Jim Green African Ranger Barefoot Boot

Fudge Crazy Horse
75% complete
Willow
Worn about 2 years
Open Thunderdome 2023-2024
Photos
Reviews

Great boot at a great value crafted by great people in a great company with great customer service.

The worst part of break-in for the Barefoot African Rangers would have to be on my instep for the first 2 weeks, the pain was unbearable if I laced even slightly too tight. My guess for this pain would be the unique eyelet pattern piece and gusseted tongue not being formed to my foot and laces, causing a high pressure point. It's an all-leather, barefoot, resoleable footwear and there's nothing else like it on the market being made at this scale or cost. "You can get it fast, cheap, or good, but you can only pick two," is something which is nigh universal except when it comes to Jim Green, in which case you get all three.
Read the full review
over 1 year ago
Specs

Maker

Jim Green Footwear

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Model

African Ranger Barefoot Boot

Leather

Fudge Crazy HorseMade for Jim Green

Last

Zero Drop Last

US Men's Brannock: L 9D, R 8.5E

Zero Drop Last: 9.5

Sole

Anvil SoleMade for Jim Green

Purchased from

Jim Green Footwear

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Order info

Availability: Stock Model

More about this item

Well, I got these a full size larger than I should have by accident in the first batch of orders sent but decided to suck it up in order to compete in the dome! A pair of the 15oz insoles from Dale's Leatherworks did just the trick in making these boots wearable (thanks, Dale). I have a really wide toe splay, so even with these being a full size larger my toes would still need to splay out at the end of the day haha.
Q&A

Why did you choose this item?

Availability: Stock Model
Style
Outdoor Activities
Other

It seemed really cool, the concept that is, and I had never owned a barefoot shoe/boot before so I thought I'd give it a try!

How did you determine your size?

Online Guide
Brannock Measurements

Jim Green has a size guide for all their footwear on the site, and it corresponds to what last the footwear uses.

What was the ordering process?

Purchased from Jim Green Footwear
Online Store
Customer Service

It was interesting since when the Barefoot African Ranger was released, the site had crashed due to traffic haha. When I realised I had gotten 1.5 sizes too large, I emailed asking for a size change and it then became just 1 size too large which was at least wearable.

Awards
Open Thunderdome Finisher2023-2024 Stitchdown Patina Thunderdome Open Edition
  • Journeyman ScholarAwarded for sharing knowledge about the item
  • Aging JourneymanAwarded for documenting this item's aging