Last season, it finally happened, the faithful Danner Pronghorns of many years gave up the ghost. They helped me conquer many trails, and probably some that were a little rougher than I could handle. I bought the first pair in 2005, and replaced them once.
I have never had a pair of boots fit as well as this pair has, and it was going to take some work to find something that fit the bill.
In the years since this model of boot was first purchased some changes had been made even though the Pronghorn classic is still around. I didn't feel like the changes that had been made to the boot were what was going to do the trick anymore. When fitting them the heel cup wasn't comfortable, and the width just wasn't what I was looking for.
To be 100% honest the largest constraint on which boots I would buy was what my budget would allow. Under $300.00 was my starting point and I soon discovered that the chosen dollar figure would provide a limited but solid choice for the money.
A friend of mine had been using Meindl boots from Cabelas for a while and the recommend was positive. The Perfekt model ended up in the shopping cart and on the way to my door.
Whenever new gear arrives on the front porch my behavior tends to change and its very similar to a small child at Christmas. This piece of gear was no different and they were soon out of the box under thorough examination.
Please bear in mind as you read that the pictures of the boots are now from a season of use. If you are wanting an indicator of how well the boots held up, this is your thread. These boots likely saw close to 100 miles this past hunting seasons in terrain from rock-slides to open fields and everything in between.
First impressions were good, and the initial walk around the neighborhood was also a strong indicator that a replacement had been found. The comfort level I desired was there, as well as a proper fit.
One thing that must be noted is that I am a size 13 in boots, and at this size the particular model I purchased comes with a different sole and rand. My model actually has a 1 inch rubber rand to protect the sides of the boot. For reference the boots are probably very similar to what Meindl Canada models look like. Personally I felt like it was an improvement as it would protect the toe and heel areas from my clutsy nature. I tend to trip over my own feet on a fairly regular basis.
Next, up was the waterproofing process. Olbenauf's was shown in the video on the Cabelas website and had made its way home from the local work wear store. Per the prescription from the website the wax was applied and it aided in the break in process. The wax and boots performed very well in wet to very wet conditions. On their first outing rain poured for the last 2.5 hours of the trip and the boots never leaked. When I woke that first morning the water that had been on the outside of the toes had frozen, but the interior was still dry other than normal foot sweat.
There are two complaints that can be made in my mind for the first piece of a running review: the lace loops and not enough give in a couple of spots on the foot-bed.
First the loops. My buddy bought Kenetrek boots this year and a very cool feature is their flip up style lace loops. This style allows wax to get underneath and all around the areas on the leather that has been punctured essentially breathing life into them for a longer period of time. Meindl does not employ this type of system but would be wise to do so. If enough wax does not make around this area on the leather, eventually I could be pulling my laces tight and the leather could break. Keep in mind that it would require a lot of hard use, and very little conditioning for this to happen.
You can see from the picture that I have purposely rubbed plenty of wax around the loops to make sure that the necessary oils make it into the proper areas.
The Perfekt foot-beds are often bragged about, but my experience with them held a little to be desired. I am going to upgrade before this fall to some Lathrop and Sons custom foot-beds to up the the comfort level. The Perfekt's beds weren't bad by any stretch, but with the way God designed me there tends to be a hard spot on the balls of feet.
After one full season in these boots and number two well on it's way expect more updates. Hope you enjoyed the read.
To be 100% honest the largest constraint on which boots I would buy was what my budget would allow. Under $300.00 was my starting point and I soon discovered that the chosen dollar figure would provide a limited but solid choice for the money.
A friend of mine had been using Meindl boots from Cabelas for a while and the recommend was positive. The Perfekt model ended up in the shopping cart and on the way to my door.
Whenever new gear arrives on the front porch my behavior tends to change and its very similar to a small child at Christmas. This piece of gear was no different and they were soon out of the box under thorough examination.
Please bear in mind as you read that the pictures of the boots are now from a season of use. If you are wanting an indicator of how well the boots held up, this is your thread. These boots likely saw close to 100 miles this past hunting seasons in terrain from rock-slides to open fields and everything in between.
First impressions were good, and the initial walk around the neighborhood was also a strong indicator that a replacement had been found. The comfort level I desired was there, as well as a proper fit.
One thing that must be noted is that I am a size 13 in boots, and at this size the particular model I purchased comes with a different sole and rand. My model actually has a 1 inch rubber rand to protect the sides of the boot. For reference the boots are probably very similar to what Meindl Canada models look like. Personally I felt like it was an improvement as it would protect the toe and heel areas from my clutsy nature. I tend to trip over my own feet on a fairly regular basis.
Next, up was the waterproofing process. Olbenauf's was shown in the video on the Cabelas website and had made its way home from the local work wear store. Per the prescription from the website the wax was applied and it aided in the break in process. The wax and boots performed very well in wet to very wet conditions. On their first outing rain poured for the last 2.5 hours of the trip and the boots never leaked. When I woke that first morning the water that had been on the outside of the toes had frozen, but the interior was still dry other than normal foot sweat.
There are two complaints that can be made in my mind for the first piece of a running review: the lace loops and not enough give in a couple of spots on the foot-bed.
First the loops. My buddy bought Kenetrek boots this year and a very cool feature is their flip up style lace loops. This style allows wax to get underneath and all around the areas on the leather that has been punctured essentially breathing life into them for a longer period of time. Meindl does not employ this type of system but would be wise to do so. If enough wax does not make around this area on the leather, eventually I could be pulling my laces tight and the leather could break. Keep in mind that it would require a lot of hard use, and very little conditioning for this to happen.
You can see from the picture that I have purposely rubbed plenty of wax around the loops to make sure that the necessary oils make it into the proper areas.
The Perfekt foot-beds are often bragged about, but my experience with them held a little to be desired. I am going to upgrade before this fall to some Lathrop and Sons custom foot-beds to up the the comfort level. The Perfekt's beds weren't bad by any stretch, but with the way God designed me there tends to be a hard spot on the balls of feet.
After one full season in these boots and number two well on it's way expect more updates. Hope you enjoyed the read.
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