Franks get it done with comfort and durability in the off season.
See specs
Maker
Frank's Boots
Model
Ground Pounder
Leather
Last
HNW Last: 8.5E
Sole
Purchased from
Frank's Boots
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Why did you choose this item?
Picked these up as shoulder season boots so I could rotate my 2-year-old smokejumpers out for a badly needed resole. October through April isn’t what people typically think of as prime fire season but there’s still plenty of need for a solid pair of boots, from thinning projects to prescribed burning to training to playing catch up on a whole summer’s worth of backlogged projects around the house.
Use & wear
They've seen more mud and snow than fire and ash so far, but the Groundpounder has proved a fully capable, comfortable, and durable alternative to the usual high-arched PNW fire boots. They've proven themselves through pile burning, tree planting, road clearing, and all the projects at home that have been neglected over the summer. Another great Spokane boot, and a compelling introduction for me to HNW-style low-arch lasts.
Leather
Seidel oil tan rough out remains the standard to beat for work leather. 6 months of wear barely seem to effect it (perhaps not actually the best pic for the dome!), but especially in combination with the low-arched HNW last has surprisingly easy break in. I have plenty of fantasies of trying other, maybe flashier leathers in a pair of work boots at some point, but humble as it is it's hard to let go of oil tan when it has the proven performance needed for fire boots. And i still think it looks pretty good, myself.
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