Boot Question

[Xeno]

This is something thats been on my mind for a while now.
Are O.D. Green Jungle Boots authorized for wear with BDUS?

I've seen some guys wear them SAREXs and Encampment although  haven't been able to locate anything regarding these boots in 39-1.

[abysmal]

39-1 Table 2-3. Men's and Women's Battle Dress Uniforms
Line 4 Footwear (Combat Boots) Black, with or without safety toe, plain rounded toe or rounded capped toe with or without perforated seam. Zipper or elastic inserts optional, smooth or scotch-grained leather or man-made material, and may have a high gloss or patent finish.

(Hot-weather Tropical Boots) Green, or black cloth, or canvas and black leather with plain toe with zipper or elastic inserts.

[MIKE]

While authorized, I find jungle boots of either color to be a poor choice of boot for CAP.  Almost everyone who buys them will buy a budget pair costing around $20.  I had a pair of these boots WIWAC and wore them to an air show at Hanscom AFB.  At the end of three days on the flight line these boots  were worn out.  They also provide little support for your ankles etc IMO... And if you want them to be comfortable to wear you better get some decent insoles for them.

Many people have them up here in NER and they are a horrible choice of boot for a New England winter.

If you must have a pair, get an issue pair or ones that aren't so cheap.

Order here.


Order OD here.
Order black here.

Places to shop around:
www.actiongear.com
www.uscav.com
www.rangerjoes.com

I want a pair of these myself:

[Xeno]

I want a pair of these myself:

I'm currently wearing Airtak Side Zips in a similar fashion to these. They're good for cold wearther although they're a bit to heavy for my liking. I also noticed that they scratch easily and are harder to satisfactorily polish. They're not too good for summer time, especially if it gets hot where you live like it does here in Southwest Arkansas. Whatever you do, don't submerge them in water, unlike jungle boots these have no type of ventilation or drainage in them, meaning, they hold water. I made the mistake of running an AF Security Forces O-course at Little Rock AFB in them. By the time I was done I was literally standing in water up to my knees. I had my BDUs tucked into my boots and the water simply had nowhere to go.

On the upside they are very comfortable, it feels like your wearing regular old tennis shoes.
Well, thanks for the help all.

[abysmal]

This is NOT a cheap solution.
But these are what I wear and they solve the problem VERY nicely.
Combination Jungle style boot, which a High gloss polishable toe cap on them.





"Spit Shineable" Leather Toe Cap and Counter
* Cordura® High Performance Fabric Vamp and Quarters
* Original Cap Toe
* Garrison Army Munson Last for Superior Fit
* Cambrelle® Breathable Moisture Wicking Lining
* Webbing Reinforcement for Ankle Support
* Flexible Stainless Steel Plate Built into Outsole for Puncture Resistance
* Special Ribbed Steel Paratrooper Shank for Support
* Extra Firm Heavy Duty Military Counters and Box Toes
* Speed Lacing
* High Performance Laces
* DRYZ® Moisture/Odor Control Shock Absorbing Cushioned Insoles
* Exclusive Falcon Polyurethane Comfort System, Oil Resistant, Non-Marking Outsoles
* Made in the U.S.A.

[MIKE]

The above boots are Infantry Combat Boots by Bates... They have a Gore-tex liner.  These ones happen to be seconds and are available from www.sportsmansguide.com .  I have had good luck with getting boots from them, most as seconds including my current side-zip jump boots.  Only bad experience has been the jungle boots which I also got from SG.

Two cadets in my unit have these boots.  Didn't seem too heavy to me when I checked them out.  If I do end up getting them I will end up paying a lot less than these cadets did.  

[MIKE]

Got my Infantry Combat Boots today... Man these things are sweet.  They are supposed to be seconds, but I can find nothing thats really wrong with them.

One thing I noticed is that the wear and care booklet that came with them says you are not supposed to apply any kind of polish to them or spit shine them... The cadets that have them said they don't shine well anyway, much like the older speed-lace combat boots.

[PWK-GT]

For us big-city folks, I went w/ an old reliable..........gen-yoo-wine CORCORAN jump boots. Great support, easy to keep up, and fit the backside of most problematic A1c's. 
But, as with anything good, they ain't cheap.

[PhoenixRisen]

Does anyone know where you can find boots that are taller than the average 11 in. combat boots?

[SarDragon]

Why would you want boots higher than that? That's high enough to provide proper ankle support, and lower leg protection. Most boots higher than that need to be custom made to allow for differences in calf size, and are VERY expensive. Even off-the-shelf motorcycle cop boots are $400 a pair, and those are not really suitable for CAP use.

[PhoenixRisen]

Why would you want boots higher than that? That's high enough to provide proper ankle support, and lower leg protection. Most boots higher than that need to be custom made to allow for differences in calf size, and are VERY expensive. Even off-the-shelf motorcycle cop boots are $400 a pair, and those are not really suitable for CAP use.

'cause i like high boots

[Pylon]

Why would you want boots higher than that? That's high enough to provide proper ankle support, and lower leg protection. Most boots higher than that need to be custom made to allow for differences in calf size, and are VERY expensive. Even off-the-shelf motorcycle cop boots are $400 a pair, and those are not really suitable for CAP use.

'cause i like high boots

Although the only other option besides the aforementioned expensive motorcyle-cop boots or expensive custom-made boots, would be East German surplus NCO & Officer riding boots.  The Germans, if you might recall, had a thing for the high boots as well. 

Original WWII boots are collectors items, those that still survive and have pliable leather, and are waaaaay too expensive even just to own (plus, any historian would kill ya for actually trying to wear a real pair). 

However, many of the German (read: Prussian) military traditions and uniform styles carried over into the East German army during the Cold war.  When East Germany collapsed suddenly, there were litterally warehouses full of DDR uniforms and uniform accessories.  They're still fairly cheap.

You can check places, like Tridentmilitary.com who carry all sorts of World militaria surplus.  See their boot page:  http://tridentmilitary.com/Boots.htm

For $39.95, you could snag a pair of these:

[pixelwonk]

You can check places, like Tridentmilitary.com who carry all sorts of World militaria surplus.  See their boot page:  http://tridentmilitary.com/Boots.htm

For $39.95, you could snag a pair of these:

[img] redacted

Not that I've done this, because I haven't... but those would be good for all you Star Wars people doing the costume dealio too.
http://www.501st.com/default.html

[Pylon]

You can check places, like Tridentmilitary.com who carry all sorts of World militaria surplus.  See their boot page:  http://tridentmilitary.com/Boots.htm

For $39.95, you could snag a pair of these:

[img] redacted

Not that I've done this, because I haven't... but those would be good for all you Star Wars people doing the costume dealio too.
http://www.501st.com/default.html

Yeah, they're a pretty good steal, especially when you consider they're also a piece of cold war history and German made.  None of that Chinese import or poor workmanship you might see in a similarly-priced boots today.

[PhoenixRisen]

Why would you want boots higher than that? That's high enough to provide proper ankle support, and lower leg protection. Most boots higher than that need to be custom made to allow for differences in calf size, and are VERY expensive. Even off-the-shelf motorcycle cop boots are $400 a pair, and those are not really suitable for CAP use.

'cause i like high boots

Although the only other option besides the aforementioned expensive motorcyle-cop boots or expensive custom-made boots, would be East German surplus NCO & Officer riding boots.  The Germans, if you might recall, had a thing for the high boots as well. 

Original WWII boots are collectors items, those that still survive and have pliable leather, and are waaaaay too expensive even just to own (plus, any historian would kill ya for actually trying to wear a real pair). 

However, many of the German (read: Prussian) military traditions and uniform styles carried over into the East German army during the Cold war.  When East Germany collapsed suddenly, there were litterally warehouses full of DDR uniforms and uniform accessories.  They're still fairly cheap.

You can check places, like Tridentmilitary.com who carry all sorts of World militaria surplus.  See their boot page:  http://tridentmilitary.com/Boots.htm

For $39.95, you could snag a pair of these:

Would those be authorized with the BDUs though?

[pixelwonk]

Long answer: Verboten! Dumpkopf!

short answer: no 

[Pylon]

Would those be authorized with the BDUs though?

Heh, no.

But they'd make a great "bling" for your paintballing/camping/re-enacting outfit.

[arajca]

Would those be authorized with the BDUs though?

They would be authorized with the field uniform, though.

[SarDragon]

Would those be authorized with the BDUs though?

They would be authorized with the field uniform, though.

But not advised because of their shortfalls in performance areas for which "Footwear (Combat Boots)" are specified. The ankle support is minimal, and most folks end up with heel rubbing because of fit issues.

[Buzz]

While authorized, I find jungle boots of either color to be a poor choice of boot for CAP. 

Same here.  The ONLY times that I wear jungle boots are when immersion foot is a possibility, or doing ES in conditions where I am likely to be wading, such as typhoon response.

I generally wear a pair of Corcoran II jump boots.  They are so comfortable that I wear them all the time, except when barefoot, sandals or running shoes are a better option. A pair will cost about $125 but the pair I'm wearing now have lasted me 4 years of near-daily wear.

[abysmal]

Hard to beat a good pair of Jump Boots!

[cadetnelson]

www.altama.com

the best of the best of the best!!!  And not that bad of pricing, especially if you buy from an AAFES or whatever (initials?) store.  I got a pair for 70.00 b/c the army surplus didn't have my size, but they were selling them on sale, new, for 59.99

[MIKE]

http://www.wellco.com/html/online_outlet.html

[Matt]

[...]I generally wear a pair of Corcoran II jump boots.  They are so comfortable that I wear them all the time, except when barefoot, sandals or running shoes are a better option. A pair will cost about $125 but the pair I'm wearing now have lasted me 4 years of near-daily wear.

Bah, I'll stick with their cousin's, that Matterhorns.  Waterproof, Gortex, Thinsulate Lined with the Vibram Sole.  And of course Mickey's in the winter...

The only downfall of the Matterhorn's is polishing, it's not advised because of the wax in the polish seals the moisture in the leather.  But conditioner, which is used, puts on an 'OK' shine.

[SKYKING607]

Use my "issue" boots on ES functions.  Home station (unit meetings) I use the same boots I wear when on duty (law enforcement)...my Rocky 9-1-1 lug sole boots.  Leather cordura-nylon combo.

[smj58501]

Got my Infantry Combat Boots today... Man these things are sweet.  They are supposed to be seconds, but I can find nothing thats really wrong with them.

One thing I noticed is that the wear and care booklet that came with them says you are not supposed to apply any kind of polish to them or spit shine them... The cadets that have them said they don't shine well anyway, much like the older speed-lace combat boots.

I wore the ICB's everyday for the past several years (winter or summer.... actually not too bad in the heat) for work. The only reason I don't wear them anymore is because we are switching over to the Army Combat Uniform, which uses suede boots (the good news is i have several pair available for CAP Ops  ). The ICB's are very comfortable and durable.... by far the best black boot I ever owned. I recommend them.... incidently I also ordered mine through The Sportsmans Guide.... significant cost savings can be found by shopping there.

PS- it is true they don't shine well. The ICB's are a functional boot that can be kept black at best. If you want parade ground boots get some Cochrans or similar. The down side is (unless you get their field boot), they are not the best field boot.

[Al Sayre]

I'll second that, I bought a pair for my cadet daughter and for myself and was very happy with the products.