Good place to buy boots?

[Alex562]

Hey guys i live here in the southbay any good place you guys recommend to buy boots what are good boots ? Thanks

 

[EMT2015]

Southbay as in Cali?

 

[Alex562]

Yea LA area

 

[EMT2015]

Ah, cool!! Check and see if theres a RedBack store or dealer. Maybe @Jim37F can help you in that department.

 

[Seirende]

I got mine at Wal-mart for $40. Six months of wear and they've held up ok.

 

[Jim37F]

lol @EMT2015 I work in the Southbay, live in the SGV but close enough to answer

When I first got my EMT cert back in 2012 and got hired by my first private company, I went to Red Wing Shoes and bought a pair of Worx. http://www.redwing.redwingshoestore.com/product/05266 Great pair of boots, comfy, safety toe, black polishable leather so they satisfy most employer requirements. Take a shine and protect your feet. Coming from the Army where zippered boots are expressly forbidden, the side zippers on these are friggin awesome. When I got my FD AO job a year and a half or so ago, they gave us vouchers for the Haix Airpower R1 firefighter boots. http://www.haixusa.com/ems-und-station/4/airpower-r1 Those have pretty much ALL the bells and whistles you'd ever want (safety toe, safety shank, waterproof, bloodproof, better ankle support, etc etc).

When I started to wear the Haix's as my uniform boot, I also started wearing my Worx as day to day wear footwear, they were (and still are) comfy enough to do that. Plus if you keep them relatively clean and can shine them up, they go well with a suit IME without having to shell out for dress shoes if you're on a budget lol.

So IMO if you have a couple hundred dollars just burning a hole in your pocket (what with the lavish EMT salaries in the Southbay ) go for the primo Haix's, but if you're like everyone else, the Red Wing Worx are a great first boot, especially for most of the local private companies. (There are plenty of other decent boots out there, but since I've never owned/worn any of those I can't give you any opinions on those)

 

[Alex562]

lol @EMT2015 I work in the Southbay, live in the SGV but close enough to answer

When I first got my EMT cert back in 2012 and got hired by my first private company, I went to Red Wing Shoes and bought a pair of Worx. http://www.redwing.redwingshoestore.com/product/05266 Great pair of boots, comfy, safety toe, black polishable leather so they satisfy most employer requirements. Take a shine and protect your feet. Coming from the Army where zippered boots are expressly forbidden, the side zippers on these are friggin awesome. When I got my FD AO job a year and a half or so ago, they gave us vouchers for the Haix Airpower R1 firefighter boots. http://www.haixusa.com/ems-und-station/4/airpower-r1 Those have pretty much ALL the bells and whistles you'd ever want (safety toe, safety shank, waterproof, bloodproof, better ankle support, etc etc).

When I started to wear the Haix's as my uniform boot, I also started wearing my Worx as day to day wear footwear, they were (and still are) comfy enough to do that. Plus if you keep them relatively clean and can shine them up, they go well with a suit IME without having to shell out for dress shoes if you're on a budget lol.

So IMO if you have a couple hundred dollars just burning a hole in your pocket (what with the lavish EMT salaries in the Southbay ) go for the primo Haix's, but if you're like everyone else, the Red Wing Worx are a great first boot, especially for most of the local private companies. (There are plenty of other decent boots out there, but since I've never owned/worn any of those I can't give you any opinions on those)

Thanks for the info

 

[Qulevrius]

I'm wearing 5.11 Taclite 6's, I believe they were ~$60. They're still like new after nearly a year (I do polish them though, old habits die hard - helps the boots to live longer) and you can find good deals online since 5.11's size chart is spot on.

 

[TransportJockey]

If you're an NAEMT member you also can get a pretty nice discount on 5.11 gear through their site

 

[CANMAN]

www.thefirestore.com end thread...

 

[CALEMT]

www.govx.com now end the thread...

 

[TransportJockey]

Dont forget oakleysi if you're talking discounts

 

[meatanchor]

I've been wearing Wolverines for years. They aren't the highest-end boots, but they are a solid $90-150 choice, and their "Durashok" sole is amazing. They feel like you're wearing tennis shoes. These are the Summer/desert boots I wear for SAR, and I'm often in them for 12+ hours at a stretch on a search.

I'd take a trip over to Doughboy Surplus in Bellflower. They have a huge selection of these and other reputable brands in-store:

https://www.doughboyssurplus.com/


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