Boot Question

[WNZer]

I just got some new British Army assault boots and was wondering why stuff has started peeling off of them? They are brand new and its sort of like a plastic "skin" that is peeling off.

[lardbloke]

Hi there my friend,

Are you sure they are new??
Did you purchase them from a army surplus type store??
Is the material shiny and rubbery??
Where is this stuff coming off on the boot??

[WNZer]

Yes, as sure as can be they are new, they dont stink, and the sole is perfect.

Yep, I bought them from a surplus store.

Yes, its kinda rubbery, I cannot commit to shiny though, lol.

Its coming of the leather of the boot, I first suspected it may have been a waterproofing thing, but I cant imagine it would last long and it hasnt.

Thanks for your help fellow Scotsman, I am down in the southern hemisphere, theres quite a few down here, you know.

[lardbloke]

It is possible it could be a rubber compound that some soliders used to spray either onto the toe cap or around the heels of the boot to be used as bulling (polish shiny) the boot for parade purposes. I used to get mine done at the MT painters section and they would spray the toe caps with the compound (perfectly with no bubbles) to save the old polishing game. It should just come off. The boots probably got binned by someone who got caught using this rather dodgy technique.
If after peeling the rubbery /plastic stuff back slightly if has just got the leather underneath then you should be ok, bit if it is part of the boot then there is something wrong.

[Graham_S]

some assault boots (depending on the contract) have a thin plastic layer on them for waterproofing. it shouldn't be a problem if you use plenty of nicwax on them.

[WNZer]

some assault boots (depending on the contract) have a thin plastic layer on them for waterproofing. it shouldn't be a problem if you use plenty of nicwax on them.

I think that sounds about right, its a pain though because it scratches and peels, it makes them look scruffy.

[OhCanada]

Some surplus stores sells gear that's not really surplus, always a caution if it is brand new and the military hasn't discontinured that style or piece of gear.

Our surplus store here had some pretty modern looking boots with all the fancy tags and words. So fancy I thought they were the new Canadian Gor-tex army boots they now use. Well they got ones in now with the boxes and they are made in China.

I find with some boots, even if the tag says leather, they sometimes use plastic "leather" for some parts. For me, a good leather boot should be just that and you put on your own top coat.

This may not apply to your boots but still something to think about when shopping.

[Beakytzw]

M8 don't worry its a protective coating added by the manufacturer, and yes it always peels off after you have worn the boots a few times....sometimes before you even put them on. Just make sure that you use a decent polish on them if you wear them daily polish them daily or the leather will crack. If you only wear them at weekends then polish them every day that you wear them.

In wet weather use plenty of polish or dubbin it helps with the waterproofing. other than that enjoy them. Been using these boots since 95/96 when I was first issued them, they ain't too bad. I would suggest changing the inner sole tho for a decent civilian type, as the Military issue plastic weave inner sole is a killer.

[lostplanet]

yeah i'd go sorbothane footbeds or superfeet of some kind, alt-berg do some good dubbin/polish called leder gris, real good if you aint got to bull them.
make sure you do plenty of mileage before you go out for real, other wise they will rip your feet apart.

http://www.sorbothane.com/sorbothane-insoles.html
www.superfeet.com
youll find these in most decent outdoory shops at varying prices.
www.altberg.co.uk check on postage costs tho they can be a bit steep.

good luck

[addyb]

You won't believe this, but when I was in Cadets, we used to have some NCO's who would cut up black plastic garbage bags in the shape of the toecap, melt them onto the boot with a hair dryer, and polish overtop. Apparantly it worked??

There's a small posibility that's whats on your boots.

[WNZer]

Cheers everyone

Well I peeled it all off the bottom part of one of them then waxed the with my granddads special homemade wax* and polished them, they now look identical so I cant complain about that.


Thinking now, I think it may have started to come off quicker because I did the old meths trick since they were so uncomfterable before I broke them in and I have a wide foot so that had to be done.

I dont actually mind the insole too much, am I the first person to say that ever?, I will admit I was skeptical when I could actually tap on them and they made a sound, LOL