Feet and boots

[Forty Rod]

I don't know what size boots I wear...haven't had a pair that fit right in fifteen years or longer.

I do'nt have access to one of those feet measuring thingies that shoe stores have, and don't trust the people who work in those stores to know what they're doing (becuase they haven't fit me with a pair of boots in fifteen years or longer.).

Who knows haw a standard inch ruler can be used to determine boot size?  There has to be a way, but I haven't a clue.

Who the heck came up with these sizes anyway?  Like a womans size ten...ten what?

[Ivory Jack]

Why not swing by Walker '47?  They've got one of those thingamajigs there.  Have Hollywood Bob show you how to work it.

[Delmonico]

Just jump in the car and head this way, I'll be glad ta fit ya up.  Would even invite ya over afterward and make some sourdough biscuits, I got some real sorghum molasses the other day.  Is there any one close that carries Durango or Tony Lama boots that ya could try on. 

[Forty Rod]

Del, Tony Lama and Durango don't seem to make boots in "men's sizes", at least not wide enough.  I thought maybe the Fort Frontier boots could work, but I need to know what size to tell them.

I really don't want to drive all the way down to Walker just to use their gadget and then order boots from someone else...doesn't seem quite ethical somehow.

If I thought Boot Barn had anybody who knew what they were doing I'd go there, because I need some lace up work boots, too.

[Delmonico]

Im gonna guess you are EE or EEE, we have those Durangos in up to 13EE, but up to 15EEE is being worked on right now.  Many older guys try to wear too narrow of a shoe or boot.  Our feet get wider as we get older, durn I wish you were closer.  If I had you for 15 minutes I could figger it out.  Often shape of a persons feet makes adifferance also. 

[Forty Rod]

I wish you were closer, too Del.  I'd eat you out of house and home in about a week, maybe less. 

As to the boots, I've bought everything from 10 1/2 EEE to 13 EEE, all based on some "expert" sales jocky at a dozen different places. 

I've paid from $125 to $400 and have yet to get a pair that were worth taking home.  They don't fit and an astoundingly large percentage, including some big names, haven't lasted as long as a cheap pair of canvas deck shoes.

Over many years I bought Durango and/or Dan Post off the rack and got boots that fit like a dream, but either they changed or I did.  I can't find Post in any wide sizes any more and no one around here carries Durango in any sizes worth mentioning.

I've heard so much good about the Fort frontier boots by Durango that I thought I'd try a pair  The price is pretty good, too.

I had no idea it was going to be such a damned hassle.  It's a real pain if your feet are the size and shape of snowshoes.

[Four-Eyed Buck]

Forty, If there's some way you can work with Del, you'll get a pair that fits. Best if you call him, www.fortfrontier.com has a phone number on it, you can use it to work through to get hold of him. Believe it's toll free...........Buck

[Griff]

Forty Rod,
Know what you mean by not having boots that fit good.  What those measuring thingies tell you may still not give a boot that fits correctly or to your liking.  They've told me for years and years to wear a 10-1/2 D, but when I try them on they flop around on my feet like they're two sizes too big.  I like my boots very tight.  I've learned that I develop no blisters when they're tight.  I found out many years ago that shoe salesmen don't know boots.  I've also found that in certain bootmakers products the arch is too far forward on the foot and when walking I end up with very sore legs or feet.  At the very least as they make a pressure on the forward part of my arch and not enough support.
A good contientious boot maker can take good measurements of your feet and build a boot around them.  I've had Paul Bond in Nogales, AZ build me a couple of pairs and I love 'em.  Oh yea, there's a downside; they're kinda expensive.  But, the comfort is definitely worth it.

[Forty Rod]

Dick Garland at Garland's Weserrn Wear in Montcalir used to be very good at fitting boots and he knew when I walked in the door what I wanted.  I cried for a month when he closed his shop.

[Delmonico]

I sent ya an E-Mail pard.  A lot of it is the shape of your foot as compared to the shape of the foot bed in the boot.  I sometime work in the work dept selling work boots.  Often someone who is having trouble with fit go to a larger size and then they still have problems. 

If the boots go bad in the front on the sides the shoe/boot is too narrow.  Often the next size smaller and wider will send someone out of the store thinkin' yer a genius.  About Chistmas time I had 3 guys in one 8 hour day that were wearin' their wook boots to long and too narrow.  How far the big toe sticks out compared to the little one can make a differance in size and width.

A good custom bootmaker will look at a pair of boots you have worn out as well as measure.  They say the Legionary Charley Dunn could tell a lot about what was wrong by lookin' at the boots you wore in.  Jerry Jeff Walker wrote a song about him and People did a story on him about 1978. 

[Trinity]

Thanks Forty Rod for Bringing this topic up! 

I have had my eyes on these Fort Frontier boots for a while now, but have a problem.  I too have no idea what size I am because of three problems.  1.  I have developed an issue where I have very little movement in my right ankle.  2. For this, I am taking medication that has caused me to gain weight (eighty pounds so far) and 3. to compound matters I broke my right ankle last year causing even more stiffness and swelling.  Needless to say, my old boots just don't quite fit me like they used to and I recently tried to don a stovepipe boot and got my foot caught in the shaft.  The young (and quite good looking girl) at the shop had to help my fat butt get the boot off.  She almost fell over when it finally came off!  I tucked tail and exited that shop quickly and don't plan to go back. 

Delmonico, can you help me out?  What would you suggest that I do? 

[Laredo Crockett]

Forty, I  t hink that some time ago the manufacturers must have changed the way they calculate sizes or sumpin. I wore size 11EEE for 40 Years and then all of a sudden that size wouldn't fit in some brands. I wore the same Brand and size dress shoe for 25 years and all of a sudden they didn't fit-same style-quality Brand too. For years I wore New BAlance jogging shoes in 11EEE and now I'm up to 13EEEE! Heck, my foot could not have changed that much. Conversely, I recently bought a pair of Red Wing boots in 11EEE and they fit perfectly. I've about given up on finding Cowboy boots off the rack. I'm gonna have to have some made.

[Trinity]

Forty, I  t hink that some time ago the manufacturers must have changed the way they calculate sizes or sumpin. I wore size 11EEE for 40 Years and then all of a sudden that size wouldn't fit in some brands. I wore the same Brand and size dress shoe for 25 years and all of a sudden they didn't fit-same style-quality Brand too. For years I wore New BAlance jogging shoes in 11EEE and now I'm up to 13EEEE! Heck, my foot could not have changed that much. Conversely, I recently bought a pair of Red Wing boots in 11EEE and they fit perfectly. I've about given up on finding Cowboy boots off the rack. I'm gonna have to have some made.

Laredo, I agree with your comments about shoe sizes being off.  It seems that anything under $150 and any sport shoe, no matter what price, will be wrong.  I just bought a new pair of New Balance today and got a 10.5 and I think even they may be short.  What ticks me off is that it seems as if the sport shoe market is driven on image instead of quality.  If the sports star is wearing them, then it doesn't matter if they fit right, does it??  So far, the higher-end dress shoes and also with most (or many) brands of boots I still think they run true to size.

...but that goes with just about any article of clothing these days.  The old adage "you get what you pay for" is definitely true for clothing industry.

[Forty Rod]

That's why I don't buy brands.  I buy what works.  If something is made by Joshitt D. Ragman and it fits, it's mine.   If it's made by the highest priced, best advertised, and most respected name around and it doesn't fit, I won't give it a second look.

Same with quality.  I've had some high ticket items fall apart literally in weeks, but some unknown, El Cheapo item wears like iron and lasts forever. 

Guess which one I'll stick with?

[Four-Eyed Buck]

Have ya had any luck yet, Forty? My feet are the opposite from yours. High arch, narrow heel, on the borderline of size C and D widths. Not just anything works.Most of the El Cheapo shoes just don't work for me. In boots , I can be right in the width, but then the heel isn't right. Work boots were even worse, I found that Red Wings worked best for me. I have a pair of the older Frontiers that The Fort clearanced a few years back made by Llama, they were close, but still somewhat problematical. When they came out with these newer ones, I decided to try again and am quite happy with them so far. Happy enough to think about getting a pair in the other color from what I have now.............Buck

[Forty Rod]

Working with Fort Frontier and a wonderful gent here on the wire.  Taking awhile to get it right, but I'm pretty confident it'll pay off.  I'll let you know.

[Four-Eyed Buck]

 

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

Hey, Forty!

How long did it take you before you figured out that gent worked at the Fort?

< Snickering >


AnnieLee

[Forty Rod]

'Bout halfway through the second reading of his first post over on page one.  You know them little lights what come on over peoples' heads in the comics....I actually saw that in my reflection in the monitor.

I gonna get some new booooots!

[Joyce (AnnieLee)]

Yay, Forty!!!

If I hugged you, would you behave yourself?




AnnieLee, who thought she had impossibletofit feet, until she got boots from the Fort