Boots and gloves - what to get and expected longevity

SilverGirl · Jun 19, 2019

I am pretty sure this topic is likely elsewhere on the Forum. But not finding it easily. My boots, which are somewhere in the range of 6 years old, failed spectacularly in the rain I encountered going to and from the rally. Given that these boots are the first pair of waterproof riding boots I've owned I am wondering if 6 years of age is more or less normal for the life expectancy of waterproof boots. They failed badly enough that I feel I must replace them right away so am looking for recommendations. I am female and have rather small and narrow feet and the boots I have are a great fit. They are Forma boots, the Ladies Black Diamond boot.

My rain gloves have never been good but I've put up with them for years because they fit and they keep my hands reasonably warm when they are wet - and they always get wet on the inside in rain. I've had it with having prune fingertips after riding in rain for any length of time. I have very small hands but long fingers (size 3 ring for the ring finger!). I want to find gloves that stay dry and have a long gauntlet. Again, suggestions?

Thanks in advance! :bow

Louise

brownie · Jun 19, 2019

Old school

Hi Louise.......boots: well made really well waxed Chippewa Boots; gloves: my Held "Steves" COVERED by extralarge rubber gloves for rain. I maintain protection , with 100% waterproof. Regular summer goves: Held vented gloves.

lee · Jun 19, 2019

Louise I consider 6 years good life on your boots.
Is this the boot you currently own?
https://www.sportbiketrackgear.com/forma-womens-diamond-touring-motorcycle-boots-black/

Do you tuck your gauntlet inside your jacket sleeve to keep water from running down your arm into your gloves?

powwow · Jun 20, 2019

My Daytona GTX boots are about 10 years old and have held up very well. I regularly treat the leather and after about 60,000 miles, they are good to go for another 60,000.

They are not inexpensive, but there is a ladies version of the boot sold by Revzilla (search Daytona Lady Star GTX). I also have a narrow men's foot and these fit perfectly out of the box.

brownie · Jun 20, 2019

American feet

powwow said:
My Daytona GTX boots are about 10 years old and have held up very well. I regularly treat the leather and after about 60,000 miles, they are good to go for another 60,000.

They are not inexpensive, but there is a ladies version of the boot sold by Revzilla (search Daytona Lady Star GTX). I also have a narrow men's foot and these fit perfectly out of the box.

Larry...... good point......I had to give up on Euro & Motorrad boots because my American feet were not comfortable after hours of riding or short periods of walking..... :dance

dsimon9 · Jun 20, 2019

powwow said:
My Daytona GTX boots are about 10 years old and have held up very well. I regularly treat the leather and after about 60,000 miles, they are good to go for another 60,000.

They are not inexpensive, but there is a ladies version of the boot sold by Revzilla (search Daytona Lady Star GTX). I also have a narrow men's foot and these fit perfectly out of the box.

I love my Daytonas. Great boots. My feet are pretty wide, so if memory serves me right, I ordered a wide and a size larger than I normally wear. They fit great.

rick601 · Jun 20, 2019

Yup, Daytona! As far as the Held...I've had a few pair and as much as I like them they don't seem real robust ie durable.

Paul_F · Jun 20, 2019

My Gortex Alpinestars are fourteen years old with almost 175,000 miles are still keeping my feet dry.

SilverGirl · Jun 20, 2019

the use of rubber gloves

brownie said:
Hi Louise.......boots: well made really well waxed Chippewa Boots; gloves: my Held "Steves" COVERED by extralarge rubber gloves for rain. I maintain protection , with 100% waterproof. Regular summer goves: Held vented gloves.

I must admit, I am giving serious consideration to going back to the older, lower tech solution for rain gloves and getting a pair of lined leather gloves from my local leather store in NH and then putting dish washing gloves over those. Cheap and easy to fix when they fail.

Louise

SilverGirl · Jun 20, 2019

boots/gloves

Lee said:
Louise I consider 6 years good life on your boots.
Is this the boot you currently own?
https://www.sportbiketrackgear.com/forma-womens-diamond-touring-motorcycle-boots-black/

Do you tuck your gauntlet inside your jacket sleeve to keep water from running down your arm into your gloves?

Yes, those are the boots I have. They've been great but the failure was sudden and really spectacular. My feet would have been drier if I had been wearing sneakers. While they fit pretty well they aren't comfortable to walk in very much so I'm thinking that something more comfortable to walk in, at least for short distances, is probably a better choice.

My current rain gloves have only about an inch of what can charitably be called a gauntlet. But yes, I put them inside the jacket sleeve. They get soaked and end up providing water that gets wicked up the fabric of the sleeves of the rain liner. Not comfortable. The cold weather gloves I have (don't laugh) are H-D women's leather gloves that have about a 2.5" gauntlet and they are awesome. May get another pair of those (actually 2 because the ones I have are at the end of their life) and do the dish washing glove thing with those. :dunno

Louise

SilverGirl · Jun 20, 2019

don't care about cost of boots

powwow said:
My Daytona GTX boots are about 10 years old and have held up very well. I regularly treat the leather and after about 60,000 miles, they are good to go for another 60,000.

They are not inexpensive, but there is a ladies version of the boot sold by Revzilla (search Daytona Lady Star GTX). I also have a narrow men's foot and these fit perfectly out of the box.

Thanks! I'll look into these. Cost is not my concern at this point....

Louise

SilverGirl · Jun 20, 2019

Alpinestars

Paul_F said:
My Gortex Alpinestars are fourteen years old with almost 175,000 miles are still keeping by feet dry.

Thanks! I'll look into these too. Do you treat them at all or are they still dry without you doing anything to them?

Louise

Paul_F · Jun 21, 2019

NewEnglander said:
Thanks! I'll look into these too. Do you treat them at all or are they still dry without you doing anything to them?

Louise

A couple of times a season I clean, polish and add water proofing to the leather.

Polishing is bit of a misnomer regarding the right boot as back in 2015 a gas line leaked fuel on it. It doesn't exactly shine anymore.

I prefer to walk in shoes but I've had no discomfort walking with these boots.

I confess I did not like the soles of these boots and had a shoe repair shop install hiking soles for a better grip, especially when putting my foot down where there might be loose gravel

lee · Jun 21, 2019

NewEnglander said:
The cold weather gloves I have (don't laugh) are H-D women's leather gloves that have about a 2.5" gauntlet and they are awesome. May get another pair of those (actually 2 because the ones I have are at the end of their life) and do the dish washing glove thing with those.

Louise

Harley makes good gear. I've had two pair of Harley Gore-Tex boots that never leaked and my wife has owned a couple pair of Harley riding pants.

lee · Jun 21, 2019

NewEnglander said:
Thanks! I'll look into these too. Do you treat them at all or are they still dry without you doing anything to them?

Louise

Gore-Tex does not require any treatment to keep them waterproof.
I polish our boots before each trip to keep them looking good and it's good for the leather.

lee · Jun 21, 2019

Paul_F said:
I confess I did not like the soles of these boots and had a shoe repair shop install hiking soles for a better grip, especially when putting my foot down where there might be loose gravel

I also like a thick vibram sole on my boots.
My wife likes thin flexible soles.

PoorUB · Jun 21, 2019

6-10 years on a pair of boots? I feel lucky to get 2 years! I do wear them often and not just for riding so after a couple years they get replaced and get used for shop boots.

179212 · Jun 21, 2019

Boots, gloves

On all my leather stuff I usually use the mink oil stuff, or snow-seal

Apply a really thick layer than use a hair dryer to melt it and allow it to soak in. Works well for me, also seems to preserve the leather keeping it from drying out.

royce · Jun 21, 2019

Louise, lots of advice here . . . and some of it is good, some is opinion only and you know what they say about opinions. Well, here comes my opinion:

One factor no one has mentioned yet is color of your gloves. Has nothing to do with weather-proofness (is that a word?) but black is NOT a good color for gloves. It tends to stain your hands when it gets wet, either from sweat on a hot day or from rain.

Good luck.

lupinblue · Jun 23, 2019

I followed a recommendation from this forum and bought Aerostich Triple-Digit rain covers for my gloves. They were brilliant through 500km of rain of sometimes biblical heaviness, they keep your hands warm, and they pack away almost to nothing. Plus they’re a lot cheaper than a pair of goretex gloves!

Boots and gloves - what to get and expected longevity

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