Justin Blueprint 8 Inch Men's Work Boots - Round Toe Full-Grain Leather Lace-Up Safety Boots with Oil & Slip Resistant Rubber Outsole - Ideal for Construction, Landscaping & Heavy Duty Work

After wearing sneakers my entire life, I was finally forced to buy some work boots for my job. I grew up next to the Justin Boots factory in Cassville, Missouri (and have family who worked there for years), so I naturally went straight to their boots. The leather and craftsmanship is excellent. However, they do have one giant design flaw... which can be corrected with $5 and a trip to Target/Wal-Mart/whatever:- The exposed heel. As others have mentioned, it will rub your heel raw in just a few minutes... but it can be fixed with a some simple cloth tape and heel pads (the tape is really all you need, but I wanted extra padding). Cloth tape can be found in the first aid section of any store and the heel pads can be found in the foot care section. Yes, the heel pads are meant for women's high heels, but get over it. They work for any shoe or boot.- I've had the tape on the boots for over a week and it shows no signs of falling off. The same will the heel pad.- THE BOOTS RUN LARGE. I normally wear a size 11 in everything, but I read that these run large, so I bought them in 10.5. Well, the 10.5 was too large... lots of heel slipping and over an inch of space between my toes and the front of the boot. I sent them back for a 10.0 and the new size fits perfectly. So order a complete size below what you normally would. You have been warned.These aren't as comfortable as sneakers... but I think I'd have a hard time finding any boot that is close to this comfortable.EDIT: 2016-01-08 - After breaking these boots in for three weeks, the fit like a glove. I don't use the tape or anything special at this point. They've molded to my feet perfectly. The first 1-2 weeks are a bit rough, but once you get past the break-in period, they are worth it. I'd suggest getting a size smaller than normal. They will stretch. I'm buying another pair, just in case Justin stops making these for some reason.