SuperchargedRS wrote:
DC sneakers for warmer wx

Gotta look good for high school. We've all been there

If they have to be black Polishable....I live and die by my Blundstones! They have a dress boot style now with a square toe instead of the standard rounded toe. They are warm all year round, uber uber comfortable and never die. Expensive at $200, but worth every penny!

complexintentions wrote: The Aussies DO make some killer boots, but they're also killer expensive. Except, they'll last you 20+ years. Hmmm. Maybe they ARE cheaper than some made-in-China crap from the local shoe chain. If the similarity to Blundstone seems obvious, well, there you are. Copy the best, make 'em in China. Marketing rules!

Anything will last 20 years flying long hauls 5 days a month on a triple seven!

Those R.M Williams are slick though, I'll give you that; although you have to admit they've totally abandoned their bush roots despite still marketing the shit out of it. While they resemble the profile of the bludstones from afar, in dim light, with your pants hiked up to your knees, throw on a pair of dress pants and one looks like a pair of high end dress shoes and the other looks like a work boot. I wear my blundstones in the bush and they wouldn't be my choice for 705.

... or maybe they would. The real factor here is what kind of 705 we're talking about. There's complexintentions 705, and there's F/O at Georgian 705. One has you shopping for some swanky $600 dollar boots to give you something to do while you wait for the F/A to bring your caviar, and the other has to protect your feet from whatever the weather throws at you while you wait for the bus to work, not clash too badly with your polyester clip-on tie, and be just black enough that you don't get written up and sent home.

“I was sad because I had no shoes, until I met a man who had no feet. So I said, "Got any shoes you’re not using?”
― Steven Wright

It's a cruel world we fly in.

ragbag,

That made me laugh out loud! Awesome post hahah! Geez, five days/month is more like our days off than our days flying...better check the ME forums on PPrune to see what life is really like these days.

Look, believe it or not I come from a very frugal background. No, we don't sit around eating caviar- once in awhile if a F pax has ordered it, we can have some too. Moscow in winter is every bit as miserable and nasty as Winnipeg, we trudge through dirty slush just like anyone else, and we wear clip on polyester ties.

It's not about this brand or that, I merely feel that buying cheap when it comes to footwear is false economy, and Skechers are nice, as long as you enjoy not getting laid.

Take an ounce of pride in your appearance and choose accordingly.

I have a great set of the blundstone square toes dress boots that shined up nicely. I bought them when I had to put on dress pants and a white shirt flying floats on the coast.. mostly because they were almost waterproof and comfy. Now that I've transitioned to a world where I'll only be outside for the walk around once a day… I'll probably go find some nice, well made dress shoes and pay the bucks.

I'm with complex… when my great creator was driving in the 705 world, he always had a set of long lasting well constructed dress shoes.. Classy. None of this slip on shit.. what are we? Five and drunk?

Changes in Latitudes wrote:

SuperchargedRS wrote:
DC sneakers for warmer wx

Gotta look good for high school. We've all been there

Lol, I don't even skate but they are great shoes, comfy, not too expensive, good sense of feel and they are as tuff as nails, get them in all black and they don't look kiddie at all. Works for me

Dayton, Oxfords and a pair of Redwings. Both are great if you show upon a motorcycle, they still give you the comfort and protection you need. They last forever if you maintain them.

Blundstones in the winter and lace up Oxfords in the summer. It's not just about being at work. You need to fit enough stuff in your bag for anywhere from 3-6 days. I have to bring my runners for the gym and running and that does not leave enough room for winter boots. Blundstones are great if you need to walk through a little snow or slush when you get out of the hotel on a winter layover and either your shoes or runners in the summer.

clarks

Boots. Specifically Solovair. They are the British made Doc Marten. Docs have been made in Thailand since 2000 or so and the quality isn't great. These are still hand made in Northamptonshire, England by NPS (established in 1881). I am willing to pay more for a product made in the first world that actually lasts.


For the 'don't like laces' folks they make a Blundstone-like boot as well called the Dealer. I've never cared for the style, and after wearing Doc Martens for 25+ years I can lace up them in my sleep, so that doesn't enter into the equation for me.

So I just googled Blundstone for the first time.
For the way they look to me, they sure better do unspeakable things to your feet.

Edit : My wife just corrected me amd told me what I actually think of them. I didn't realize I was wrong. Apparently they are very trendy with the hipster crowd right now and I'm behind the times.

Hey! I'm a hipster!

Ecco in the summer (slip on, I prefer the look) and blundstones in the winter. Been wearing the blundstones for 6 years, my ecco literally broke in half. Also wore out a nice pair of rockport. I have to say I am very happy so far.

Thank you Complex as I am very interested in replacing my flying footwear and believe in quality. I'll be looking into that site you linked.

I'm not someone who cares about brand name for most things but when I find something I like I just stick with it - I pretty much only wear Ecco shoes.

My favourite for the summer is the ECCO Helsinki Bike Toe Slip On.

http://ca.shop.ecco.com/helsinki-bike-t ... s&cgid=men

Ecco's are the most comfortable dress shoes I've ever worn and if you coat them with some weather proofing they stand up to brief periods of winter weather.

Cole Haan boots. Extremely comfortable, dressy, will last a few years with regular polishing, and water proof. Rubber sole for winter, but not chunky (you can get them in leather sole for summer). Avoid square toe shoes.

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/cole-haan-w ... ltback=200

Another factor to consider is are they rebuildable?

My company gives me a $100 a year boot allowance, the $300USD Chippewas can be sent back and rebuilt to like new for my yearly allowance. So for a one time $200 I have US built boots with vetbrium rubber, leather which is treated and insulated for real winter snow work (I'm medevac) for ever. Just something to consider.

dazednconfused wrote:Cole Haan boots. Extremely comfortable, dressy, will last a few years with regular polishing, and water proof. Rubber sole for winter, but not chunky (you can get them in leather sole for summer). Avoid square toe shoes.

http://shop.nordstrom.com/s/cole-haan-w ... ltback=200

Nice. I do like boots and those are a little more refined like the R.M Williams that complexintention posted but without the $600 price tag.

Just recently bought these Bostonian Flexlites on boxing day. Very comfortable and do not have the metal shank, so there's no need to remove them through security.

I get a few looks at work but they're comfortable.

Ecco's

Shady McSly wrote:


I get a few looks at work but they're comfortable.

Ha, I'll bet those work well with the Ladies!

ECCO

Ecco.
Waterproof, very light and comfortable and last a long time.

http://ca.shop.ecco.com/ECCO-Dublin-GTX ... n-gore-tex

When will you guys ever learn, you get what you pay for. Good enuf for the juice good enfu for airline pilots....

http://www.brunomagli.com

My career was not typical and therefore neither is my experience on this subject. I was hired directly onto a DC-8 at age twenty two with less-than 275 hours TT, so very little slush and snow without toe rubbers or galoshes to protect my shoes. I tried several different brands of shoes for the ensuing fourty-one years. Rockport, Florsheim, Hush Puppies( don't laugh at that, in England they have a wide variety of styles and none of them look like what they sell in Canada. I bought mine in Selfridge's on a layover) and lastly Dockers from The Bay were almost the best.
But by far the best has not been mentioned yet in this thread. I bought this pair decades ago and-now retired for six years-still wear the same pair almost daily in my instructing gig. It took a while for my feet and these shoes to make friends but it was worth it as they have felt like slippers for decades. Absolutely no sign of aging or wearing and they take a spit shine easily while I watch hockey on TV in my hotel rooms.
The kickers were that they were ( and still are) made in Canada by an all-Canadian company and-at the time-my airline had a purchasing agreement with them.
Previously mentioned was that shoes are one of the few things we can buy where the price really does reflect the quality and not the whims of the "fashionable today, forgotten tomorrow" market.
Might have to wait until upgrading to Captain, though they do go on sale:

Dack's