****** - Verified Buyer
4.5
Some Background:I started buying boots a few years ago after being convinced of the benefits from some friends. I bought one of the cheapest pairs of combat boots I could find on Amazon and fell in love, even though they were defunct 3 months later. I bought progressively more expensive boots, noticing the quality greatly improve each time I spent more and more. Eventually I got into hiking mountains, enough so that I realized I could no longer skimp out on boots. I bought a pair of Belleville Khyber III'S which were my gold standard before these Asolo boots, so I'll make some comparisons between them here.First thing I noticed with these was the price. About a month back I paid around $250 for a pair of these, which I consider to be an astronomical amount on some shoes, but in the grand scheme of mountaineering boots that's a pretty modest price. When I pulled them out of the box and put them on I understood why they were so pricey. The build quality is top tier, nary a stray thread to be found, everything is rigid and locked into place. I feel like I could yank hard on all of the eyelets with pliers and nothing would happen. The suede is beautiful, soft and durable, probably too nice to even be on footwear, but I digress. The sole seems to be Asolo proprietary, i was surprised to not see Vibram, but even after a handful of 8hr plus 14er hikes on some of the toughest terrain possible the soles are showing virtually no discernable wear. The bottom line is you get what you pay for, I expect these boots will last years, I read a review where they said their boots lasted 8 years before there was a critical failure. My Khybers laster about 1 year of heavy everyday use before there was a critical failure.Now onto performance, where my opinion drops a bit, but my pair are still early on in their use and I'm hopefully that as they are worn in they will perform better. Many of the reviews I've read say that these boots require no break in and are comfortable right out of the box. This was untrue of my experience. Yes they are comfortable. In fact I consider the fit to be nearly perfect, sizing and fit were virtually the same as a nice tennis shoe. But due to how solid the construction is on these, I had a hell of a break in period. I wore them to work for 2 weeks all on flat ground, and they felt great and comfortable. I was hoping that would be a good enough break in but I was wrong. Shortly after my "break in"I did a 14 mile round trip backpacking trip with these, which involved hiking a 14er and realized quickly that I had made a mistake. Most noticeable was that despite the robust tread on the sole, I was slipping way more on the trail than I ever did with my Khybers, especially with my heavy pack. I nearly took some bad falls because of slips on some of the really steep parts of the mountain. On this same hike I developed the worst blisters I've ever had, the thick padding near the heel of the boot was so rigid, that it practically chewed bloody holes in my heels ouch! None of the other boots I've worn on these hikes have given me blisters quite that bad. A review I read mentioned that something to do with the rubber used in the sole means that it can be slippery early on in the boots life. On the next few similar 14er hikes these problems have diminished, in fact the boots had stellar grip when jogging down the last mountain trail, and they have become more comfortable. Those who say these boots are ready out of the box probably don't use these boots as they are intended. Be warned, break these boots in on easy mountain terrain before tackling the big stuff.Aside from my early gripes with these boots they have performed admirablely. The sole (when properly broken in) is thick grippey and robust, and in conjunction with the ankle support, will allow you to easily cross rough terrain while reducing foot pains and muscle strain that you might encounter with lighter boots. I havn't submerged them yet, but so far these boots seem truly waterproof everytime I'm filtering water, or crossing a stream. The reinforced toe box has kept my toes protected from instances of kicking rocks or dragging them while climbing, and seems like it will last a long while. They lace up nicely, easy to tighten them as much as needed without worry that pulling hard will damage the eyelets. I especially like how the lower foot and ankle sections can be tightened independently because of a "locking eyelet" that holds the laces in place, near the ankle. This means you can tighten the lower part of the boot as much as possible, and then be free to adjust the ankle support for long backpacking stretches, or for steeper terrain.Overall I'm impressed with these. When considering buying them definitely ask yourself why you want them. Im general I would not reccomend these boots for peak bagging, as they feel bulky and limit foot flexibility on really steep terrain. I would not reccomend these for your nightly walk through the neighborhood trails, this is for more boot than you would need. These excell on mountain trails, long approach hikes to the base of the mountain, or long backpacking trips where you will cover lots of ground.I’m an arborist and have been wearing Asolo exclusively for the past 15 years. I’ve had several different models, during that time. These are the only ones that don’t have Vibram soles. The soles are just fine though, just stating a difference. And these have taken the longest to break in.Great boots ! I’ve been wearing them everyday for years! One pair lasts me about 1.5 years!I have owned 4 pairs of the similar Asolo FSN 95 . The Neutron which leaked before one year and the recentFugitive that has now become a dry conditions only boot as it has also become a leaker after less than 3 years of alternate use with other hiking boots. So what I have learned about all these similar boots is thatseems like just when they are really broken in the waterproof goretex breaks down. You could dip them inNikwax both types and they will not be waterproof again and almost seems to make them leak more.Maybe the flexing or lacing them tightly causes failure? Any way I have decided that for the moneythey should not fail so early and have moved on to other better quality boots. I will stick with LowaRenegade, My Vasque Sundowners still waterproof after 15 years. And the recent so far great AKU Alterra boots that have built in arch support for low arch feet like mine. Too bad Asolo can not make the waterproofing last! I have worn the soles off some of them!I think the hardest thing for consumers to do is to match products to their specific needs. I love this boot. I beat my first pair up really bad over a two year time frame and they held together really well. I do all of my hiking off trail, much like hunters would do. I live in the Pacific Northwest and hike through forested mountains which entails steep, rocky hills and climbing over fallen trees, etc. I just ordered my second pair. The stitching held up tremendously well considering all that I put my first pair through. One thing I think is important to note, if you have wide feet be sure to order wide width. I have wide feet and my first pair were standard width. The standard width is pretty slim (in my opinion). They fit true to size for length. I wear an 8.5 in Red Wing boots, these boots, Kennetrek and Crispi…so I feel it’s safe to say they’re true to size. My honest opinion on the Gore-Tex in these boots - I don’t think it works worth a damn. I have a muck style, insulated boot I wear when hiking in the rain or snow. Happy hiking folks!
