Should my boot rands be pristine after 1 trip?

[jooleyen]

Both my dad and I, for our first western hunt, got Kenetrek Mountain Extremes without even breaking them in, they fit our feet so well. No regrets, other than that after only 5 miles with his, the rand separated in two small spots (1/4" max) and then proceeded to tear because they were loose in those spots - now even a pro-repair would look less than desirable.

Mine, after about 20 miles have a bit of tearing on one of the boot rands by the toe.

I'm just wondering if this is normal, or if I should have higher expectations. Neither of us have even "broken the boots in" (aka, hiked 50 miles in them) and they are already starting to look a little "broken down".

 

[Dos Perros]

Can you share a picture? By your description, that sounds like something I'd address with the manufacturer under warranty.

 

[dtrkyman]

Pretty much, definitely no seperation!!!

 

[Tod osier]

Yes, you should be able to expect they will stay, but in experiance that isn't always the case. I had the same issue with them.

 

[GSPHUNTER]

If they are pristine, they weren't worn. But what you are describing should not happen until many miles are on any quality boot. My friend and I both bought a pair of Redheads, my bad, and the souls on both pair started falling off after just a couple hunting trips. Bass pro pretty much said, your bad, and would not replace boots. All my boots since then have not been purchased at Bass Not pro.

 

[*zap*]

Not breaking in boots may not be a good thing....wear and tear will happen due to circumstances. Pictures needed.

 

[S.Clancy]

My Scarpa's (both pair) have prob 150 miles of rocks, blowdown and brush and no separation. I'd call Kenetrek.

 

[manitou1]

I have boots with over two hundred hard miles on them with no rand separation, and I expect to go far more. Have heard guys with over triple that with no separation.
Did you treat/waterproof the boots before using? Petroleum based or oily treatments soak into the leather under the rand and can cause the rand glue to release.
Also, if you got your boots soaked and then tried expediting the drying process with too much heat (ie: over a stove or fire) the leather will shrink too much/fast and can cause separation.
Most manufacterers have warranty disclaimers if certain products are used.
If this is not the case, I would surely contact the manufacterer with a warranty claim.
After time, most rands will start to peel. A lot of guys use "Shoe Goo" or similar to glue it back.

 

[manitou1]

And yes, I would expect my rands to NOT be separating after five miles.

 

[madcalfe]

I'm on year 4 with kennetreks and the rands haven't peeled, there's maybe little slices and chips from going through shale over the years on sheep hunts but no separation. did you guys get them to close to the fire maybe?

 

[Rich M]

Have a pair of Danner Pronghorn knock-offs that paid about $20 for during a store closeout deal back in 2017. The leather is a little parched but I silicon them very regularly, should probably switch to mink oil. And the black toe protection paint/coating is flaking off. Otherwise in top condition - no stitches or sole separation or even real lace wear. I regularly wear them for work, yard work, hunting, and hiking - so far have climbed mountains, crossed swamps, baked em in my truck in the FL heat, they are still "waterproof", and fit great. (Same for the Danner Pronghorns I got at the same time)

You done nothing wrong by using them. Nothing should be separating.

Folks break boots in to stretch the leather, get the footbed so it doesn't chaffe or cause blisters. It isn't required that you wear the boots for x miles before hiking.

Send em back and get another pair or something better.

 

[jooleyen]

I'll try to get a pic of my dad's, which are worse than mine, but here are mine. You can see the leather is a little scuffed, presumably from rocks or beetle kill, which indicates that whatever scuffed the leather is also what peeled the rand back. It just "don't feel right" that they wore like this after literally 20 miles (granted hard, off-trail, beetle kill miles). At this rate, it seems they would be shredded before the season is over.

We had no fires to dry anything and did not treat our boots with any conditioner. I could accept mine peeling, seeing as I must have scraped something (though not ideal), but my dad's peeled 5 miles in before we walked over anything hardcore. That leads me to believe that the rand just isn't up to snuff on these for some reason.

 

[MallardSX2]

Mine look pretty rough and after 1 season they leak. Which makes me super happy as you can imagine...

 

[Tod osier]

Given the scuffs in the leather, I'm ok with some separation. I'd like to see none, but you were hard on that area. That can be easily fixed forever with aquaseal SR. I don't know why the manufacturers can't get them to stay better.

I've found sanding and cleaning the leather and rubber and then masking using painters tape can result in a very professional job. Use a couple long pieces of electrical tape to hold the rand down.

 

[Kleos]

Do you drag your feet a lot when hiking? I am surprised at how many scuffs you have on the top of your boot after only 20 miles.

I would be concerned with the separation as it only gets worse once you have a lip like that.

 

[DAOutfitters208]

I have had nothing but issues with the rands on my Kenetreks. I would send them back in for repair asap and hope that fixes the problem. I have sent mine in for warranty work to address the issue, that only lasted a couple trips before they started separating again. I then had them fully rebuilt and the rands still only lasted a few hikes. I am now just using them as work boots around the house. My buddy has the same pair and has never had any issues with the rands over 7 years of abuse.

 

[FLATHEAD]

I would have expected a whole lot more from the OP's Kenetreks.
I remember one time I bought a pair of Rocky boots and THE FIRST
time I wore them was on a fishing charter in Chesapeake Bay.
I remember thinking, man my feet are getting cold, like air flowing in.
When we got back to the dock I pulled up my pants legs and those
boots had Literally fell apart on my feet. Didnt even have to unlace
them to take them off. All the stitching had just fell apart, come out.
My pants were the only thing keeping them on my legs.
I think I remember Cabelas refunding 100%.

 

[Lawnboi]

Treat your boots with their wax. Your going to prematurely destroy them if you don’t.

Call kenetrek and have them send you some freesole to goop it in there.

That’s normal off trail wear I would say.

 

[Customweld]

Kenetreks look pretty similar to Hoffman Explorers. These are my everyday boot. In the trench, hiking,hunting and just wearing. A little over a year old and an average of 8-9 miles a day.

 

[jooleyen]

Your Hoffmans look how my Kenetreks would after another week of hunting. I've been wanting to give those a shot - think I might. Kenetrek won't warranty anything, but said to aquaseal it. I'm not satisfied for the price I paid - oh well.