I work from home most days and wore these nearly every day. I was not afraid to use them as “work boots” to do lawn work or to do a little work on a house I’m renovating in my spare time. They got pretty dirty at times working on that old house because I had to do work in the crawl space. I thought that I’d wear them often to shovel snow but I only had to shovel a couple of times in our milder-than-usual winter. They were easy to clean up to wear to other events.
I have an older pair made of natural CXL that darkened significantly with use and developed a nice patina. These new Freeport boots were made with a waterproof version of CXL. It seems that they have a light coating of some sort of waterproof finish (acrylic), which I discovered when cleaning a spill off of them after wearing them for 2+ months. I believe that I removed some of that waterproof finish (and some patina) when I cleaned them up after a spill. I do not believe that this waterproof CXL patinas or darkens as quickly as “regular” CXL. The leather has held up extremely well though. I cannot believe how well this leather has responded to various scrapes. The leather easily bounces back from scrapes that I initially thought would look terrible. When these got dirty I would usually just brush them off. If they got really dirty I wiped them down with a wet cloth first. I used conditioner only occasionally.
I have other pairs made on the 1757 last, so I knew that these should fit me comfortably. This particular pair was slightly shorter than some of those other boots which made the left boot a little tight in the toe box. My left foot is slightly longer, so this was not completely unexpected. The boots slightly stretched over time, improving the fit.
The design of the Freeport boot is one of my favorites. The stitching looked great out of the box and held up well. I had no problems with the construction and they have been pretty durable, especially given some of the work I wore them for. These boots have a waterproof membrane between the liner and the outer leather. I did not experience extremely wet conditions that tested this. I have no complaints with breath ability even with that membrane.
The lug sole felt a little softer and slightly more comfortable than the Itside Commando lug sole initially. The lugs have great traction. The trade-off seems to be reduced durability as I feel the sole has worn down a little more quickly. I don’t know that I would choose this lug sole again for a boot that I sometimes wear for yard work. The lugs seem to really hold onto mud and gravel. And I’m convinced that the lugs have some special ability to attract dog poop.
I recommend Allen Edmonds boots, especially because they make boots in a variety of sizes and widths and can deliver a boot quickly. They are a good value for the quality and fit. They are an even better value during a sale. I like this pair of Freeport boots a lot. Even though the Thunderdome contest has ended, I anticipate continuing to wear these a lot.