[REQUEST] Shoe Recommendation

Pork Chop

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I am searching for my next set of shoes and would like to purchase a higher quality pair, but don't know what to get.

I wear size 13 4E shoes and require a large toe box - with enough room to curl my doors - spacious.

I have been wearing New Balance shoes for years but they do not last long. The ones I wear are light grey, which I love - hate black and white shoes.

What do you recommend?
 
Currently I am wearing tactical boots. https://www.511tactical.com/atac-8-shield-csaastm-boot.html

Mainly I wanted to wear boots again after getting tired of tennis shoes.

Things I like:

Waterproof - A must. Lots of puddles form outside my apartment. Was getting tired of my feet getting wet. Now I can jump into any puddle I want.

Side Zip - I hate tying shoes. Also I need to get better at it. I have to retie these every once in a while. It's great just slipping my foot in and pulling the boot on then zip it up. End of day unzip and pull off.

Safety Toe - Now I feel a little safer moving heavy objects.

Comfortable - When I had my old boots those had to break in and it was unbearable without some Dr Scholls insoles.Now I do have a pair of gel ones in here too but that's just cause I liked them. I wore them a few days before I put them in and they were fine. Also another reason I put them in is my heel seems to destroy insoles. So it's another layer of protection to help prolong the life of the boots.


Things I don't like:

Zipper Opening - To me how wide it opens up when unzipped is barely enough. I have to tug pretty good to get in there. Even just maybe another half inch would make it easier.

Lack of a pull loop - I've only had these maybe 5-6 months but I've destroyed the collars pulling these boots on. So either A) They need to make the opening bigger, or B) Reinforce the collar, or C) Add a damn pull loop.

Would I buy these again? Maybe. Maybe I could get someone to add a pull loop or reinforce the collar. But most likely I will look for a similar boot that's easier to get on. You don't have to have a zipper or even use it if you do of course but I like being able to pop my boots on and off quickly.

I don't think I'm ever going back to tennis shoes. Too flimsy for me.

Anyway that's my thoughts.
 
My current set is a pair of Dickies Work Boots, steel toed. They look like hiking boots, and keep my clumsy feet from getting hurt when I do stupid stuff. As a result, they look like crap because I beat them up. But, they're cheap so I don't care.
 
They're that dangerous, eh?
;)
Yea when you see the price you'll have a heart attack.

I don't think I would ever have a pair of shoes that look like theirs mainly due to price, second due to I don't like the look. If I did I would never wear them to work. Only for special occasions.
 
Being an old preppie New Englander....classic old dock siders for me. Or my old high top Converse Chuck Taylors...although I gotta find another old school sneaker now, for one..these new Converse are made over seas and don't last and got expensive..like 50 bucks now, when I was a kid growing up wearing 'em they were 7 dollar sneakers. And..they're getting too trendy now for kids, so I'm thinking my next classic sneaker..gonna find the old school blue puma suedes.

Back in my middle years when I'd dress up...fancy slacks 'n shirt 'n tie and fancy socks...I'd love the hand made Cole Hahns...some of their rarer model tasseled loafers which were like 180 bucks 15 years ago. Comfy as all heck.

But yeah I'm just casual in jeans all the time now.
 
I wear a 15 or 16 depending on the brand so whatever I can find at the outlets which is usually Nike or New Balance. Half the time I've ordered a shoe online I haven't liked it so if I can't try it on I am not buying it. I like to stick with a cross trainer for comfort. I also second the Redwings, I've had a pair forever now and still as good as the day I bought them.
 
Yea when you see the price you'll have a heart attack.

I don't think I would ever have a pair of shoes that look like theirs mainly due to price, second due to I don't like the look. If I did I would never wear them to work. Only for special occasions.
Well - you get what you pay for. I know an old fellow round here, had a pair made for him as a twenty-first birthday present. Back in 1963. He is still wearing them once or twice a week even now. To be fair - he doesn't really walk that far nowadays...
 
I wear a 10 6E these days (maybe 5E), with a few pair. Surprisingly enough after checking around at some big chain shoe stores (e.g. DSW) because I prefer to try shoes on, the only place locally I had any luck was at Meijer when I wandered into the shoe department while grocery shopping because they had some absurdly good BOGO sale.

The ones I have on right now are brown Nunn Bush, no real toe protection though. For around the house I have some Fila running shoes though they don't match anything I saw on their site and might as well just be slippers - ultralight, slip-on, full mesh top. Both of those are from Meijer along with a pretty cheap set of Dickies work boots that fit surprisingly well. I also have one older pair of black Dexter(?) shoes that are a bit sturdier.

I used to almost exclusively wear New Balance hiking boots, but last time I checked they only had up to 4E and I'm pretty sure that was the size that I'd started to tear apart at the widest spot on my foot.
 
I'm usually rocking a 12 extra wide (2E?) I used to cram my foot into size 10 4E's thinking the width was the only problem.... then I had my foot measured and discovered that I needed to be in 12's... (not bad for a man standing all of 5'8)

I have been wearing sketchers with memory foam. They are about $50 a pair but I tend to get a good 18 months out of them until they get retired to be work / lawn shoes. When new, they feel great.... heading past 12 months, not so great. By 18 months I start to get achey knees and back if I'm on my feet a while. A new pair takes care of that!
 
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