I wore them most of the way through secondary school (high school). I never found them that comfortable but they were all the fashion in the early 90s. Even when they eventually moulded you your feet they were still uncomfortable. I then wore them for a few years for work (airport). They had padded ankles and steel toecaps. Not particularly comfortable either. Also, the soles were lethal on wet paving as well. And got worse as the grips wore and the sole material hardened. They lasted well though. I don’t think I would bother buying a pair these days. All the discomfort and less of the quality. Maybe a brown pair sometime. The black ones with yellow stitching carry so many connotations this side of the pond (I’m Irish). People associate them either with skinheads, football hooligans, their father’s work boots or what they wore as a teenager. They weren’t as all pervasive in the States.
@catalyst_99 It wasn’t the sole that was uncomfortable. I don’t mind a hard footbed and the steel toe ones did have a soft insole. The upper was uncomfortable. It never became comfortable for walking in the way that most other boots I’ve owned did. Maybe they were fine for someone walking less but doing 15-20km per day they were just nasty.
The classic and commando PVC outsoles were ANSI rated slip resistant and ASTM rated after 2005. The design hasn't actually changed, but the DM industrial line got an overhaul and they added griptrax inserts to them. Since they only ever mentioned the slip resistance on the DM industrials it's more or less vanished, but the boots remain astoundingly grippy until worn smooth.
@@MaxOverload1 I never tried ones with grip inserts but the original sole were poor in any sort of wet conditions as soon as the original rough finish wore off the grips (a few days) and progressively got worse with wear. Between that, the weight and the discomfort, we hated them. They started supplying better boots shortly after I left.
I’ve switched to Solovair they’re much better than the mie docs, and had no issues with my 4 pairs, their ‘lifestyle’ or ‘premium’ slimmer rubber sole is smarter but the classic soles r a bit more comfy and they can be resoled. Also the greased/gaucho/pebbled leather is lovely quality and ages beautifully. Astronauts, and lifestyle monkey boots are my faves. Their brogues are nice quality too. Loake are now doing Solovair/DM esk rubber soled boots, which I expect are excellent as (mie) loake make some lovely lovely shoes and boots, next level, and there’s Grensons for commando soled boots
I learned today that Doc Martins are no longer for me… I had a pair 20 plus years ago that always squeaked when I walked and wondered if I should give it another shot? Thanks for making this video, saved me some $. I think I’m gonna hold out for the Blacksmith or the Iron Ranger instead.
Definitely save for the Iron Ranger they are literally quadruple or more the quality in all areas and can be resoled for a decade. Mine are incredible.
I think Solovair are really v good for the money (‘lifestyle’ monkey boot have slim soles and lovely leather that are tricker esk, their astronaut boots in greased/gaucho leather is thick and lovely too), you could also consider loakes - they do some excellent smarter styles but also rubber soled like Solovair/DMs, loakes offer excellent traditional boot making, slightly cheaper than grenson but still great
A few years ago DM offered For Life 1460 and 1461 in an unfinished leather with a replacement warranty. I bought 2 pairs of the 1460 in black and oxblood but haven’t had to use the warranty replacement yet.
You can get DMs re-soled,. You just take them to any branch of Timsons! I love my Solovair though. I have over 500 pairs of DMs and other similar boots. Tredair were the best!
Will you consider reviewing the 1461 pascal virginia, please? The leather is so soft with no breaking in, I feel :) thanks for the review and tests. This video is awesome
Walk walk walk walk! Other people will go on their tip toes a lot to bend them, or heat them up then bend them, etc. There are a ton of different ways! I just plan on walking until my feet fall off though
great vid -- heres what dr marten should do to survive as a brand a) all 1460s get a fiberglass shank b) go ahead and keep welting to the mold midsole if you want, but use a greater density rubber on the bottom outsole mold. Shit is as firm as chewing gum. c) wider sizes and half sizes - i cannot understand how this isn't a thing d) add something to the midsole. Foam - leather. They will probably go with foam because theyre cheap as hell at the end of the day -- its sad this brand is associated with punk/hardcore history because its really - truly shit. They will always look pretty cool, but for about $40 more you can get thursdays (mexican made, resolable, much higher quality construction). Or you can get Redwing Supersoles (much more durable that any of these brands and american made) for the $200-250 range. Otherwise good riddance to this shit brand
The Solovair greasy leather is a full grain leather, and is much better quality than the smooth leather on both the Dr Martens and the Solovair hi-shine. Solovair also offer a re-sole service.
True story. When I was much much younger while at a swimming pool in Michigan, in winter, my locker was broken into and all my clothes stolen, except my DM’s. Not sure what that says about the criminals ethics or possibly their faith in “made in England” goods. Loved those shoes until my feet grew too big for them 😁
Here in the UK DM's are associated with subcultures, and are just the iconic boot for most people of a certain age. The 1460 is named after the date of release, it was first released on the 1/4/1960, the 1461 shoe was released a year later. I have a couple of pair of Made In England DM's one pair are quite new. The other pair are around 15 years old, and when I polish them they look like new (except for the sole which is slanted at the heel due to the way I walk). I have Redwing Iron Rangers and Moc Toes, Timberland and various others. Yet in my opinion no boot looks as good with a pair of jeans as Doc Martens. I wouldn't pay full price though, hunt around. And depending on the model you can usually find them for 25% to 50% off.
I have the Solovair dealer boots in gaucho brown. I wear them everyday, extremely comfortable! Whenever I eventually run the sole down, I'm going to have Solovair resole them with the more combat style sole.
These boots cost as much as my leather jacket. But my jacket is going to last me years and years. It keeps me warm when it's cold. I will never buy these boots at the price they are at. $150 for some boots that might fall apart in 6 months is just too much. I can find better boots for half the price of Docs.
@@schizotypeseraph Daniel Smart. I got it on Amazon. It was a life saver when I was riding in the back of a pickup truck on a cold January day. It's big enough that I can pull inside of it to keep warm. Size 10XL. I can layer up underneath it on really cold days too.
Dr. Martens are my go to boots. I love the round toebox shape and iconic look they have. Also the fact they aren't too fancy means that I don't mind wearing them regardless of the situation. As you mentioned in the video, cracking is my biggest issue with them. It's frustrating because even if I take good care of them and use shoe trees they seem to always crack. I was going to look out for a more natural finish leather for my next pair. I'd love to hear your opinion on Paraboot (think you mentioned them in a video) and Lee, especially their 101 line.
A small point of correction. Dr Martens don’t make Oxford shoes (which have different lace closure) - those are Derby (or Gibson) shoes. I’m from the UK and like many others I used to wear Doc Martens (or DMs as we used to call them), to school and continued to wear them through adulthood. There’s no doubt today’s product is inferior to what they were producing as late as the 1990s. They used to have better leather and included a shank. The current corrected grain smooth leather is not very good. Even the Made in England shoes do not have good leather. It is prone to splitting, even if it has been looked after (a problem with many high shine leathers). I think DMs are overpriced for what they are. Over here it is possible to get DMs resoled if one goes to the right cobbler. However, for many it wouldn’t be cost-effective. Nevertheless, I suspect there might be a business opportunity for a US cobbler to import the DM soles and offer a repair service. Solovair used to offer cheaper work wear DM boots and shoes (they were popular with police officers), that had a cheap plastic lining. Nowadays, perhaps in response to the perceived lesser quality of what used to be R Gibbs DMs, they offer better shoes. However, many of their shoes use high shine leather that is little better than on regular DMs. They do have some with better leather. Here in the UK it is possible to get Solovair shoes with grey stitching instead of the yellow you see on the boots you featured. I do still have some cherry red DM shoes and boots. I paid £50 ($63) for the shoes and £28 ($35) for the boots. At that price they are just about okay, but at full price I don’t think they offer good value at all.
Those Solovair boots are in fact what we called Monkey Boots, originally imported from eastern Europe they first became popular with people who worked on scafolding because of their very soft Rubber soles. These soles were flat so didn't need a shank but,brotherdid they wear out quickly. But ,never mind, they were dirt cheap so you Just bought another pair. They were very confortable and looked great. Strangly enough the leather looked much like stuff used on DM’s. Available in Black or Brown. These were the only cool shoes available in the UK in the 1970’s that were really cheap.
Solovair is true to their origins by remaining proudly English made and the quality of the materials are good for the price point! That being said you can’t compare them to Tricker’s, Church’s, etc since they are a few times the price for plenty of fair reasons.
I actually showed your videos to a woman I was on a first date with because I couldn't describe how I wish I was creative at video shooting/editing/etc; so I said, "Like him!" She loved them!
It's hard for me to go vegan leather when there are so many options for rubber or canvas boots. Sure, they are less do all universal boots like leather and leather adjacent, but I really like having that specialization as well.
Worth noting that shoes with big soles and no shanks can make your arch feel like it's ripping in half all of a sudden and then the pain stays for hours or days. There is no cost too high for proper arch support.
The reason I really like solovair is cuz of their 6 eyelet boot. Since I’m pretty short they look much more proportionate than the 1460s would on me. (Plus better leather and resoluble)
I have 6 pairs of Doc Martens not made in England 1460's. I rotate them and wear them every day 10 to 14 hours a day for work and on my days off. I broke them in juicing them with mink oil for a couple days before wearing them and mink oil them as needed for maintenance and water protection. I keep them very clean brushing the uppers and lowers of any debris after every use. Very little wear on the soles over the last 2 years. Super comfortable. The only other shoes I wear are Birkenstock clogs when at home exclusively. My feet love them both.
Solovair are great to deal with. I've hammered mine and they just keep going. Can be resoled locally or at the factory and they do various finishes. I've had one pair of boots separate but superglued them - still going years later. The rest perfect.
I live in Panama (the country) where humidity is probably the most nightmare-ish thing you can possibly imagine and I have owned and worn both the normal docs and the MIEs ones over the past decade. The problem with the excessive finish of the normal docs (and vegan ones too, since a friend of mine used to have them) is that they are not really resistant to any difficult weather whatsoever: lots of flaking, bubbling and awful resistance. None of my normal docs could survive more than 6 months in this weather, my friend's either. Although, another friend of mine somehow has managed to have theirs with minimal flaking over the past 4 years too, idk how they did that but worth noting. Made in England tho!!!! my 1461s have been the shoes I have worn almost daily since 2015, and the sole is getting kinda stupid rn so I have to buy a new pair since repairs with those are also impossible but considering they have lasted 7 years and the uppers are still fantastic, I consider them my best purchase by a mile. The 1460s MIE I own have seen less wear since i got them in early 2017 but they been with me during the most terrible rain storms that you can imagine the tropic is capable of producing, plus several hikings in very unfortunate territories and they have held up fantastically as well. I usually just clean them, apply the wonder balsam bullshit thingy once a year and the shoes hold up so so good.
The made in england doc marten have much higher quality leather! I intially had a hard time breaking them until visiting the store. They sell heel pads, double layer socks and the best tip of all was to rub them with wonder balsam and a hair dryer. Now the leather is soft like butter. The suede is also a great option for avoiding breaking in the boots. The made in englands also go on sale in the fall/winter.
I've had the 1460 Vintage series, those were some nice boots. I also have/had other England made versions that went through daily hell of outdoor work, and actually held up great.
I have a pair of Solovair Monkey Boots and they look a bit different than yours. My boots came with flat laces, the stitching is grey and the tab is black with "Solovair" in almost a neon green. I bought the from the British Boot Company in Camden Town so I'm 100% sure they're legit.
Any leather flakes overtime. I use good shoecream once a week to prolong their wear. But not instant shine. Only cream you put on dry leather, leave overnight and shine them in the morning. If you wax stitching from time to time it will serve longer. Good luck, thanks a lot for such legend boots.
I’m British. DM’s are horrible…an utter waste of money…please please America do NOT waste your money; buy American. DM’s were great 40 years ago…the leather used today is just cheap and nasty…🇬🇧
I second others with the JLC Reverso admiration. It looks great on you, and I would love to see a review of it! Also would love to hear your thoughts on duoface vs monoface reversos (i.e. if the duoface is a cool complication that adds versatility, or if it goes too much against the original heritage of the reverso and removes the ability for unique customization of the caseback). Are you going to engrave yours, and if so, with what? I also think Doc Martens is at an interesting turning point in their history. They used to represent a pretty niche grunge/punk counter culture and now they are a mainstream icon and very trendy. I kind of wonder how long the hype train will last or if Doc Martens in the 2020s will be a huge fad like Adidas Ultraboost in the mid 2010s.
I am going to engrave mine (going to engrave it with something from Denmark)! I wonder if Docs will ever go back out or if they'll stay a "trendy boot" for a while
Thursday is the best bang for buck in the boot world hands down. Nobody can even compete. Love my Black Diplomat moc’s and Duke chelseas. They keep up with my Iron Rangers shockingly well.
Was going to comment the same thing haha way more interesting to watch than the typical "review" videos where it's just a person sitting at a desk inside
My main issue with docs is the lack of a shank, because I see a lot of people walking around in docs that a completely destroyed arch and the heel is gone which looks horrendous. If the 1460's were around 130 USD and had a shank I would be way more accepting.
I ordered the 1460’s from a black and white catalog with no photo from England in 1988 for 50$. They said it would take 6 weeks. I went back to the shoe repair at 6 weeks to the day (my birthday). The cobbler said they arrived that morning. I couldn’t believe how comfortable they were. They had cork midsoles and glove leather insoles but white floss. I jumped and bounced in them all the way home. Best overall experience in shoes/boots I’ve ever had. Back then there was no heel just a unifies sole and I giant cross stamped into the side of the leather. They molded perfectly to my feet and lasted on and on. They were flawless
Yeah Thursdays are maybe 3x as quality. Real veg tanned leather goodyear welt and midsole, cork filler, 1.6mm full grain chrome tanned upper, 1.2mm glove leather liner, steel shank, vibram soles on some boots, kevlar laces, easily resolable. Its a no-brainer imo. Doc’s are all about fashion. My Diplomats and Dukes are keeping up with my Redwing Iron Rangers suprisingly well!
Docs were definitely better back in the day. At $170, what's $30 more for a pair of Thursday boots? The gap in quality is so immense that, for me, I'd rather wait an extra paycheck or two save up and get something of Thursday quality
First video in real-time. I just discovered your channel 9 days ago. What a journey... probably more so for you as you are living it. I watched it on a 6yr old Macbook. I appreciate your love of Cape Cod and your advice re. Men's fashion. I've made a list of things you recommended. First is that green Noah sweater...I look good in green...and then a pair of white sneakers. Anyway, it's been a pleasure and I wanted to say hello. On topic though... I broke in a pair of Dr. Marten's when I was 23. And while I occasionally flirt with buying them my feet will never forget. Also, this comment feels like too much, and reading it over confirms it.
They are great buying them cheap on Ebay. Even British docs lack tons of quality. Been wearing them for years because I of Ebay. Either the soles disintegrate or the leather crumbles. Great for looks and going out but not work. Better off with old school combat boots of some type. And solovair and docs are basically the same. Fuck the price of solovair.
In my later teens to my early twenties I would wear the same pair of docs every day till they would were out and then I’d replace them with an identical pair. But that was back when they were great. These days though I feel they look and feel like a cartoon of their former selves. Still popular here in the UK but mostly just for women both young and old. I find it slightly upsetting though, cuz when I wore them people would assume you were tough or even a thug. NOW you get the same old ladies who would cross the road to avoid crossing paths with a young man wearing DMs are the ones wearing them (albeit a the cutesy new modern ones) any semblance of Doc Martens being a boot for tough, working class skinheads has been well and truly lost. They just don’t represent what they used to or even evoke a similar vibe, even if you got an old pair in perfect nic, people just don’t look at them the same way because their image has completely changed.
I wish that they weren't so popular because they would still be reasonably priced! Now they are so expensive yet the quality has gone really down hill.
buy my fust pair in the 90is throws had lasted weary long the last 2 pair i got was in 2004 and the last one was in 2008 they broke wery fast and badly and i don t walk that much since i ride motorcycle they reduce the quality a lot after the 2000 they are not iven worth half the price you can find much better boot for 50euro that will last way longer and be more comfortable , if you want to by them for the style better off buy nock off in plastic for 20euro or lather for 50 , at this point you just pay for the brand and pay 100-200 for a pair of boot not iven worth 30 sorry dr but you will never get my money again
Personally I would never really get vegan leather and Doc Martin’s aren’t of the same quality but still a okay boot. Way too overpriced. People are paying for the brand.
These boots were originally marketed to old ladies that liked gardening. Anyone who bought these boots over payed big time to walk around in old lady boots. And they don't even have a steel toe. I also heard from people that bought these boots that the new ones coming out are crap made and fall apart in 3 to 6 months. These boots are worth about $40 tops. They used to be made in UK. The new ones are coming from China.
