For anyone with leather bunker boots

[CVFD26]

For all of those firefighters out there that have leather bunker boots. What do you do to keep the toe from wearing out when you are crawling around. I have a pair of LaCrosse leather bunker boots, and the toe has started to wear after a bit of crawling around. i have haeard alot of people say that this is a common problem. Any help will be helpful.

Thank You
George Hagerty
firefighter
CVFD

[hfdfao]

George,

I have both a pair of Warringtons(square toe - no protection) and the LaCross with the scuff strip. I try and just keep them and and apply needsfoot oil(horse thing) or some sort of leather car. Then also regular boot polish. I have one pair of Warringtons that I used around the house, they were beat bad, scuffed toes, sides....

I soaked them in Pine Sol and hot water, dried 'em, applied the leather care and then black boot polish. They look brand new, and I have had them for 10 years.

Hope this helps.

Dave

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In Memory of those who have passed before us, may their loss not be in vain........

[ALSfirefighter]

The only time I've seen any problems with toe wear was guys who wore the Ranger or LaCrosse boots in a concrete burn building. I have never had sever toe wear on my Pro Boots from front line fire use. Other then the normal wear, tear, and nicks from nails, and station wear.

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The above is my opinion only and does not reflect that of any dept./agency I work for, am a member of, or deal with.

[LtStick]

You just have to polish them on a regular basis. I own two pair of Warrington pros and they haven't givin me any trouble. I know the older ones without the extra piece across the toe would wear pretty bad from crawling around on concrete. I've heard of guys taking ones that had holes worn in the top of the toe to a boot shop that repairs them and had a new piece of leather put on the toe. I'm sure the manufacturer doesn't recomend that of course but, it works. They extend the use of the boot.

[CAPTAINKAOS]

I have a pair of Ranger leathers and the first fire I went to the toe wore out when I was venting the roof. The kevlar toepiece doesn't hold up to asphalt at all. They do not leak so I'm still using them.

[EUitts]

As everyone else has said, keeping your boots clean and applying a good coat of polish on a regular basis is the best thing you can do to maintain a pair of leather boots. I usually rinse my boots off, clean them with saddle soap, and then apply a couple of good coats of Kiwi polish...it's a little more work, but the end result is more than worth the effort.

As far as the toes go, it seems like from my experience the most abuse my boots have taken has come from the concrete burn buildings. If I'm working in a burn building or some other training situation where I know my boots will take a lot of abuse, I put strips of duct tape across the toes (I use the heavy black tape so I don't look silly with silver toes). As the tape becomes worn, I put new strips on. I wear a pair of Warrington pull ons, and from actual firefighting the toes have held up very well with just a little cleaning. There is a small spot on one of the toes that has started to wear, but so far it isn't getting any larger. The Warrington toes seem to be a little more durable than some of the other brands.

As an additional note, I just saw an ad in Fire Engineering from Total Fire Group advertising a new device designed to protect the toes of leather and rubber boots in training environments. It looks like a rubber piece that slips on over the boots to protect the toes. They say to take a look at: www.totalfiregroup.com

[Dalmatian90]

I have heard of...and want to try a product I think is called "Hard Toe" which is sold at sporting goods stores -- it's used to coat the toes on hockey skates to prevent the same abrasion problem.

[ggtruckie]

I believe that yoiu can get them refurbed for a small fee.

[Geno]

I don't have a pair of leathers yet but plan to buy a pair. Any recommendations???

As for the other responses...I have to ask the obvious question. Doesn't shoe polish burn?

[gwillywish]

I have heard of...and want to try a product I think is called "Hard Toe" which is sold at sporting goods stores -- it's used to coat the toes on hockey skates to prevent the same abrasion problem.

hard toe would be somewhat of a good idea, it is normally used on hockey skates with thick ballistic nylon toes, it is a good water proofer and is very cut resistant, but the thing i would worry about with leather is if it peels.

[nameless]

8 and a half years, i think that is a record holder

[MemphisE34a]

Wow.........

[CaptOldTimer]

It was this guys first post no less digging up that dead topic!

[ChiefKN]

I was just about to respond to the thread "what kind of horse feed do you use at your firehouse".

[FyredUp]

For the want of a better term we had these things i always called boot condoms that we put on our leathers when we were crawling around in the tower. I haven't seen them brought out lately so maybe we got rid of them.

What they were was kind of like an old fashioned boot rubber that covered the toe and stretched to the heel of the boot to hold it in place.

I am not back to work until Saturday but I can check on them if you like.