WWII Army Officers Dress Shoes

[MrBern]

You would have to swap out the laces for some WWII originals as for some reason they come with laces that are too short to tie properly.

Thats so funny. I have a nice pair of service shoes that came w/ laces that are too short.

 

[Matt Deckard]

Anyone else have the Buzz Rickson service shoes?

 

[Zemke Fan]

They stop making them at 10...

So my size 13-D feet are out of luck.

 

[Baggers]

So my size 13-D feet are out of luck.

I'm in the same boat (pun intended). Even if I wanted a pair, they don't make 'em to fit my size 12s.

Matt, as for being rare in the reenactment scene, I think the problem may be one of demand. Most folks in the hobby tend to portray the common fighting man (i.e. enlisted soldiers), and as a result vendors concentrate on items they can make and sell in volume. The result being that it's much easier to find ankle boot style Type I service shoes, roughouts, and jump boots. And when they don their Class A uniform for the Hangar Dance, they can still wear the Type I or the jump boot depending on the unit to which they belong.

I've also noticed that there seems to be a stigma attached to playing an officer, which also cuts down on the number of people doing it unless they're portraying Army Air Corps pilots and/or not affiliated with an organized unit. So once again, not nearly enough demand to warrant the investment in producing a reasonably priced repro.

Finally, and this is just my reading between the lines, sometimes it can be dependent on the manufacturers as to when something gets offered. WPG's notice almost made it sound like his source (in Mexico?) had resurfaced and that he should have them in stock early next month. Hardly the definite "they're on the boat at this moment" kind of announcement that I've seen from vendors like ATF.

At least WPG is pretty good about not advertising something unless there's a certainty that it's going to arrive when he says it will, so I'm looking forward to ordering a pair when they hit. They may not be as well made as the BRs, but they will be much less expensive and they will be available in sizes larger than 10.

Just my opinions.

Cheers!

 

[scotrace]

When I got mine, they had 10.5. At least my feet can be happy taking advantage of Plentiful Small Sizes Syndrome. lol

And my hands are about a size 8.








Hold those "you know what that means" jokes.

 

[MrBern]

Hmmm so why are they so rare in the WWII reenactment scene? Price?

Well probably cuz reenactors are generally reenacting battles and so theyre shopping for good combat boots. A lot of them dont even bother w/ hangar dances & class A uniforms.

 

[Baggers]

Hold those "you know what that means" jokes.

Yeah, but that doesn't mean we can't think it!

 

[Les Gillis]

Repro Service Shoes

Repro Service Shoes

What Price Glory, At The Front and WW2 Impressions all sell repro Type I Service Shoes.

At The Front has the best price, WW2 Impressions the highest and What Price Glory in the middle. Does anyone have any idea if there's that much difference in the quality between the different venders?

Thanks,

Les

 

[fortworthgal]

I can't speak for WPG or WWII Impressions. My husband has a pair of the ATF shoes - he's had them for almost 2 years now and they've been worn in all types of weather with some frequency. They've held up quite well, but they are not a super high quality shoe. My husband says they don't take polish well. I would say they are definitely worth the price, though.

 

[Fletch]

How is the fit on the ATF shoe, I wonder? They're only made in E width and whole sizes.

 

[Vladimir Berkov]

I have the WWII Impressions shoe, and they are nice. They are pretty stiff, however, and are taking a long time to break in. They are also tough, though, and will likely last a long time.

I have seen the ATF shoes as well, and they look good. I personally prefer the leather finish on the WWII Impressions boots, but that is more of a personal thing.

 

[Baggers]

I've got the ATF boots. I usually wear a size 11 1/2 or 12 D width, depending on the shoe, but took a size 11 based on previous experience with their footwear. However I should state that I don't use insoles or extremely thick socks when wearing them, so YMMV.

One interesting thing, though. The finish on the ATF boots is fairly thin and started to wear off at the rub points in what I felt was a very authentic fashion with the underlying exposed hide being a nice natural tan color. In comparison, I also have a pair of WPG's boots and while the russet finish is thicker, the leather on this pair is GREEN and when the russet dye was nicked the leather color was quite visible. The construction seems comparable, but that green leather was a bit off putting. I can't comment on the fit as they're a much smaller size than what I wear.

Cheers!

 

[cookie]

Ricksons Shoes

I just checked out the website and they have a US10.5 as the maximum size

Does anyone know whether this is a true US10.5 ie a generous fit similar to UK10/Euro44? Please advise guys.

The colour is insane in the website. I see some of the loungers pix.

Is the colour true to the website colour?

 

[scotrace]

Does anyone know whether this is a true US10.5 ie a generous fit similar to UK10/Euro44? Please advise guys.

I wear 10.5 in just about every shoe, and the 10.5 in this shoe fits me perfectly. When you get them, they want you to put them on, then (!) put a big ol' tube sock over the top, and walk around so they can still be returned as new. It looks perfeclty silly. But for that kinda dough, worth the test.

The colour is insane in the website. I see some of the loungers pix.

Is the colour true to the website colour?

Yes. Rather orange-ish. But they darken and become more correct with Kiwi brown.

 

[MrBern]

heres an interesting read on Army shoes

http://www.qmmuseum.lee.army.mil/WWII/shoes_and_the_army.htm

 

[cookie]

THE US of A at war.

What a fascinating insight into the role of the Quarter Master in keeping a massive Army on foot (can you imagine 8.3 million soldiers?). The other day I watched a doco on Hannibal crossing the Alps in 200BC with elephants. What sought of QM did he have that could feed 100 elephants in the middle of the Alps?. People forget the role of the QM in wars in keeping the troops moving foward. As they say in Rugby when you forwards are moving forward you taking territory and on the way to scoring a try (touchdown). The same goes for warfare.

 

[cookie]

shoe polish

I wear 10.5 in just about every shoe, and the 10.5 in this shoe fits me perfectly. When you get them, they want you to put them on, then (!) put a big ol' tube sock over the top, and walk around so they can still be returned as new. It looks perfeclty silly. But for that kinda dough, worth the test.



Yes. Rather orange-ish. But they darken and become more correct with Kiwi brown.

Shooman will not like to see you using Kiwi polish on your babies!

 

[cookie]

Buzz Ricksons

If you can't locate any BRs in your size, What Price Glory has announced that they should be getting in a new shipment of officer's low quarters next month. Probably not as nicely made as Rickson's, but his should be a lot less expensive and also available in large sizes.

Cheers!

Whereabouts on the site do they indicate selling these type of shoes? Pls advise.

 

[Hondo]

re: Stop making them at 10

So my size 13-D feet are out of luck.

Guess I'm also out of luck, I wear a size 10 ¬? D, there by taking a size 11‚Äù shoes or boots, you can bet I have my share of callus and blisters

 

[Baggers]

Whereabouts on the site do they indicate selling these type of shoes? Pls advise.

He made his announcement last week on another forum. Just keep an eye on his "New Arrivals" or "Boots" page on the U.S. side of the site, and he'll update the page when he gets them.

Cheers!