Good chore boots
2nd pair of Nick's for me, the 1st being builder pros. On these StationMasters, I was torn between a 4/5 & 5/5 rating, going with 5 because the Nick's boots are of such excellent quality and the customer service is really exceptional.
The reason for considering a lower rating is due to a less than great, loose fit for me on the boots. This pair is a 14AA. The general width & length are good, however they have way too much volume in the instep girth & heel girth. I find it frustrating because I'm.pretty confident most people with a 14aa size have a much lower volume foot than these lasts allow. I've talked with several folks over the years with long, narrow feet, and we all have the same complaint about boots having way too much volume in the girth than what we need. I would really like to see some lasts being made in long narrow sizes that allow for this lower foot volume🙏🙏🤞🤞.
When I ordered these boots, the AA size wasn't even listed on the website, so I had assumed that the single A width was the narrowest offered. Fortunately ended up having a phone conversation with someone at Nick's who informed me that they do actually have AA width. I was very glad for that with ordering these boots, but wish that width was featured on the regular ordering menus since I would've ordered my Builder Pros in a 14aa instead of 14a, and they would've fit better also. At least the Builder Pros are lace-ups, so it's not as much of an issue.
Regardless, these boots are functional as chore boots, despite fitting a bit sloppy, though I wouldn't want to wear them anywhere where foot / ankle stability is key.
I drilled more holes on the instep straps so I could fasten them much tighter than what they came with. On one foot I drilled holes to a full inch tighter than what was already featured, on the other one 3/4", and that did help a bit. I would make them even tighter, although I am concerned about the straps breaking😬. I don't care for the Aesthetics of the straps, would have ordered them without the straps but didn't want to spend extra money and figured I could always cut the straps off😅- But now I'm very grateful for the straps because they are really the only thing that makes these boots wearable for me.
Also, while probably nobody will actually read through this review, since I would've really appreciated this sort of information, here are some size comparisons relative to Red Wing pull on boots. I've had many pairs of Red Wing 14AA pull-ons, and I will say that the Red Wing sizing is much tighter/better for low volume in the InStep and heel girth, a better fit in general for my low volume feet. The nick's have at least an 1/8" if not 1/4" of extra length (at least with the celastic toe), and on the Red Wings my toes are always a bit too tight at the end-so that's good. It's also not really a fair comparison because the Nick's boots are of such a drastically better quality, more comfortable, more supportive underfoot, but still just knowing that sort of sizing information would've helped me in my ordering.
Final note, I'm very pleased at how lightweight these boots are! Considering how heavy duty, I was expecting them to be notably heavier, so that was a very pleasant surprise.
