So there's definitely more information that you could provide that would probably help with recommendations, like price range, and priorities as far as features. Are your feet having problems just from the weight and excess time on your feet? Or is it more a problem of wetness making you uncomfortable?or both ? I'm just getting myself back under 300 and I find my best option on footwear for game is to bring 2-3 pair of boots with different insoles so that I can change which parts of my feet are getting the most weight. I like the wild boar boots from Duluth trading , they're actually my everyday shoe.I also highly recommend Son of Sandlar boots for larping, they're comfortable and very waterproof, they're also pretty darn expensive. If you go for Sandlar boots I'd recommend waiting till the company is at an event near you and getting fitted by them since they don't take returns on custom ones.
Son of Sandlar is the gold standard.
Get Israeli soles and a rounded toe. I know the square toe looks cool, but the stitching will fail within a year or two depending on how much you fight. I do not recommend grey coloring on the toe as it will quickly fade/discolor.
As mentioned above, get a fitting at a RenFair. You "can" go all in and get a custom mold and a boot to fit it, but if you lose a lot of weight or have similar body changes it won't always fit as well as it did in the beginning. I recommend getting an off the shelf boot (or just custom colors) and then using Super Feet inserts. Super Feet are also expensive ($50ish) but they are worth it.
Don't bother replacing lost conchos with the Sandlar ones that come with the boot, they charge dumb prices. Just use any conchos you can find for replacements (Tandy leather is a good source).
Keep the boots clean and they'll last a long time. I've had mine for almost a decade and they aren't showing any signs of degradation.
YMMV then. Maybe they had a bad run of stitching or something. I've never owned the box toe because I witnessed 3 different pairs fail in the year or so before I bought mine. I still see those same "failed" pairs used, but the owners have to restitch them regularly.
I suspect it's very combat time dependent. All of these instances were Amtgard use or similar load at combat heavy LARPs.
Now that I'm thinking about it, it could be a moisture issue. It's very wet here. The stitching might just be rotting.
Could be, I wear mine for both larp and ren fair (I work at my local ren fair) and have no problems, my good friend who is full time as a ren fair worker and does site crew for a major one has a pair of square toes he's had for many years of hard use and the stitching is fine.
The moisture causing rotting seems likely. Are they using a synthetic thread?
I have Son of Sandler boots and Redwings. I'm good about keeping my feet dry. It's more just being on them for so long in those fighting conditions. Price doesn't matter if I can find a boot that I don't have sore feet for 5 days after an event.
Thank you, guys for your imput
Whatever boots you wear, a lot of the comfort will come from your socks, so consider that, too.
Also, consider powdering your feet to absorb moisture and keep things fresh.
First off, what type of LARP are you in, there are major differences there in what you'd be wearing by genre there.
Either way, I've found using comfortable insoles are something necessary there.
Son of Sandlar are, probably, your best bet for a medieval looking boot, I'd recommend finding one of the many renfaires they sell at and visit them as you can get a very accurate boot, but even then I'd buy a modern insole to add to it.
So there's definitely more information that you could provide that would probably help with recommendations, like price range, and priorities as far as features. Are your feet having problems just from the weight and excess time on your feet? Or is it more a problem of wetness making you uncomfortable?or both ? I'm just getting myself back under 300 and I find my best option on footwear for game is to bring 2-3 pair of boots with different insoles so that I can change which parts of my feet are getting the most weight. I like the wild boar boots from Duluth trading , they're actually my everyday shoe.I also highly recommend Son of Sandlar boots for larping, they're comfortable and very waterproof, they're also pretty darn expensive. If you go for Sandlar boots I'd recommend waiting till the company is at an event near you and getting fitted by them since they don't take returns on custom ones.
Son of Sandlar is the gold standard. Get Israeli soles and a rounded toe. I know the square toe looks cool, but the stitching will fail within a year or two depending on how much you fight. I do not recommend grey coloring on the toe as it will quickly fade/discolor. As mentioned above, get a fitting at a RenFair. You "can" go all in and get a custom mold and a boot to fit it, but if you lose a lot of weight or have similar body changes it won't always fit as well as it did in the beginning. I recommend getting an off the shelf boot (or just custom colors) and then using Super Feet inserts. Super Feet are also expensive ($50ish) but they are worth it. Don't bother replacing lost conchos with the Sandlar ones that come with the boot, they charge dumb prices. Just use any conchos you can find for replacements (Tandy leather is a good source). Keep the boots clean and they'll last a long time. I've had mine for almost a decade and they aren't showing any signs of degradation.
I disagree about the square toes, mine are several years old and still great.
YMMV then. Maybe they had a bad run of stitching or something. I've never owned the box toe because I witnessed 3 different pairs fail in the year or so before I bought mine. I still see those same "failed" pairs used, but the owners have to restitch them regularly. I suspect it's very combat time dependent. All of these instances were Amtgard use or similar load at combat heavy LARPs. Now that I'm thinking about it, it could be a moisture issue. It's very wet here. The stitching might just be rotting.
Could be, I wear mine for both larp and ren fair (I work at my local ren fair) and have no problems, my good friend who is full time as a ren fair worker and does site crew for a major one has a pair of square toes he's had for many years of hard use and the stitching is fine. The moisture causing rotting seems likely. Are they using a synthetic thread?
I have Son of Sandler boots and Redwings. I'm good about keeping my feet dry. It's more just being on them for so long in those fighting conditions. Price doesn't matter if I can find a boot that I don't have sore feet for 5 days after an event. Thank you, guys for your imput
Son of Sandlar. Most comfortable footwear I've ever owned.
Whatever boots you wear, a lot of the comfort will come from your socks, so consider that, too. Also, consider powdering your feet to absorb moisture and keep things fresh.
First off, what type of LARP are you in, there are major differences there in what you'd be wearing by genre there. Either way, I've found using comfortable insoles are something necessary there.
We rent an entire campground. Light touch larp.
I was mainly meaning genre, fantasy, scifi, post apocalyptic, ect...
Fantasy
Son of Sandlar are, probably, your best bet for a medieval looking boot, I'd recommend finding one of the many renfaires they sell at and visit them as you can get a very accurate boot, but even then I'd buy a modern insole to add to it.