Not much to it really, I saw some pairs in this leather on Frank's IG and had to have a pair
As stated in the review, I was instructed to size half down from my 55 size, but that is NOT a 1:1 sizing comparison in my experience
It's a pleasure calling a Frank's crew to place an order
As a wood flooring contractor, I'm a little hard on boots, but not nearly as tough on them as a lot of other trades on the job site. But outside of that they have been involved in the occasional post hole digging, a little tree work, some mowing (I'm not the biggest fan of green edges) and various other yard work activities. Absolutely no mechanic work though, I hate getting drips of oil on boots I care about
When I first started wearing these the orange hue seemed kind of loud. But after a few weeks they mellowed out to a nice reddish brown. They're quite supportive since Frank's lines all non work leathers. A few months into this I did condition the vamps and counter covers with heated neatsfoot oil, which at first looked like I dyed them dark but they lightened up quite a bit in the following weeks.
I wish I could give an informed answer on this one, but unfortunately I ended up with the wrong size on these. I went into more detail on the last review, but long story short I was told to size half down from my 55 size, but for whatever reason that doesn't work for my feet. My toes bump the front here and there and I never felt the arch at all. I actually tore out the sock liners and built up the arch under them with extra leather just to make them wearable. They did break in and ended up being very comfortable but I should have been more patient and sent in a fit sheet. It's not Frank's's fault, that half size down thing probably works for 99% of feet..
No complaints here, not a stitch out of place with this pair and the finishing was stellar. That's one thing you don't really have to worry about with most of the PNW builders.
I'm a big fan of this outsole. I have the same one on a pair of White's MPs and I like the balance between durability and softness. I also love the look of an uninterrupted leather heel stack so that was icing on the cake.
Overall it was a super positive experience apart from my impatience regarding waiting on a fit sheet, and I paid the price (literally lol). I'm just glad it was good enough to make it the 6 months. Maybe I'll have them rebuilt to the proper size and do the fit sheet now...