Red Wing Iron Rangers

I revisited my local Red Wing store with my size 12D Iron Rangers and explained that after wearing them a bit around the house that they felt wide at the heel, that there was 1"+ space between the end of my toe and the boot and that they felt like when they loosened up, they would feel a bit sloppy. I asked to try on an 11.5D and an 11.5EE to see if they would be a better fit. The salesman said that unless my foot actually measured wide (it doesn't) that I should stick with a D width and went on to explain that although there would be a slight difference in the dimensions of the 11.5EE and the 12D, that the volume of the boot would be the same and used the illustration that if they were to take the two boots and fill them with water, that the two sizes would hold the same amount. He gave me the 11.5D and I tried them on. Outside of the expected stiffness, the left boot felt fine and the right boot was pinching my foot just above the big toe where the boot would naturally crease. It was uncomfortable, but not painful and overall, the boots felt snug but not tight with plenty of toe room. Because of the pinching above the toe on the 11.5D, I didn't bother to try on 11Ds. The salesman recommended wearing them around the house whether I was walking around or not explaining that even the warmth of the foot will help relax the leather a bit. The salesman said that after wearing them for a while if they felt good except for 1 or 2 hot spots that they could stretch those spots out for me. I walked out with the 11.5Ds in exchange for the 12Ds.

Shortly after putting them on at home, my talkative daughter called so I spent the next 45 minutes walking all over the house as I talked to her. After the first hour of wearing them, the pinching above the toe lessened significantly to the point it felt more like moderate pressure than discomfort. I wore them a total of 3 hours before taking them off. After 3 hours of wear (2 of which were sitting), the pinching above the toe is now just a mildly uncomfortable pressure. Given the pinching sensation changed so quickly, I'm pretty confident that once the boot relaxes, I won't have that feeling any longer. The boots are still stiff and snug, not tight and just a bit more snug than I'd like them to end up so I don't want them to loosen up too much. As best as I can tell, I have 3/4" to 1" space in the toe. I didn't feel any uncomfortable rubbing and after taking them off, my feet felt fatigued or tired but there were no sore spots or pain. They certainly feel a lot better fit than the 12Ds did. Since the 11.5Ds give me the impression that they will break in quickly it makes me wonder if I should have tried on some 11Ds for comparison though if I'm not mistaken, I tried some on when I was just kind of checking out IRs and the pinching above the toe was painful. For those of you out there who have a very comfortable Iron Ranger fit, does my experience sound the same as yours?

"A bit more snug than I'd like." Magic words! Just what you want. Understand that Brannock-style devices measure width, not volume. I size to a D, but my rotund feet need a EE in boots like IRs. But if slightly too snug, without top of the toe discomfort, is what you've got, you may be home free. Congrats!

P.S. An inch at the toe is not too much, in my experience. You want the widest part of your foot to match the widest part of the boot.

These suckers were (are) hard to fit, and were especially so for someone like me who's never owned footwear like it before. I still might have the wrong size but I tend to think I nailed it. I'll go through my experience to give the impression I at least tried

Was able to get to a Red Wing store I didn't even know existed until I sought the brand out... The guy had me stand on the machine and I didn't step off really understanding how he'd size me from there, but we started at my normal size, 11D, and I believe a 10.5D. 11 felt noticeably loose and the 10.5 felt better, but still not in the realm of snug really. Granted it was only a few minutes, but I expected it from the get-go as I've read. They didn't have the Muleskinner in stock so purchasing that day wasn't an option. Plus I kind of wanted to go the Zappos route for the easy exchanges. I read the store has a pretty decent return policy or exchange policy, but the store's a good hour away. Just easier through the mail once I had a point of reference on sizes.

Anyways, knowing the 11D was not the right size, I still wanted to try the Muleskinner in that, so I started there on Zappos. Awesome looking, not right fit, it went back for the 10.5's. (still D, I've never needed wide in anything, so I'm assuming I don't, didn't try on any EE's). The 10.5's also looked awesome, nice length etc but I'd wear them for a couple hours and I just kept feeling like if they stretched out a bit more, they'd become loose in areas where I want tightness. Ended up getting 3 different pairs of 10's in the house because the first 2 had some issues. (pair #1 looked much darker than the color I'd want, not sure why. Pair #2 actually looked used for longer than a try-on, jean cuff marks etc. Nothing crazy on either but it would have bothered me, especially the "used" ones). The 3rd 10D's I got fit nice, and had the color I feel matches all of the photos you see of them that sparked my liking for them. I feel I kind of liked the length of the 10.5's better, but whats it worth if they don't fit properly... The 10's length appeared stunted on me in the beginning, but not so much anymore I don't think. Both of the 10's and 10.5's have their good points, and I do believe I could have worn either and been satisfied. Tough to know what they'll feel like fully broken in. In the end, I went a whole size down.

What kind of socks you gents wear with yours? I thought I'd be a semi-thicker sock kind of guy, but I think I sized down enough to be a thinner sock wearer in these. The current look, prior to any "I'm wearing them outside" treatment:

My year+ IR muleskinners are on the right. My favorite more expensive boots, White's Semi-Dress in classic black that I wear most of the time, are on the left.

Sorry it's upside down. I can't figure out how to fix it after spending way too much time on the issue, and a Jameson on the rocks awaits...

I'm such a wiener! I wanted to put my mind at ease that I was in the right size at 11.5D but still wanted to try on an 11D because I failed to do so at my local Red Wing store to compare and make sure. I was too embarrassed to go to my local store to do it because I've already been in there 4 times since this journey started and they would probably think I'm nuts! I went to another store which was just 10 minutes out of my way coming home from work so I stopped there to try on some 11Ds. They turned out to be too tight and painful in the heels and over the toes. If this is what people are experiencing by going down a full size then I can understand their stories about how long and painful the break in period was. The length was fine but I don't think they ever would have become comfortable. It looks like it's my current 11.5Ds (1/2 size down) or nothing for me! Judging from the 3 hours I wore them yesterday, I'm confident that they will come around and be a very comfortable boot!

Ha. I had the same topsy-turvy debate with myself over size Mike. After reading all of the controversy over Iron Ranger sizing, I let it get in my head (maybe rightly so), and made the decision that much harder. I didn't really ever encounter a size that was painful in any way, and I went a whole size down.. Not sure what that means, either the 10 is somehow a perfect fit, right on the cusp of pain and comfort. Or a 9.5 would be the right one.. I couldn't see going down a size and a half though, seems bonkers. The 10's are clearly tight in certain regions though so there is some breaking in to do, albeit, not uncomfortably so. After a half hour or so, they feel completely fine. I do need to walk around in them more. I find myself just sitting down for most of my breaking in sessions, which isn't going to speed the process up any to fully broken in. I'm still debating how I want to proceed with the conditioning and protecting. They're not going anywhere outside til that happens I'm not sure what stops from just heeding Red Wing's advice and doing what they say with the very light Mink Oil covering and Leather Protector. I'm having most of my troubles in matching up a boot's look over time with what conditioning process was used to achieve that look. pbrmhl's approach is the only real matchup I've seen so far. That is what he did and this is what they look like now.. Super helpful I'd say.

It's true! Reading all the reviews on various sites where people will say with all assurance that you need to go down 1 full size and then there are just as many who are just as assured that you only have to go down 1/2 size. Then there are some who say they are true to size and some who have gone down more than 1 size. It really gets into your head! I'm glad to have figured it out confident that I'm in the right size. I bought the Amber Saddle 8111's so the treatment for my boots is boot oil. The local Red Wing store is only about 5 minutes away from me and I'm regularly in the area so when it comes time to treat them, I'll most likely have them do it for me on a regular basis. (And to get more value out of the heavy hit to the wallet for these boots. That price tag still hurts!)

Just so you know, my idea to treat my muleskinners only with the Red Wing water repellant came from the guy who runs my Red Wing store. He was wearing a pair of nice looking muleskinners that he'd worn for several years. When I asked him how he kept them looking so great, he said "don't put anything on them except water repellant." So I don't.

All of you who size down, what type of socks do you wear with your Iron Rangers? I understand all Red Wing Heritage boots -- not just Iron Rangers -- run large, but I didn't know that until after I'd gotten a pair of 8146 boots in my normal size. However, I prefer to wear thick hiking-style socks with my boots anyway, and as a result they fit well.

pbrmhl said:

Just so you know, my idea to treat my muleskinners only with the Red Wing water repellant came from the guy who runs my Red Wing store. He was wearing a pair of nice looking muleskinners that he'd worn for several years. When I asked him how he kept them looking so great, he said "don't put anything on them except water repellant." So I don't.

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I can say that yours do look a lot more brown all over that I would have imagined. Quite universally too, not like dark worn in spots here and there. I'm all over the place right now on what I'll go with but I'm gaining knowledge. I'm sure it can vary from pair to pair what kind of effects you'll get. Part of me wants something quick and easy, another part just wants them to look awesome from day to day, month to month etc, no matter what needs to be done. I'm sure like the sizing, I'll over analyze it for a while. Probably spend more time worrying about it, wasting quality wearing time. Ha. Just feel like if I go the wrong route, they'll change enough in appearance to work their way down the rotation hierarchy. Appreciating the chat about it though for sure!

Mercer16 said:

All of you who size down, what type of socks do you wear with your Iron Rangers? I understand all Red Wing Heritage boots -- not just Iron Rangers -- run large, but I didn't know that until after I'd gotten a pair of 8146 boots. However, I prefer to wear thick hiking-style socks with my boots anyway.

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I would call the socks I've been primarily wearing (still breaking in), would be called like just a bit thicker than your basic white ankle sock. Not dress sock thin, and certainly not hiking style thick. I went down a whole size, so I don't envision a super thick sock. I find them most comfy and snug with my middle of the road sock. Even with the whole size down situation, a thin sock creates a little room that I'm not sure I like feeling.

Mercer16 said:

All of you who size down, what type of socks do you wear with your Iron Rangers? I understand all Red Wing Heritage boots -- not just Iron Rangers -- run large, but I didn't know that until after I'd gotten a pair of 8146 boots. However, I prefer to wear thick hiking-style socks with my boots anyway.

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I went down 1/2 size and wore my everyday crew socks when trying on the boots. They aren't as thin as a dress sock and not as thick as a boot sock you'd wear for camping/hiking/keeping warm so basically a moderate weight sock. They are a casual sock so nothing with extra padding or reinforcement anywhere. I may be getting a light to moderate boot sock with more protection in the toes and heels while I break these in but my regular socks seem to be doing OK.

I'm resurrecting this thread because I just wanted to say that I'm now the proud owner of a pair of new-to-me Iron Rangers -- Amber Harness. I love 'em!

Congratulations, I'm loving mine as well! The more I wear them, the more I feel that the high price tag was justified. I've still only ever worn them around the house. At this point I'd say that they are about 90% broken in. The left boot felt pretty good from the start and has only gotten better. The right boot has taken a bit more work because it was pressing on my foot where the boot naturally creases just above the big toe. The pressure was greater when I first put them on but relaxed more with the warmth of my foot in the boot. Then one day, it was almost like flipping a switch, the right boot felt much more comfortable all over! I then noticed that on the right boot, it was creasing naturally where it should but I also noticed that there is a slight crease on the toe-cap on the toe side of toe-cap seam. There's no such crease on the left boot. The bone that connects with my big toe must be higher on my right foot than my left and needs a little more room. The shafts of the boots still need to soften and flex a bit more but I can already tell that these are going to be very comfortable boots.

I wonder if some of you will experience what I experienced... Iron Rangers/Beckmans being the gateway to White's, Allen Edmonds, and Alden.....

Neognosis, that's exactly what happened to me. I started with two pairs of Iron Rangers, both amber harness and muleskinner. Then I got some White's semi-dress boots. Now it's hard to fit the Red Wings into the rotation. Just as it's difficult to fit my Merkur razor into my shaving rotation since I got my ATT H2...

P.S. You can get White's for 10% off at Linegear this weekend. Coupon code: 10Mem15

I'm preparing a post for a PIF of a pair 10-EE Red Wing 2246 (steel toe) if anyone is interested. Red Wings are too narrow for me and aggravate my neuroma. Been in my shed for 7-8 years, but maybe worn 40-50 hours tops. PM if CONUS & interested. If no response, I'll post a separate thread somewhere tonite or tomorrow.