Everyone is entitled to their own opinion but I think trying to suggest and convince yourself and others that a £40-£60 fabric boot can be as good or as long lasting as a £200 full leather boot from one of the better known manufacturers is wrong.
I never said that at all, I understand cheaper boots don't last as long. what I said, is that over the years, replacing cheaper more often may not be that much more expensive that a big hit in one go.
Buying a product that costs £10 and lasts a year is as cheap as a £100 product lasting 10 years, and if you get lucky, and each one lasts a week more, it may be even cheaper. Plus there's the cash flow benefit.
However, for me, fabric is more comfortable. And like a settee I recently bought, I paid more for one that felt comfortable. Sometimes paying more (in the long run) is worth it. It not always about "what is the best value for money." and dont forget, I fall on both sides of this, I have cheap footwear, and expensive. I have a foot in both camps if you like
. I'm just open minded enough to look into it more.
I can't remember which online retailer's "boot advice" website I saw this on but given average usage/mileage (if there is such a thing) a fabric/suede/leather combination construction boot will typically last around 2+ years before it fails and needs replacing in comparison to a full leather construction boot which will typically last 5+ years
Well if you can't remember, it doesn't help anyone then. It makes no odds if the leather cost 2 1/2 times the price (based on your years life above), you are into the same costs. and cost isn't everything. I probably spend as much in petrol costs and parking for walking each month as my annual spend on boots/shoes for the hobby cost.
I agree that on a fabric boot the membrane is your only protection from water but I personally found that regularly using a waterproofing spray on a fabric construction boot was essential to keep the water beading off them but more importantly it stopped the fabric soaking up water and adding unnecessary weight to the boot.
Probably been a while since you looked at fabric then, because the ones I've seen over the past 5 or 10 years are not of a type of fabric that the threads absorb water so this doesn't in fact happen. Think, possibly a bit like, quick dry trousers v's wearing jeans. Fabric boots are not "jeans" anymore.
Out of curiosity, I'm going to weigh my wet boots, and dry ones and see exactly what happens. I like to be open minded. I suspect even with a bit of water, they still are lighter than leather. Like for Like.
I think you need to remember that Altberg is a major supplier of boots to the armed forces and that particular advice relates to their use in hot countries overseas.
Again, you're wrong and misleading people. Even though Altberg do seem to supply services, it in no way states on the care instructions page that it refers to only services boots.
http://www.altberg.co.uk/leder-gris/bootcare/
Again you need to remember that advice is aimed mainly at military personnel who use their boots day in day out in all sorts of weather conditions for extended periods of time. The advice to wax when damp is so that the pores in the leather are open and the oils contained within the wax can get deeper into the leather to replace those oils lost during the drying out process and extend the life of the boot.
Again, no it doesn't state military at all. You're wrong.
And again, if you need to time your waxing, its a pfaff. This fact alone, plus the extra time for waxing is probably worth £20 a year to me, thats £100 for your 5 year life, basically rendering the total cost of ownership of boots as irrelevant to me, and possibly others. Other factors like weight, easy of cleaning, comfort playing a bigger part.
And I do remember, you mentioning Marmot Precip in the bargain thread recently. It was way cheap, and I got one. Thanks!
J
