By Fedallah from Ann Arbor, MI on 6/21/2008

Nice boots. I do a lot of walking and these are great. Excellent ankle support with a short break-in period. The zippers make them easy to put on and put off, and you can lace them to fit and never need to do it again. The leather polishes up nicely, the heels aren't obnoxiously tall, and they have a rather conservative style in comparison to other tac boots that look like running shoes. (That's great if you do a lot of running - but I don't.) I've had them for six or seven months and so far they seem to be holding up well. I was worried about the zippers' durability but so far there have been no problems. Complaints: the soles wear quickly. I'd like to get these resoled if possible, but I doubt it can be done. Gore-Tex also would have been nice - Bates even makes a version without the zipper that has Gore-Tex, so perhaps it's a tradeoff between a zipper or Gore-Tex lining. Either way, great boots.

By Hard as Nails from Dillsburg, PA on 12/26/2007

I've had other Bates products from my Marine Corps days, but never Bates boots. I wish I had these boots back then, they need virtually no break-in, the leather is compliant but durable, breathabillity is very good, and they are as comfortable as some of my running shoes. The side zipper is an awesome feature that gets you in or out of them in a jiffy, yet is almost unnoticeable. I work in a laboratory and am on my feet all day (10 to 12 hours), I totally forget that I have boots on... that's how comfortable they are. I will certainly buy another pair.

By Lt McGrath from South Kingstown, RI on 8/2/2007

These are great boots for duty wear or even for serious work. I use them as part of my detail uniform because they look great and allow me to stand for long periods of time comfortably. The tall boot with zippered side makes the boots easy to take on and off which is great when a call comes in.