Boots recommendations

An instructor on a yacht I was on recently wears sailing crocs with sealskinz long socks. He says that they are warmer than boots and just as dry.
 
I was one of those muttering about Dubarry soles going hard when I left the de humidifier going all last winter. In the spring I bought some new Dubarry's as they have changed the sole material to something more like rubber and less like plastic. So far they are excellent.
 
I have a personal preference for leather boots of the type you can polish as the suede type tend to hold water and feel cold. I find the leather boots much warmer than Wellies.
It is worth checking if the boots have narrow toe sections but a wide fit should take care of that.
 
I have a set of the Quayside Biscay boots and SWMBO has a pair of Orca Bay Storm, both very comfy and dry. SWMBO advises that the Orca boot are quite generous in the calves.
 
I persisted with plastic sailing wellies for many years, but having more recently had some Dubarry leather/Goretex ones I wouldn't willingly go back (except for wading purposes, as mentioned).

I haven't tried other brands so can't compare, but I'm well chuffed with the Dubarrys, which are still fine after several years hard (ab)use.
 
My and my wife's Dubarrys were bought through our sailing club, they used to put together an order once a year and get them straight from the factory, I am not sure if they would do this now but the savings were not far off 50%.
Mind you the guy that managed it needed the patience of Job, coping with whinging buyers who had ordered the wrong size or model.
 
Ladies Dubarrys have extra calf allowances.
I had Gill boots for couple of years- they split and leaked.
However we do shallow wading with our Dubarrys- dinghy landing etc. Perfectly OK so won't be going back to plastic/rubber?
 
Personally I would never buy dubarries again. My boots have fallen apart. If they are boots made prior to 2004 they can replace the soles because they are stitched on. If they are new then the soles can not be fixed at all as they are injection molded. After numerous emails back and forth with dubarry the best they would do was to offer a discount which I turned down as I wouldn't pay for those boots again. Paying £280 sadly does not give you quality.
 
pagoda said:
Ladies Dubarrys have extra calf allowances.
I had Gill boots for couple of years- they split and leaked.
However we do shallow wading with our Dubarrys- dinghy landing etc. Perfectly OK so won't be going back to plastic/rubber?
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I have used Gill tall boots for years, but they leak eventually. I didn' find a comfortable breathable replacement, but while searching I found out the Gill boots have lifetime warranties, so I keep taking them back and getting a replacement pair! No receipt or proof of purchase/date etc needed. Force 4 send them back and I get a new pair within a week.
 
ben99425376 said:
Personally I would never buy dubarries again. My boots have fallen apart. If they are boots made prior to 2004 they can replace the soles because they are stitched on. If they are new then the soles can not be fixed at all as they are injection molded. After numerous emails back and forth with dubarry the best they would do was to offer a discount which I turned down as I wouldn't pay for those boots again. Paying £280 sadly does not give you quality.
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I know good cobblers are like hens teeth, but they are fixable.
 
I ended up with Musto HPX leather from the outlet shop in Gloucester -£120. Happy with the purchase. Plenty big enough in the calf for an ex rugby forward going to seed.
 
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