Lighter Fuel and Shoe Shine

[colkemp]

I was just watching a movie about the Old Guard and it showed them shineing their shoes with lighter fuel. This seems a tad bit odd to be, but has anybody ever used it and how do you properly use it?

[Eclipse]

Presumably they were using it to strip the boots first, which is generally unnecessary.
It's also dangerous from both a fire and an inhalant perspective.

Standard Kiwi and elbow grease are all you need, or just get tac boots that don't need to be shined, keep them clean and blacked (Doc Bailey's is
good for this), and move on with your life.

[HGjunkie]

Definitely a bad idea to use lighter fluid due to the fact it ruins the leather. It may look good, but the shoes will not last long.

I use kiwi on my dress shoes and tac boots and have never had problems.

[ol'fido]

I have heard of using gasoline, rubbing alcohol, and lighter fluid to strip the factory polish layer off until you get to almost raw leather and then building a base of Kiwi polish up. I have also heard of using lighters to melt polish into the boots to fill in all the pores. I have seen guys use straight vodka and kiwi to shine boots. These are all kind of like cures for hiccups. They may have worked for someone, somewhere, once but are not usually a good idea.

If you don't need a shine right away, the best way to get rid of the factory layer is to just to wear them until the finish is dull and slightly faded.

BTW, my personal cure for hiccups is to chug a soda and belch. Usually, short circuits the spasm causing your hiccups.

[AngelWings]

 Kiwi, water, some more kiwi, a little lighter action, some more water, some more kiwi so on and so fourth is all you need. Lighter fluid is a gas that can be used to strip polish to start the shine process over again. It is kind of like rubbing alcohol, in the sense of what it looks like when  it strips the shine off your boot. Shiney, shiney, GONE

[Eclipse]

If I may be so bold to use the same pic in multiple threads...

[AngelWings]

If I may be so bold to use the same pic in multiple threads...

I doubt there is a fire hazard, unless when you polish the boots sparks or you have breath of literal fire, which would be really creepy.

[davidsinn]

If you are putting so much polish on that you need to strip it you are doing it wrong and have no idea what the polish is for. Boots and shoes are not supposed to be mirrors. Polish is only supposed to replace the natural oils in the leather and to blacken the leather a bit. I'm about to retire four year old boots and you can still see the grain in the leather yet they are in good shape and "polished"not shined. I'll post pics when i get home on Monday or on Tuesday.

[AngelWings]

If you are putting so much polish on that you need to strip it you are doing it wrong and have no idea what the polish is for. Boots and shoes are not supposed to be mirrors. Polish is only supposed to replace the natural oils in the leather and to blacken the leather a bit. I'm about to retire four year old boots and you can still see the grain in the leather yet they are in good shape and "polished"not shined. I'll post pics when i get home on Monday or on Tuesday.

Well, my boots are mirrors. The idea of polish is also to water proof the boot. The idea of shining is to show that it is waterproof. IMO, shined boots look great. All of the ACC demo team mechanics wear very shiney boots that make them look sharper than the regular joe.

[O-Rex]

Any petroleum product on your boots = BAD

To strip: Green Scrubby Pad, Saddle Soap & elbow grease.

To prep: Fiebing's Leather Dye (use "USMC Black," plain black has a reddish tinge to it.)

To polish: Black Kiwi, cold water, something cotton and LOTS of elbow grease.

[Eclipse]

Boots and shoes are not supposed to be mirrors.

There's a few people around me who have flat-finished tac boots that actually "shine".

Kinda misses the point, though you have to (sorta) give them credit for bending the laws of physics and common sense just to look "shiny".

[Hawk200]

Well, my boots are mirrors. The idea of polish is also to water proof the boot. The idea of shining is to show that it is waterproof. IMO, shined boots look great. All of the ACC demo team mechanics wear very shiney boots that make them look sharper than the regular joe.

Shining is not intended to "waterproof" the boot in the way you're thinking. It's simply to preserve the leather. The shine isn't even why it was done originally. It was simply noticed that when the wax was buffed, it looked nice. 

Just give it a shine, it doesn't need to be fancy. Besides, just because you have shiny boots doesn't mean you're better at everything else. I've known many a person that were poster children, and they were completely worthless when it came to other things. Being shiny and pressed is not the be-all, end-all of what you are.

[PHall]

Just give it a shine, it doesn't need to be fancy. Besides, just because you have shiny boots doesn't mean you're better at everything else. I've known many a person that were poster children, and they were completely worthless when it came to other things. Being shiny and pressed is not the be-all, end-all of what you are.

Unless you're a AETC Instructor.....

[Persona non grata]

This works better than most stuff(kiwi) .

[Grumpy]

I have heard of using gasoline, rubbing alcohol, and lighter fluid to strip the factory polish layer off until you get to almost raw leather and then building a base of Kiwi polish up. I have also heard of using lighters to melt polish into the boots to fill in all the pores. I have seen guys use straight vodka and kiwi to shine boots. These are all kind of like cures for hiccups. They may have worked for someone, somewhere, once but are not usually a good idea.

If you don't need a shine right away, the best way to get rid of the factory layer is to just to wear them until the finish is dull and slightly faded.

BTW, my personal cure for hiccups is to chug a soda and belch. Usually, short circuits the spasm causing your hiccups.

Yee Gad, what a waste of a perfectly good adult beverage!

[PHall]

This works better than most stuff(kiwi) .

Which polish to use is just like who method to use, everybody has their own opinion.

[Persona non grata]

It works , since I moved to the NE from FL, I have a hard time finding kiwi in the produce dept.

[Hawk200]

Just give it a shine, it doesn't need to be fancy. Besides, just because you have shiny boots doesn't mean you're better at everything else. I've known many a person that were poster children, and they were completely worthless when it came to other things. Being shiny and pressed is not the be-all, end-all of what you are.

Unless you're a AETC Instructor.....

My best friend was an AETC instructor. He didn't shine anything to a mirror finish. He put on enough to give a good shine, but mirror finish wasn't something he ever strived for, and most of his fellow instructors didn't bother either.

If it had to be super shiny, it was his Coraframs; worn with blues, and especially with Honor Guard uniforms. But mirror shine boots were nothing he ever did. He was received numerous awards while an Instructor as well, so it's not like he was a dirtbag just trying to get by.

[Major Lord]

Most shoe polish is pretty flammable already, since they have synthetic and organic flammable solvents ( Naptha, turpentine,etc.) to keep the wax as a near-liquid paste. ( I also noted that UPS considers Kiwi to be in one their Hazmat categories!)  I think in the old days, shoe polish was much more like saddle wax ( Carnuba, bee's Wax, etc.) and might have benefited from adding solvents that gassed off to make them a little easier to apply without as much elbow grease; the most expensive kind of polish! If you have smooth leather boots ( the kind meant to be polished) I would not think that lighter fluid would help much, since although it would thin the mixture, it would leave organic greasy residue ( The only organic greasy residue you should have on your boots should come from the enemy) I have used lighter fluid in my youth on surfboard wax to help layer a thick coat, but thick coating on boots just leads to cracks.

Major Lord

[Grumpy]

Most shoe polish is pretty flammable already, since they have synthetic and organic flammable solvents ( Naptha, turpentine,etc.) to keep the wax as a near-liquid paste. ( I also noted that UPS considers Kiwi to be in one their Hazmat categories!) I think in the old days, shoe polish was much more like saddle wax ( Carnuba, bee's Wax, etc.) and might have benefited from adding solvents that gassed off to make them a little easier to apply without as much elbow grease; the most expensive kind of polish! If you have smooth leather boots ( the kind meant to be polished) I would not think that lighter fluid would help much, since although it would thin the mixture, it would leave organic greasy residue ( The only organic greasy residue you should have on your boots should come from the enemy) I have used lighter fluid in my youth on surfboard wax to help layer a thick coat, but thick coating on boots just leads to cracks.

Major Lord

What do you mean by, Old Days?

[Major Lord]

Most shoe polish is pretty flammable already, since they have synthetic and organic flammable solvents ( Naptha, turpentine,etc.) to keep the wax as a near-liquid paste. ( I also noted that UPS considers Kiwi to be in one their Hazmat categories!) I think in the old days, shoe polish was much more like saddle wax ( Carnuba, bee's Wax, etc.) and might have benefited from adding solvents that gassed off to make them a little easier to apply without as much elbow grease; the most expensive kind of polish! If you have smooth leather boots ( the kind meant to be polished) I would not think that lighter fluid would help much, since although it would thin the mixture, it would leave organic greasy residue ( The only organic greasy residue you should have on your boots should come from the enemy) I have used lighter fluid in my youth on surfboard wax to help layer a thick coat, but thick coating on boots just leads to cracks.

Major Lord

What do you mean by, Old Days?

If you have to ask.........

Major Lord

[Grumpy]

Oh man. . . .

[mclarke]

I have never stripped off the factory polish, however, I have lit my kiwi on fire, put it out and then use that kiwi to polish my boots.

[cap235629]

I have never stripped off the factory polish, however, I have lit my kiwi on fire, put it out and then use that kiwi to polish my boots.

Why?

[Hawk200]

( The only organic greasy residue you should have on your boots should come from the enemy)

Nice.   :clap: :clap: :clap:

[AngelWings]

 Man, how come people are so aggresively against polishing and shining boots. I remember talking to a few folks after an event and they pointed out how good my boots looked compared to the standards of "just polished" sitting and standing around. Looking professional is a key in being a professional. There is nothing to argue with that if, in the eyes of the public, they recongize shined boots compared to just polished, with shined boots being considered professional and just polished looking bad. It has nothing to do with how the person functions with their job, but people will respect you more if you look like you respect and take good care of yourself. Of course, I don't wear the boots I shine onto exercises, but when I'm representing CAP, I want to send off the professional image to those who do see me, with knowledge in mind that they do see a real difference.

[Grumpy]

Man, how come people are so aggressively against polishing and shining boots. I remember talking to a few folks after an event and they pointed out how good my boots looked compared to the standards of "just polished" sitting and standing around. Looking professional is a key in being a professional. There is nothing to argue with that if, in the eyes of the public, they recognize shined boots compared to just polished, with shined boots being considered professional and just polished looking bad. It has nothing to do with how the person functions with their job, but people will respect you more if you look like you respect and take good care of yourself. Of course, I don't wear the boots I shine onto exercises, but when I'm representing CAP, I want to send off the professional image to those who do see me, with knowledge in mind that they do see a real difference.

Back in the day when we wore white hats, bloused boots with white laces, and took time to look sharp when working the main gate we did all that.  Now days, mediocrity is the norm.  That's why you have people who push to have no winners or losers.  Because somebody may feel bad if they didn't do well enough.  The heck with striving for excellence.  Heck, our squadron was just told to stop winning so much.  It's time to give somebody else a chance.  So I guess we're going to start looking at ways to lower the bar.

[davidsinn]

Man, how come people are so aggressively against polishing and shining boots. I remember talking to a few folks after an event and they pointed out how good my boots looked compared to the standards of "just polished" sitting and standing around. Looking professional is a key in being a professional. There is nothing to argue with that if, in the eyes of the public, they recognize shined boots compared to just polished, with shined boots being considered professional and just polished looking bad. It has nothing to do with how the person functions with their job, but people will respect you more if you look like you respect and take good care of yourself. Of course, I don't wear the boots I shine onto exercises, but when I'm representing CAP, I want to send off the professional image to those who do see me, with knowledge in mind that they do see a real difference.

Back in the day when we wore white hats, bloused boots with white laces, and took time to look sharp when working the main gate we did all that.  Now days, mediocrity is the norm.  That's why you have people who push to have no winners or losers.  Because somebody may feel bad if they didn't do well enough.  The heck with striving for excellence.  Heck, our squadron was just told to stop winning so much.  It's time to give somebody else a chance.  So I guess we're going to start looking at ways to lower the bar.

It's not about mediocrity. It's about only having so much time in the day. I would rather use it to do something useful than waste it making my boots glow which does nothing to advance the mission.

[AngelWings]

Man, how come people are so aggressively against polishing and shining boots. I remember talking to a few folks after an event and they pointed out how good my boots looked compared to the standards of "just polished" sitting and standing around. Looking professional is a key in being a professional. There is nothing to argue with that if, in the eyes of the public, they recognize shined boots compared to just polished, with shined boots being considered professional and just polished looking bad. It has nothing to do with how the person functions with their job, but people will respect you more if you look like you respect and take good care of yourself. Of course, I don't wear the boots I shine onto exercises, but when I'm representing CAP, I want to send off the professional image to those who do see me, with knowledge in mind that they do see a real difference.

Back in the day when we wore white hats, bloused boots with white laces, and took time to look sharp when working the main gate we did all that.  Now days, mediocrity is the norm.  That's why you have people who push to have no winners or losers.  Because somebody may feel bad if they didn't do well enough.  The heck with striving for excellence.  Heck, our squadron was just told to stop winning so much.  It's time to give somebody else a chance.  So I guess we're going to start looking at ways to lower the bar.

It's not about mediocrity. It's about only having so much time in the day. I would rather use it to do something useful than waste it making my boots glow which does nothing to advance the mission.

It takes the average person 30 minutes (15 for each boot) to get their boots shined and looking great with just some kiwi, water, and muscles. If somebody doesn't have 30 minutes of time in their week, then that is different. People just get lazy, and don't want to look like they really care for their uniform. Really, it is all about discipline.

[Grumpy]

Man, how come people are so aggressively against polishing and shining boots. I remember talking to a few folks after an event and they pointed out how good my boots looked compared to the standards of "just polished" sitting and standing around. Looking professional is a key in being a professional. There is nothing to argue with that if, in the eyes of the public, they recognize shined boots compared to just polished, with shined boots being considered professional and just polished looking bad. It has nothing to do with how the person functions with their job, but people will respect you more if you look like you respect and take good care of yourself. Of course, I don't wear the boots I shine onto exercises, but when I'm representing CAP, I want to send off the professional image to those who do see me, with knowledge in mind that they do see a real difference.

Back in the day when we wore white hats, bloused boots with white laces, and took time to look sharp when working the main gate we did all that.  Now days, mediocrity is the norm.  That's why you have people who push to have no winners or losers.  Because somebody may feel bad if they didn't do well enough.  The heck with striving for excellence.  Heck, our squadron was just told to stop winning so much.  It's time to give somebody else a chance.  So I guess we're going to start looking at ways to lower the bar.

It's not about mediocrity. It's about only having so much time in the day. I would rather use it to do something useful than waste it making my boots glow which does nothing to advance the mission.

It takes the average person 30 minutes (15 for each boot) to get their boots shined and looking great with just some kiwi, water, and muscles. If somebody doesn't have 30 minutes of time in their week, then that is different. People just get lazy, and don't want to look like they really care for their uniform. Really, it is all about discipline.

I don't wear corfam shoes because they don't breath and they hurt my feet.  I've given 3 or 4 pair to cadets because of it.  Now I have a great base coat on my "navy oxfords" and I can get them looking as good, if not better, that corfam in just 30 minutes a week while watching the news on TV.  Not only is it discipline but also "paying attention to detail" as they profess to do at encampment.

[cap235629]

Man, how come people are so aggressively against polishing and shining boots. I remember talking to a few folks after an event and they pointed out how good my boots looked compared to the standards of "just polished" sitting and standing around. Looking professional is a key in being a professional. There is nothing to argue with that if, in the eyes of the public, they recognize shined boots compared to just polished, with shined boots being considered professional and just polished looking bad. It has nothing to do with how the person functions with their job, but people will respect you more if you look like you respect and take good care of yourself. Of course, I don't wear the boots I shine onto exercises, but when I'm representing CAP, I want to send off the professional image to those who do see me, with knowledge in mind that they do see a real difference.

Back in the day when we wore white hats, bloused boots with white laces, and took time to look sharp when working the main gate we did all that.  Now days, mediocrity is the norm.  That's why you have people who push to have no winners or losers.  Because somebody may feel bad if they didn't do well enough.  The heck with striving for excellence.  Heck, our squadron was just told to stop winning so much.  It's time to give somebody else a chance.  So I guess we're going to start looking at ways to lower the bar.

It's not about mediocrity. It's about only having so much time in the day. I would rather use it to do something useful than waste it making my boots glow which does nothing to advance the mission.

It takes the average person 30 minutes (15 for each boot) to get their boots shined and looking great with just some kiwi, water, and muscles. If somebody doesn't have 30 minutes of time in their week, then that is different. People just get lazy, and don't want to look like they really care for their uniform. Really, it is all about discipline.

The REAL military realized that this was a waste of as much as 6.5 hours per week in training/productive time and really served no purpose.  They are called COMBAT BOOTS for a reason.  They are by definition going to get dirty and no one wants to wear a reflector on their feet when trying to maintain concealment.

Your limited experience in CAP wearing boots for just a couple of hours each week does not make you the authority on being lazy. 

WIWOAD, I worked 6-7 days a week 10-12+ hours a day and had to see myself in my boots as a rule.  I had 3-4 pairs of boots always shined and ready to go.  The only problem is that in my limited time off I had to spend HOURS each week shining boots that could have been better spent on things like sleep, family or even school.

Lazy?  I think not!

[Hawk200]

Man, how come people are so aggresively against polishing and shining boots.

You need to stop right there, as your statement is inaccurate. No one is against polishing or shining boots. They're against wasting time for mirror shines that don't provide any benefit.

You've already made to point as to why you do it: compliments. If that's what you're concerned with, that's you. I polish mine to preserve them, as originally intended. I've Leather Lustered boots for the simple reason that with that particular shine, I don't have to do much.

Shining to mirror finish to get compliments is the wrong reason, but if that's what's important to you, have at it. Don't exaggerate to the point that you're not speaking the truth.

The REAL military realized that this was a waste of as much as 6.5 hours per week in training/productive time and really served no purpose.  They are called COMBAT BOOTS for a reason.  They are by definition going to get dirty and no one wants to wear a reflector on their feet when trying to maintain concealment.

Your limited experience in CAP wearing boots for just a couple of hours each week does not make you the authority on being lazy. 

WIWOAD, I worked 6-7 days a week 10-12+ hours a day and had to see myself in my boots as a rule.  I had 3-4 pairs of boots always shined and ready to go.  The only problem is that in my limited time off I had to spend HOURS each week shining boots that could have been better spent on things like sleep, family or even school.

Lazy?  I think not!

Agreed.

[Major Lord]

I think its important to Cadets that their uniforms and footwear make them look like "Garrison Troops" , since this is a big part of the identity of the Cadet Program. For Senior Members, to worry about looking like parade ground troops ( unless they are a pall bearer or something similar) is just a little ridiculous. Your BDU's should be clean and presentable, your low quarters should be shined, but not to the level of an obsessive-compulsive disorder. Your boots should be uniformly black. Whats the argument about? These boots are made for walkin'! Ground teams, for instance,  don't need to polish their boots, they just need to appear professional, fit well, and withstand actual operations without leaving you discalced in the woods.

As for Cadets, how many of us have seen a cadet show up at a high activity adventure in a brand new pair of unbroken boots? The boots look great; The feet look like they were chewed by wild dogs!  Or the cadet that must hop from place to place, since the 1/4 inch think layer of parade boot gloss they slathered on will crack if they actually flex their foot! Boots are protective gear- its not what they protect you from, its what they allow you to do.

Major Lord

[Skydude61]

It works , since I moved to the NE from FL, I have a hard time finding kiwi in the produce dept.

Try The Foreign Dept.
That is where I found it in CT

[AngelWings]

 My arguement was that, in public, my boots should look greatly shined for the reason of looking professional. I never once said that you are automatically lazy if your boots aren't shined well. I said, if youhave 30 minutes of available time, which means that if you have other things to do, like school, like sleep, like family, than that is different. In quotes of myself "If somebody doesn't have 30 minutes of time in their week, then that is different". I was inferring free personal time, like you are bored and have nothing important to do, or you are not doing anything and want something to do.

Hawk, you misconecpted my comments in public has a shining being a method of getting compliments. No, you got it all wrong! It is about looking like, like I've said before, a professional. Even if nobody ever told me it looks good, I'd still shine. I do admit to misconcepting some of what you said. I'm sorry.

I have boots meant for getting dirty. All the have is a little mink oil on them to keep em waterproof. It'd be stupid to be in the field with a set of shined boots meant for drill, inspections, and parades.

[Hawk200]

Hawk, you misconecpted my comments in public has a shining being a method of getting compliments. No, you got it all wrong! It is about looking like, like I've said before, a professional. Even if nobody ever told me it looks good, I'd still shine. I do admit to misconcepting some of what you said. I'm sorry.

That's how it came across, but I will give the benefit of the doubt and assume that is not what you intended based on your response.

I put wax on boots for the purpose of preserving them, and I do shine them. But there are many people stuck on a shine that has the depth of glass to it. That's too much. If the polish is too thick, it can start cracking, and that looks really unprofessional. There's a great deal of irony in that when you think about it.

Thirty minutes a week is perfectly reasonable to shine boots. Mine do tend to look better than most people's boots, but to me it's about maintaining my boots, not looking for compliments. I tell the cadets in my unit that I expect them to have boots that look at least the same as mine. Any less, they get dinged. Any more is fine as long as the polish isn't cracking. This can show that some people spend too much time on something which can be just as bad as not spending enough. I know that if their boots look about like mine, their footwear should be able to handle the majority of things we're expected to do.

Balance is important. As I referenced above, some people can spend so much time on their uniform that they neglect other things. While active duty, this could be someone that looks nice, but doesn't know their job. I personally knew someone that failed his End of Course because he was spending too much time on his uniforms. He didn't even trust the cleaners to press his uniforms properly (Which to be fair, was a legitimate concern, the cleaners did have a habit of literally pressing wrinkles into the uniform.)

For a cadet, it could mean that there are tests not being studied for because they are overly concerned about their appearance. The uniform is not the mission, it's part of how you conduct the mission.

I have a set of Ropers that I wear daily to work, school, out, etc., and I put Lincoln on them once a week to take care of them. Some people remark that they look nice, and I'll say "Thank you" to be polite, but I don't really care about their thoughts. I do it to prolong the life of my boots, not really for looks.

[Persona non grata]

My first day on the job I showed up with spit shinned boots, after one foot pursuit through a wooded area the shine was done.  After that it was a quick shine paste and buff.  Now I have a pair of boots for CAP BDU'S that are shinned very nicely and one pair for doing utility work.  The easiest pair of boots I had to shine were jump boots, heel and toe rest of the boot was like a glove leather. When the day comes we can wear no shine type boots I will be happy.

[Grumpy]

My first day on the job I showed up with spit shinned boots, after one foot pursuit through a wooded area the shine was done.  After that it was a quick shine paste and buff.  Now I have a pair of boots for CAP BDU'S that are shinned very nicely and one pair for doing utility work.  The easiest pair of boots I had to shine were jump boots, heel and toe rest of the boot was like a glove leather. When the day comes we can wear no shine type boots I will be happy.

Son, that's why they have trusty's at the station.  A buck a pair of shoes.  Two bucks for boots.   

[titanII]

When the day comes we can wear no shine type boots I will be happy.

+1
I dont mean to start an argument, but I personally think that the army's tan boots and the air force's green boots would look fine on BDUs. Might take a little getting used to at first though.

[Hawk200]

When the day comes we can wear no shine type boots I will be happy.

+1
I dont mean to start an argument, but I personally think that the army's tan boots and the air force's green boots would look fine on BDUs. Might take a little getting used to at first though.

They look fine. Seen the green boots with BDU's (on Air Force personnel), and wore the tan boots with BDU's when I first rejoined the Guard. Both look just fine.

I'd be happier if the Air Force would get smart and go with tan. I've got about four pairs already broken in.

[Grumpy]

Sandals would be cool too.

[AngelWings]

When the day comes we can wear no shine type boots I will be happy.

+1
I dont mean to start an argument, but I personally think that the army's tan boots and the air force's green boots would look fine on BDUs. Might take a little getting used to at first though.

Don't worry, there is no arguement there. I have 2 sets of tan boots, one hot weather and steel toe and the other gore tex. I'd love to wear them with BDU if it was allowed. They look better, too, espically since they all would look generally the same, and the fact that you don't have nowhere has many civilian style boots being purchased, either.

[mclarke]

Way I was taught. I have spit shined, used it unlit, etc. I always found that they shine better when I light the Kiwi can on fire and then take the liquid kiwi and apply it to the boot. After it dries on the boot, I then apply another coating of non-liquid kiwi. Then I brush it smooth and use the polishing cloth to shine the toe. Then I apply a 3rd coating of non-liquid kiwi to the toe area and shine once more. In total, I spend 15-20 minutes a boot. Nice shine too.

Oh, and I like polishing my boots and clipping IPs, etc... I think you can tell a lot about a person by how they care for there uniform, gear and how they wear it.

I have never stripped off the factory polish, however, I have lit my kiwi on fire, put it out and then use that kiwi to polish my boots.

Why?

[Hawk200]

I have ... gore tex.

The GoreTex ones are nice. We loved the winter in Alaska, because we had to wear GoreTex boots in the winter. They were alot lighter than the non-electrical safety toe.

[Grumpy]

I have ... gore tex.

The GoreTex ones are nice. We loved the winter in Alaska, because we had to wear GoreTex boots in the winter. They were alot lighter than the non-electrical safety toe.

I live in San Diego.  Sandals are still cool.

[AngelWings]

I have ... gore tex.

The GoreTex ones are nice. We loved the winter in Alaska, because we had to wear GoreTex boots in the winter. They were alot lighter than the non-electrical safety toe.

I live in San Diego.  Sandals are still cool.

Go Under armor Valstez boots. I want a set. I've heard that they are the lightest boot out there.