Kennetrek, Schnees, Crispi boots

Have had Kenetreks, Schnees and Danners. Trying Lowas Tibet GTX this time. Campsaver is having a huge sale for Father's Day. Just got a pair of Lowa's from them and can't wait to try them. Good Luck

I have these. Bought last fall. Leaked after a month. When i say leaked, i mean freaking soaked after about 5 hours in 3" wet snow. Like wring your socks out soaked
 
I think it all comes down to fit for your foot. The heel cup design of the kenetreks works very comfortably with my foot so I am willing to overlook some other minor things I don't like about them.
 
I personally haven't tried any of the boots you listed. For the last 20 plus years I've worn Meindl's. I hunt in a Wilderness area in West. CO & it is pretty rugged. They're the best boots I've ever worn, but like I said, I've never tried the ones you listed. I have heard & read reviews that some of the newer Meindl's have lost quality.
 
I bought a pair of Hanwags last year. I thought they were prefect to replace my kennetreks. After about 50 miles they became less stiff. Still a great boot and I'll use them in colder weather since they are insulated. Just not quite as stiff and a bit bulkier than the kennetreks.
 
I wore the Cabelas Meindels for 5 seasons. We do 2-4 mountain elk hunts a year. I am not a professional guide, however, we do a lot of mountain hunting. Add the scouting and summer hiking - lots of miles on a pair. They held up well for 5 seasons. They were good boots.
I went to Hard Scrabble hiker Kemetrek when the Meindels broke down simply because I am continually looking for something better. I've had the Kenetreks 3 seasons and used them on more hunts and hikes than the Meindels. I have bad feet, I'm 60 years old, and not a little guy. In the Kenetreks I can go all day, so I worked outside all spring in them. They are nearly as good as new and I am hard on equipment.
I tried the desert guide last year thinking the lack of waterproof lining would be cooler and my feet not be wet at the end of the day - they hurt my feet so bad I couldn't wear them. Yes I did break them in and wore them for months because I'm hard headed and expected them so soften up.
Kenetreks are hard to break in and I must wear the wide - Desert guide don't come in wide.....and my feet are really damp almost wet at the end of the day. Kenetreks for me!
 
I love my Limmers. The only place that sells them in the US is in New Hampshire but you can get them by mail order on the internet. I used to be on a mountain search and rescue team and we spent all our time in the toughest areas of the mountains with packs that averaged 80 to 100 pounds. Tried most of the good hunting boots but always went back to the Limmers. They're heavy but if you wear them every day like I do you don't notice. I've never gotten a blister from a new pair even with a heavy pack on a long mountain hike. It does take about six months to really get them broken in right though. They run about $400 but the upside is that I've never had a pair that didn't last at least ten years. One pair finally fell apart after 25 years. Now that I'm in my mid sixties I really appreciate the support. They have two versions. One is off the shelf, which work great for me. You have to send them tracings of your foot with and without socks. The custom version is more expensive but you actually have to get a cast made of your feet so they can make them to fit your feet exactly. These boots are geared to people that climb big mountains like Everest so the climbing community knows about them. They don't advertise to the hunting community but they're great for hunters. Even the cost of the custom ones aren't bad when you figure they'll last 10 or 15 years. I have a buddy that's climbed Everest three times and he swears by his Limmers. He has the custom model though. I'm too cheap to pay that much when the off the shelf model fits me so well. They also encourage you to try them and send them back if they're not a perfect fit. Great company and wonderful service!
 
Reason I ask the question is I have the kennetrek mountain extreme ni. Best boot I have ever worn. I want to replace them with something else because they leak. They have been replaced 3 times and repaired once. Every second season my feet get wet. I'm not ok with this. I am boot poor trying to find another boot as good. Making a trip to Bozeman next weekend to visit Schnees and Kennetrek.

Want to try the Crispi Briksdal SF GTX but have not found a pair to try on.

Boots do wear out. Reguardless of how good they are. If you walk alot your going to wear boots out.
Most of a leather boot leaking problem is due to a lack of boot oil or grease.
 
I have a pair of the USA made Danner East Ridge's that I'm really liking a lot right now. I've got a full hunting season and have started my shed season in them and they have been as good as anything I've used in the past.

I've also owned nearly every Meindl made, and tons of other brands........but so far these new Danner's have been fantastic and I plan on using them for quite some time. They are sew down construction as well so once I really wear them out I can send them back to be rebuilt.
 
I wanted to use kenetrek as I had heard so many good things about them but they just didn't fit my feet well. After trying on as many pair of boots as possible I ended up with asolos and have really liked them. Fit is by far the most important deciding factor in my opinion.
 
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I have a pair of the USA made Danner East Ridge's that I'm really liking a lot right now. I've got a full hunting season and have started my shed season in them and they have been as good as anything I've used in the past.

I've also owned nearly every Meindl made, and tons of other brands........but so far these new Danner's have been fantastic and I plan on using them for quite some time. They are sew down construction as well so once I really wear them out I can send them back to be rebuilt.

I've been looking hard at the Danner Vicious, since they are steel toe my employer will pay for them...
 
Two pair of Crisipis for me. Best boots I've ever owned. I put Timberland insoles in them and use Granger boot wax since its approved for Gore Tex liners. They don't get exposed to the sun when not being worn, nor do I get them near any heat sources. Great boots...
 
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