View Full Version : Whats the difference between hiking boots and work boots?
Don't laugh please i'm serious.
handlebar
11-18-2009, 20:08
A lot of work boots have steel toes ---OSHA requirement for a lot of industrial jobs. The steel adds a lot of weight. Also, the one's I wore while working in a production environment in steel mills had metatarsal gards, an arch of leather covered steel that covered the laces to protect the bones within the foot from falling objects. Work boots usually aren't waterproof unless designed to be used outdoors. Finally, the quality of my hiking boots far exceeds the quality built into any number of pairs of work boots that I've owned.
my dad's workboots were always soled with something that was pretty smooth, very unlike a vibram-style hiking boot sole.
Wise Old Owl
11-18-2009, 20:12
Workboots lack some of the padding in the bottom and sides around the ankle, not all boots, but a key difference.
Spirit Walker
11-19-2009, 00:40
I've known people who hiked in work boots. It's what they were used to wearing so they were comfortable in them.
The steel toe or composite toe (safety toe) being the main aspect that I have seen. Also, some work books have a serious metal shank in the footbed to prevent penetration (another OHSHA deal).
What about hunting boots? I was looking at a pair of Danner Pronghorn's at Academy the other day, even tried them out, then looked up thier specs later at home. Not a bad choice if one needs a really tall boot. The weight difference was not that much more than my Vasque Breeze. And they were very comfortable. The camo color scheme mixed into the leather wasnt too bad. I noticed on Danner's website that the Pronghorn comes in a variety of color schemes.
SMSP
Steel toes as said above. I got a pair for Katrina relief work. They are really comfortable, but way too heavy for hiking.
Good question. But let's see. One obvious difference is brand name. I don't see the same brand names on hiking boots that I see on work boots, and vice versa.
Second is fit. My work boots are much looser than my hiking boots.
Third, materials. My work boots are all leather.
Fourth, as others have pointed out, most work boots have a reinforced toe box (steel toe or otherwise).
That being said, I hiked many a mile (but not a long distance hike) in my work boots. Those were Dunhams. Wish they were still in business (and not part of New Balance or whoever bought them out).
Plodderman
11-19-2009, 10:22
Toe of the boot and tread. The weight on most work boots is heavier than the name brand hiking boots.
I have seen it all on the trail and you really hike with what you are comfortable in. For the first ten or fifteen years I hiked in different kinds of boots but now I use trail runners.
Always keep in mind the correct tool for the job....
By trying to save some money often we end up spending more (buy wise,buy once *)
Franco
Considering that I have multiples of most of my gear, I have to question my own "wisdom"
Don't laugh please i'm serious.
About a hundred bucks
trail ronin
11-19-2009, 23:50
Whats the difference between hiking boots and work boots?
For me, none.
I work in a pair of ASOLO TPS 520 GV boots and hike in a newer pair of the same. When I buy a new set for hiking, the old set becomes my new work boot.
Many Pennsylvanians consider them interchangeable for most applications, i.e. they hike in work boots. When I was a Scout many years ago, we all wore work boots when we hiked and camped. Few, of any, owned fancy hiking boots and we got along fine without them.
Conversely, when I later acquired a pair of custom Limmers, they were on my feet almost everywhere I went and they most definitely served as work boots until they wore out.
When I was in boy scouts, the Scoutmaster specifically said "No sneakers"..but work boots were fine.
So when I climbed Mt. Lafayette as a young lad, I wrote Texas Steer (K-mart brand) work boots. My pants were Sears Toughskin jeans.
Ten years or so later when I started backpacking, I bought real leather hiking books! LL Bean Cresta hikers. Beautiful boots. No steel toe, different sole, higher grade leather.
But then I ended hiking in sneakers anyway after that. :D
To look at it from another point of view, it is all about your comfort level.
To extend your question one could argue that you do not need any form of foot protection at all .
At the other end do you ever ask yourself why serious athletes have shoes made specifically for their sport ?
So yes you can also run barefooted but how many do ?
Franco
BTW as a teenager the best shoes were the ones that I could afford, and those were not the best shoes...
Nearly Normal
11-20-2009, 05:22
Depends where you work.
tech30528
11-20-2009, 12:06
I've known people who hiked in work boots. It's what they were used to wearing so they were comfortable in them.
I'm the other way around. I wear hiking boots for work. Except for steel toes (which I don't use) the lines are fading beteewn the two these days. Work boots used to be built more for durability than comfort, while hiking boots were more about padding and performance. I spend a lot of time on concrete, and don't have a problem buying 2-3 pairs of boots a year to be comfortable. The boots I'm wearing right now (at work) are the same ones that will be on the AT next week in NC.
tech30528
11-20-2009, 12:08
Whats the difference between hiking boots and work boots?
For me, none.
I work in a pair of ASOLO TPS 520 GV boots and hike in a newer pair of the same. When I buy a new set for hiking, the old set becomes my new work boot.
Exactly. But I still write off them off as work related expense.