Wyatt and Dad rules. Had them do a rebuild and it was top notch work and talking with Tony about it on the phone was such a treat! I always recommend them when people are looking for a somewhere to send a pair you really care about.
I had their steel toe work boots, had them resoled 3 times. Worked for the airlines, so they got lots of mistreatment, kicking out chocks.. Still have them, retired in 2015. Took forever to break them in..
I have had my Iron Rangers over a year now and I have to say they are among my most favorite boots. I was expecting a really hard breakin but was pleasantly surprised by how easy it was, in fact it was pretty comfortable from the beginning. They fit me very well, which is surprising because the RW 875 moc toe was a little too narrow (had to use a boot stretcher to make them more comfortable). The Iron ranger looks beautiful in my eyes. With that said, I have to say that they are a little harder on your foot, not much shock absorption. I plan on putting in a midsole when I resole them and will probably switch to a vibram 100 commando sole, those two items should make them really comfortable.
I think the blacksmith is a more versatile boot , looks more subtle and it’s still really hard wearing. I’ve mine over 3 years and the only downside is that the leather heel counter has worn through, but I think those can be fixed
If you're worried about breaking in some IRs, then you are probably overthinking it. I'm not saying breaking-in some IRs is nothing, but you will get through it and it could definitely be worse. For instance, I can't say the same about getting a pair of PNW loggers - they are not for the casual boot guy or the faint of heart. I had broken-in 10 pairs of workboots in my past life in construction and thought to myself "how hard could it be?" It's a whole different ballgame, let me tell ya. Not only is there no cushion in the insole, but there is zero flex out of the box (felt like i had casts on both legs at first), the soles are hard af V100 (even harder if you get the red x, so i have heard), and the arches were murder for my feet until they settled in. Been wearing my Frank's for about a month and a half (50 or so hours, not my daily driver) and the footbed is finally starting to settle and the uppers are starting to break, but i am still dealing with the dreaded "bite" at the first set of hooks. This is all while wearing my best break-in socks and using the rubbing alcohol, as recommended by Frank himself, to try to speed up the break-in. Even though i feel them settling in, i still wonder every time i put them on if i just bought way too much boot and should sell them off and get some IRs or Jim Greens or something that doesn't have an inch thick of leather plus an inch of 80 shore a rubber under foot and 4+mm thick uppers. Im going to stick it out because mama didn't raise no quitter, but i know it's still a rough road ahead and i still kinda dread putting them on every time.
When i first considered to buy the IR, all the reviews about the break in period kinda intimidated me. And these were also my first ever leather boots. I wore soft sneakers all my life, so i was preparing for the worst. It wasn't even bad, really. A little over a month and this pair of boots are totally comfy. The breaking period wasn't painful either, i didn't get blisters or anything. It was just getting used to stiff leather, until it relaxed up just right. Maybe i'm just lucky the shape of my feet match these boots so well, but i can confidently say these boots are comfortable to wear all day.
Hobby lobby has a giant bag of Latigo strips for crafting that come in thick to thin. For 20 bux and you will have lace 4x as thick as regular boot laces . Ebay has insole leather slabs for ten bux. Put them in every pair just to keep from wearing thu the factory insoles. And never depend on steel toes . Make sure nothing falls on your feet. I kicked a 4×4 with one foot next to my boot to stop a piece of tooling that came loose. But do keep your toes if they get cut 😂off because nowadays they can put them back on.
Great report! I think I have 4 pair but could be five. My wife is from Minnesota. Bob Dylan wrote a song called The Walls of Red Wing(but is about the old prison, not the boots!). These are 3 of my favorite reasons for having the Iron Rangers, but mostly, they're awesome. Thank you for this wonderful video~~
Thank you for this review. I have just sold my IR anger three years because I wanna try a half size up, which is a half size down from Brannock. Love the rangers!!
The saying is 'pain is weakness leaving body', that's why its worth enduring. Of course with IRs its a little more like 'pain is money leaving the wallet', which is also worth enduring.
7:54 the insole issue is not a given and could be avoided by manufacturers! apart from leather quality it has to do with the amount of grain left in the leather. being exposed to sweat and stress its the grain that shrinks and hardens over time, which causes cracking and curling grain-wards (this is also what creates the strong clowns shoe effect). to avoid that, in traditional bootmaking the top grain layer is removed or the insole is used with the flesh side up. factories dont do these things (the devil knows why). what also makes it hollow out this drastically is the delamination of the gemming and the crumbly cork filler.
I feel like your videos could be more honest in the recraft story. The cobbler I go to, and several RU-vid cobblers complain a lot about iron ranger and blacksmith. I experienced this myself. It was way more expensive than other boots I’ve had because the welt to gumming attachment is not great. Just glued. Other boots in this price range have sewn gunning or a mid sole that makes re-sole much easer and less prone to issues. I this price range, there are lots of good boots. Especially Canadian options like WM Moorby (get leather heal in some models), Boulet, Dayton’s on sale right now for cheaper than a new iron ranger. This video comes off as a sales pitch rather than a review. Maybe compare several comparable styles at similar price level (Shoe the Bear, Moorby, 1000 mile, Alan Edmonds, merman, loke, …not Thursday this is always compared and they are not similar at all IR all day over that garbage)
Seriously guys who buys a work boot for looks? Leather is Leather minus the proprietary tanning colors. All leather shrinks and no one puts forms in after work. Cap toes without steel toes can become very uncomfortable. Mocs will shrink but you lose less room in the toe box. Your boots are considerably smaller in a few years . Whether it's 80% humidity or desert. But we ruined our feet with modern trends and just poorly fitted junk. I have a stride rite franchise store and I am able to buy whatever I want besides the 80% my contact to buy into sr product. I don't keep much in mens work boots but I am able to order them at the shoe markets in their sizes. The displays are not for sale. I use them for fitting so they can actually try what they are buying. My market respects my efforts to keep their feet from hurting. And I can most request at markets they may want. And I can usually get them to buy boots one or 2 sizes bigger. They never get larger. If it hurts don't wear it. Lmao If you are concerned about slipping around that's going to happen. Don't wear the same boots every day. Change up socks. Your smashing your toes and other parts of your feet that need to function even inside boots. I wear 11. I wear 12 in boots. I work in a founder and a machine shop. On a the floor. Don't wear shanks on the floor they are for ladders and scaffold work . Not enuff flex for the floor. I wear 5 different boots during the week. 3 western cowboy with different shapes but all as low rise as i can. I call them combats but 3 different kinds. I have a med width but I do everything I can to not get my bound up. And no one that wears work boots goes home and put on tennis shoes. I don't wear shoes except for work. And we don't run marathons on the weekends. Half size is not much of change but you should not feel the tips of your boots. I hope not anyway! You fetish with Redwing is weird. I've had a few but they fall apart for me and they didn't honor the warranty. I don't buy boots for the warranty. I don't know anyone that wears even casual boots for that wears boots for work! If it hurts don't wear it!!! Fashion work boots? Gee
I’ve had mine for 10 years and they are basically shagged at this point, but I wore them everyday for motorcycle duty and I wore them hard. It’s amazing that they survived this long. I got Whites MP to replace them though, the IR cap toe is just a little too bulbous for my taste, looking down at them. Great durable, comfortable boot at a great price, just a little too common and rough looking. I want something that looks a little sleeker when I get off the bike.
I have a wide foot and bought a pair of Iron Rangers. As soon as they were delivered, I dropped them off at my local cobbler. I had them stretched out in the mid foot. Picked them up after about a week. Super comfortable and will do the same with any other Red Wing boots that don’t come in wide.
Beckmans Redwings best boot! To many hipster wannabes posing around in the iron rangers! Beckmans leather midsole makes all the difference ! Plus beckman is fully leathered lined inside.
Regarding the break - in. I reckon another reason for the painful process is that I suspect people take the " one size down " as gospel, and wind up getting them too small. I ignored that and simply went with what felt right - my regular size as it turns out. ( here in Ireland shoe sizes are all over the place depending on the manufacture anyway ). Two weeks later and they are very comfortable and they weren't even that painfull from the first day.
I personally can’t get over the look of the bulbous toe cap, I think it makes the boot look ugly. It’s not attractive as the rest of the boot. This of course is my opinion, I wear boots everyday having 3 pairs of ariat boots and 6 pairs of Thursday’s. I like the sleeker look and can dress down or up but I just wear them casually.
Break in...use some leather cream, work the boots and leather in your hands every now and again while watching TV in an evening.. only pop out in them, don't go out-out...no dog walks.. insoles are magic, buy some, makes a boot fit snug, and more squish available..
This boot is very well made! But I don't like that clown boot tip. I still preferring Thursday boots Capitan ! That I have two , It is more classical ,elegant and cheap !
Anyone have a pair that are size 12? I’m worried that with the extra leather cap toe they may look more like clown shoes? I find the bigger the boot the more clown-like.
I have had my Iron Rangers for 10 years now and they are still great! I haven't needed them to be resoled but I am not wearing them everyday. I am picking up the Classic Moc Alpine in a couple of days. Just not excited about the break in... but it will be worth it!
wore them for 4 weeks now no problem walking but I'm having a problem with my heel from driving my car the heel of the right shoe is even getting wider which is making it uncomfortable to walk in even my foot is getting a bulge on it which is not a blister. getting really close to just leaving them in the closet and just accepting a 370 euro loss.
Get a shoe dryer for about 25 dollars, dry them every time you take them off. It stopped the deterioration on my IRs. I wear wool socks since I have sweaty feet.
I tried on a pair and while they felt fine, I just wasn't in love with that sole. After doing some research I decided to wait until Truman get their brown double shot cap toe back in stock. I considered Nicks but already have a pair in black and don't really want to wait six to eight months.
The left boot I own has a little raised section in the stitched heel area. And that boot hurts, still not nice after 3 years and just puts me off even trying to break those bastard's in.
I can't believe those Iron Rangers soles didn't need to be re-soled after 3 years, my Iron Rangers soles and heels only lasted one year, and I'm only 11st 6lb.
I will spend 300 + for Shama Sandals casual zero rise boots. I won't spend 300 for work boots. Cork is not flexible why would you put it somewhere that it will fail? Designed obsolescence. It doesn't make sense. You called natural process? Ugh if it hurts your feet stop wearing them. Give them away. Donate them. They may fit someone else just fine. You will know in a matter days. If you think you don't have money for several pairs of work boots. Consider it. Because they will fuck up your feet and back for life.
Fellas, it's 2024. Get an insole gosh darnnit and maybe upsize .5 in doing so. OBVIOUSLY, so much more comfortable. I have a 5 year old pair, and a 3 year old pair. I am not a style guy, but most shoes you rush out to buy are cheap garbage and I was so sick of shoes falling apart after 9 months, having them look shabby and doing it all over again. These are REAL shoes/boots, and they are the best shoes I've ever owned. I'm from just down the river, so Red Wing and IRs all feels right. If you are in the Midwest these are 3 season boots, but not snow boots although they can handle some snow and slush. Get the heel replaced as it wears down to get more life out of the sole. I am about due to get my older pair re-soled, and I will have a midsole added when that happens. My work is casual, and it makes sense and you also look better socially, casually amongst your friends wearing Skechers. My wife doesn't love them, but she doesn't like anything. I may buy 2 more pair next deal I see, and I'm then done buying boots for life.
I love my 8084s. Going on 4 years. I wear them everyday in the winter and I had to get them resoled last year. I went with the Vibram Christy wedge sole and they're fantastic. Only problem is when they shape that Vibram rubber it frickin' stinks and takes forever to go away.
Watched reviews like yours to decide on IRs. Grabbed Amber and Black. Black pair is phenomenal. Amber has quality issues- stitching around toe box into the sole. Looks like the stitches about to fall off the edge. Super let down about the amber. Too lazy to return then so just going to wear the shit out of them.
I followed Red Wing's recommendation of the smaller size, but that choice was painful for me. I tried small size over 6 months, but my leather couldn't beat cow leather. I recommend follow the iron ranger size chart. It was my converse size. True size or half size larger, it will be comfortable with soft insole from first day. It can control large size, but if it is small, there is no answer.
So between the Iron Ranger & the Grant Stone Diesel, which was the tougher break in? Or would you say they're about the same? I found a few on the site small enough for my little feet. I don't have Diesels but I do have a pair of Grant Stone boots made on the Leo Last so I'm assuming the Diesel will fit my feet the same.
Quality, cushy socks make ALL the difference with "break in". I never understood the meme of iron ranger break in, because I never really had to deal with it.
I already had Wyatt and Dad subscribed. I have a pair of Iron Rangers that need repair. Also, I have 4 pair of Redwings. Two have not even been broken in. I was on my third pair of Redwings when I got the Iron Rangers.
I own a lot of boots including Red Wings. Truman Boots are so much better than the Iron Ranger and Blacksmith for just a little more money. Red Wing had the market for a long time in this general price range. Now, there are better boot options. Have kept some RW heritage boots but donated a lot of other ones. Too many boots......lol
Great update. Thanks. 1, kilties can help polong tounge life which is a common failure point. 2, Thursday's are Brooklyn hipster boos, 3, pain is weakness LEAVING you body.
Charcoal Rough and Tough is firm stuff! Copper is a lot looser fyi, it tends to expand to fit and feels more free which could be good or bad. Harness generally molds to your feet better but shows age faster.
For tough wear I use Pecard on my boots. Don't glob it on though. It will darken them, but I'm talking for work. Lasts a while too, especially in water.
Any recommendations on a boot that I can wear on my motorbike that looks good? A bit of protection would be ideal too 😄 I love a leather boot that I can polish and clean easily
Love your videos. Just ordered some IR in Copper. I just dig the look. My last pair was pre heritage boots I got 40 years ago. They fit my feet perfectly back then but 40 pounds heavier not so much, Needless to say they were shot and have been in the closet for ages. Can't wait to get them. I will check out how to care for them.
My feet are tiny & I can't find any red wings that fit them. Grant stone was my 1st shoe with that experience of believing I had a rough break in with the leather and no foam under my feet.
I’ve had quite a number of iron rangers, I do miss the original versions with the smooth cork outsoles but the mini lug is grippier, I’ve never had any issues with any of them, the first pair I got were the black 8114’s, toughest to break in, still have them today! IR is a great boot.
I have had several of these, currently have two IRs and two Blacksmiths. They fit identically (same last), but I feel like I can wear the Blacksmiths with a blazer or suit more easily. No issues with durability, and the insoles are all very customized to my feet from compression. I resolved one of the Iron Rangers with the black traction Tred bottom and they are like pillows. For some reason, that resoled shoe has extra deep impressions on the insole, so perhaps when Red Wing re-soled them, they added extra cork. At any rate, they have all been bulletproof…
Thanks to your videos (and others) on the Iron Ranger I ordered my first pair in 8111 several weeks ago. Week 1, I brought an extra pair of shoes to work as a backup. Although my feet were slightly sorer, didn't use the backups. Week 2, a little better. I pretty much thought I was in the clear. This wasn't bad at all. Then week 3 which was this week. The vamp on the left has started digging into the top of my foot, leaving a blister. WTH! I soaked the vamp with conditioner last night and today I can't say it was much better. I wear a 10D in almost everything and went with a 9.5D. The fit seemed good, no heel slippage and a slight snugness in the instep. I did have a similar issue with a pair of Wolverine1000 Mile. I noticed right out of the gate pressure on my left instep. I found that the lining leather where the tongue is sewn the vamp had folded over. Swapped them out and no more issue. They were also 9.5D. Other than that, I love my Iron Ranger. I just hope this issue will resolve itself with mileage.
I have had a pair (copper) for 3 maybe years now. Love these boots I have had them repaired 2 times one was just a new thread on the outsole the other was a full resole I use them as my every day work boot. When i bought them i was a semi truck driver. I am now a mechanic for the last 2.5 years. They hold up to the abuse well. They are comfortable break in was less than a week. I never had the foot pain most people complain about but I also never wear really soft shoes. My biggest complaint is my casual shoe is a adidas samba in a 10.5. I didn't have access to a place to try on these boots. I resorted to ordering a pair then shipping them back to get the correct size. This was not fun they are not cheap and i had to do this 4 times. They run huge... I am now in an 8.5D wish I had gotten the 8D. It seems crazy to me in most shoes I'm a 10-11 but these were way off. Besides the sizing issue these have been great. i might get another pair at some point, when my current pair are beyond repair.
I went through the same process. I wear a 13 sneaker, ordered my red wings in a 12, was swimming in them sill. Returned them and ordered 11 and they were crushing my toes. Third time was a charm with the 11.5
