandering_daisy
I really think "durability" is over-rated. You have to think of it like a break-even analysis. If you spend $200 on a "durable" boot that lasts 8 years or $50 on a a trail shoe that only lasts 2 years, it is a break even. The MOST important thing is that the shoe is comfortable. Comfort beats ANYTHING for me. If you are lucky to have average feet, you have a lot of choices. If, like me, you have those horribly difficult feet to fit, it usually boils down to only a handfull that I can even consider. For several years I kept buying shoes that were poorly rated because the stitching wore out in one season, but because of this flaw, they always were on sale, so I simply bought new ones ($50) each year until they quite making them. I also do not try to get a boot that "does it all". I have three shoes for different types of hikes. Because I use each shoe less by only using it for certain conditions, each shoe lasts longer.

In the past I have had durable leather boots that I re-soled several times. They never wore out, but broke down in the ankle region as the leather aged so I had to throw them out anyway.


I agree with WD. I used to buy cheap Hi-Tec boots for work. They would last about 6 months or so, but were very comfortable, light and as already mentioned, cheap. They were really a beefy trail shoe before such a thing was popular. I didn't mind replacing them. An expensive pair would likely have eventually met the same fate-dirt, water and lots of hours in them would have been hard on anything. They never came apart, just got so worn, I didn't want to wear them anymore. They were under $50 a pair, but this was years ago, so today, probably they would sell for around $60-$75 or so.

I also have an old pair of Asolo full leather boots. They took some hard use and are still serviceable, but they don't fit my feet as well as they used to for some reason and are not as comfortable as a modern shoe with newer technology. Still glad I bought them, but there are now far better boots on the market.

The bottom line for me is buy something comfortable with a reasonable expectation of usable life at a reasonable price. Kind of like buying a computer-if you expect to keep it forever, you are expecting too much.
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