Wolverine DuraShock boots? Recommendations?

[Melensdad]

I'm looking for a lightweight pair of 6" leather boots. I had planned on another pair of Danners, but it seems like Danner has moved a lot of their production overseas and is making many of their boots offshore.

Wolverine seems to be still producing their boots here in factories in Wisconsin so I'm curious about their boots. I want something comfortable and that is what confuses me. They have DuraShock, MultiShock and several other 'technologies' that they claim give all day comfort. At the shoe stores everything feels the same. What I am looking for is a comfortable light, all leather boot that is high quality & made in the US.

So who of you wears Wolverines? Are they as comfortable at the end of the day as they claim?

 

[Big Dog]

I replaced Redwings for Durashocks years ago, GREAT BOOT!

 

[HGM]

I've been wearing Durra Shocks for years(10+ ?).. Anyhow, they are great.. Very comfortable and very slip resistant.. Working in a dealer atmosphere where you could find nearly anything to slip in on a concrete floor, brake fluid is about the only thing that was still slick in those boots.. Coolant, motor oil, trans fluid, rain on a painted floor, were all no problem and they wouldnt slip.. At the end of the day, my feet always felt better in these boots/shoes than wearing something else.. At about $100 or so, I think they are definitly worth a try to see how they work for you.. BTW, there was an Army Navy store in South Fla that carried them and they were about $20 or so cheaper than Sears.. Might be worth looking around a bit..

 

[jwstewar]

I've got a pair of Wolverines. Not sure on the model. I don't wear them every day, but when I do find them I find them very comfortable. I'm not a boot type guy, I usually prefer gym type shoes whenever I'm working, but whenever it is cold or I'm going to be in mud/snow I will grab the Wolverines. I find my feet stay warm and dry in those - at least until I sink in the mud and the water goes over the top . At the end of the day I can tell that my legs are a little more tired then had I been wearing tennis shoes, but not overly so. Much less so then the boots I wore before. I believe Monica got these from Kohl's for around $79.99 on sale I think.

 

[Melensdad]

Well I just bought a pair of Wolverines. They are DuraShock, steel toe, all leather, waterproof, and have some sort of electrical isolation??? But they are NOT made in America. I was pretty bummed about that and almost walked out without buying them. Apparently ONLY select models are still made in America (mostly the larger/heavier models), and now they say that they are only ASSEMBLED in America so I suspect many of the parts are foreign parts.

 

[RoadKing]

But they are NOT made in America. I was pretty bummed about that and almost walked out without buying them.

Bob, one of my close friends has been a cobbler for many years. He's told me there are no major shoe manufacturers left in the US. Some make parts here and assemble there or vice versa. What to look for are name brand soles, yellow label Vibram, etc. steel shanks instead of plastic, real leather welts instead of pressboard. glued and stitched soles.

I stopped in at Smokey Mnt Knifeworks to buy a few pocket knives this summer I've liked the Schrade Oldtimer for years, but theydiscontinued the model I like. I went to Buck, the salesman said they are made in China. I moved on to an American made brand, I forgot the name, the salesman for this ends up telling me I'm better off with the Buck as it's made in China, but to Buck specs and is the better knife. One difference is the handle on the Buck is riveted the US knife was glued. The US knife sold for $39. the Buck sold for $9.99 both dual blade 31/2" pocket knife. Do you still stay with the US? I wanted to, but it just made no sense.

 

[Dargo]

Well Bob, I think you should be pleased with your boots. Since I have a considerable amount of heavy items and equipment in my barn and I'm constantly loading and unloading heavy implements from tractors, I wear steel toe boots quite often. As many people, I simply will not wear shoes/boots if they are not comfortable. It's especially important if you wear steel toe boots. If you are so inclined to "break in" your shoes/boots like some people (I won't; if they don't feel good right away I don't buy them), you'll find that steel toe boots do not ever "break in".

I actually have two pair of hiking boots made by Wolverine that have steel toe protection. On one pair I've worn all of the tread off the sole of the shoe and the steel is showing through on the tops of both shoes. But, they are still comfortable and are still relatively water resistant when I spray that stuff I buy for my boots. I just bought a pair of 6" Wolverine steel toe boots a week ago what were on sale because I thought they had a particularly nice feel and I liked the styling. I think they the style was called Tremor (sp?). Of course, the real deal was that my local Rural King had one of those sales where everything you could fit into one of their $2 five gallon buckets was 20% off. Since I wear EW (extra wide) shoes, the pair that fit me were already marked down due to them bring an unusual size.