Safety attire in the smithy!

[Alan DuBoff]

no need for input here.

[Ed Thomas]

Alan: I used to use steel-toed boots but haven't for several years. I think they give a false sense of security. Though I'm sure they are safer, they are also less comfortable. I try to keep my feet out of the way of falling anvils and vises.

I was determined to buy American made boots most recently, which meant Red Wings. You can find which stores in your area sell them online (search Red Wing). When I finally found some that fit in a hardware store, I was rather disappointed in the feel. I'm sure they will break in eventually, but my feet got tired and sore enough that I went shopping again. Figuring that I'd done my duty to the USA, I didn't shop specifically for US made boots.

However, the boots I settled on as the most comfortable BY FAR, were Wolverines. They fit immediately like fine gloves. The particular ones I got were Durashocks style # 03126. To top it off as a success... they say: "Assembled in the US" (whatever that means).

Having paid so much for boots, I intend to get my money's worth out of them. So I alternate between the Wolverines and the Red Wings. That way the Red Wings don't get a chance to turn me into a cripple as fast. Besides, shoes last a lot longer if you don't wear the same ones every day for some reason. When I buy again, I'll be looking for boots similar to these Wolverines.

As you mentioned, I was also looking for the hooks on the top, but nothing I liked had that. However, they all mostly have hooks clear to the top and end in single eyelets. I simply lace up with hooks only and skip using that top eyelet. Works fine. I think both my pair are considered 8" boots, which I prefer.

When you stand in a shop all day long, shoes get very important. It isn't just the safety from slipping or dropping things. If the shoes make you tired and crabby, you will yell at customers and throw things through your windows. So now you lost valuable business AND have cold air blowing through your shop while your feet hurt. Then you'll stomp up to the house and yell at the wife and kick the dog. They will both leave. Now your feet still hurt AND you're lonely. All because you were too cheap to buy a good pair of boots. Don't let this happen to you.

[the_sandy_creek_forge]

Hi Alan,
I have a pair of wolverine 10" steel toes that I have had for going on 6 years. Granted, I have never worn them much on concrete, because the majority of my shop floor is still dirt. When I bought them I was still doing summer landscaping, and while they weren't the most flexible for climbing up and down on dirt and mulch piles, they work great on a flat floor/surface. I always look for boots with the speed hooks on top.

I have always wanted a pair of slip on, "trucker style" steel toes, but unfortunately my left foot is size 10 1/2 and my right foot is size 11, and custom fitted boots are expensive as all get out.

I would definitely recommend the steel toes. The first time you drop a 50 pound or greater weight on your foot, you will appreciate the steel toes.

I would also recommend that if you do work on a concrete floor a set of the newer gel insoles. I have a pair in my boots and they help on the dirt floor, so I am assuming they would really help on a concrete floor.

As far as the denim goes, just make sure that whatever you're wearing isn't ripped and or frayed anywhere. Those fuzzy frayed ends have a habit of catching on fire when you're welding (*sniff* *sniff* hm....something smells like it's burning....AHHHH * sound of whole leg going in the slack tub*)

[Swamp Fox]

Anyone have any experience with the matatarsil plates, the steel plate between the steel toe and leg protecting the bones of the foot?

[Nick]

I wear my Merrel hiking boots in the forge, the same shoes I wear almost everywhere else. They provide the support needed for long periods of standing which I haven't found in other styles of footwear.

[Alan DuBoff]

no need for input here.

[oakwoodforge]

I quit wearing Steel toes after almost loosing a few toes to frostbite. Having weird shaped feet ( a Narrow heel and Extra wide across the toes) I've always had trouble finding good boots that fit well, in the shop I wear either my Doc Martins or my Rocky jump boots, either way they are all leather on the outside with tough comfortable soles.
The Doc Martins are really nice and comfortable in the summer, they have the most comfortable boot sole of any boot I've tried and are really nice if you are standing on concrete all day long. the Rockys have a little insulation 200g or so, they help keep me warm in the winter an don't weigh much more than a pair of sneakers. Heavy boots = more leg/ lower back fatigue/ Pain in my experience.
I don't allow open toes or shoes made from nylon or plastic in my shop, Flamable foot wear is a BIG No-No. Heck Synthetic clothing of any sort ( Nylon , Polarflece, polyester, spandex ...) is a No no in my shop, NOT EVEN A HAT MADE FROM SYNTHETIC MATERIALS, Thats just asking to spend the next 9 months of your life in a burn unit getting skin grafts. Cotton, wool, linen and leather are pretty safe for smithing clothing, they will burn and smolder a bit with extended contact with hot objects or open flames. But they don't flash ignite and melt onto your skin like synthetic clothing will when it catches fire.
Something else to keep in mind with steel toe boots, Ed Thomas said it well, "they do give a false sense of security", they protect you from a dropped 6 lb sledge hammer, but a 300 lb anvil falling on a steel toe boot just means the EMT's /Doctors have more work to do, they have to cut your toes out of the boot so they can re-attach them... NOT Pretty

Dont Get me wrong, I'm not saying steel toes are bad or Un-safe but just pay attention to your feet and what is going on around you. For gawd sakes man attach the anvil to the stump !!!

Just my $0.02


Jens


PS . Both Rocky Boots and Doc Martins are available with Steel toes ... If ya have to have 'em

[mcraigl]

I used to wear redwings when working in a situation that required full days of standing on concrete. They had a crepe (sp?) sole that was the best thing I've ever found for comfort in that situation. OSHA and the union required steel toes and they were the only ones that I could stand for more than a few days. Ed, unless Red Wing has made a 180 degree change in philosophy I think you should've taken your boots back and asked for a different pair? If I recall correctly that was one of the reasons I tried them, they had a comfort guarantee, and I made them honor it on the first pair. They also take more (or at least use to) measurements of your foot than I ever thought possible to get you into a pair of boots that fit correctly. Having said all that, one bother in law swears by the Wolverines durashox, and another swears by the pull-on cowboy boot looking redwings.

[ThomasPowers]

Re Levi 501's: not recommended as the buttons will transmit heat, (cue funny story about a fellow coming in from the cold and standing too close to the wood stove until he started the ZOUCH! dance) Also the gaps will allow for stray weld spatter, wirebrush wires, etc into the "tender zone".

Thomas (no it wasn't me)

[Bart Trickel]

Hey Folks
These are recommendations I received across the street and down the block.

Lehigh safety boots and/or Iron Age.

Both have metatarsal options and real stores to help you fit the shoe to your foot.

Bart