My feet have had enough of being cold and wet and are refusing to go out in the cold / rain again unless I get some new boots.

Two winter boots seem to get ok reviews – does anyone have any recent experience good or bad with 45NRTH Japanther or Bontrager OMW boots?

The Japanther are definitely SPD only as the compound used in the rubber is too hard for flats. Have tried a pair of OMWs in the shop, felt like a softer rubber. The Specialized Defrosters are similar to the Japanthers.

I’m a bit of a wuss when it comes to cold fingers and toes but have found the trusty Shimano MW81s to be very good. When it’s cold or wet, I like to put some neoprene overshoes over the top as it keeps me extra warm and they’re much easier to clean mud off than boots (just chuck them in the washing machine).

I’d throw Lakes 303’s into the mix personally, especially over the Japanthers (zips have no place on winter boots), Wölvhammer would be a better bet. I do like the look of the Bontrager but can personally recommend the 303’s (hugely better than my MW81’s, which in turn were a huge improvement over NW Celsius), buy them via halford and get 10% discount with your BC card.

Plastic bag FTW!
Tried it today for the first time with a pair of cheap skate shoes and feet stayed toasty and I didn’t even tell they were there. I was concerned about slipping around inside the shoes but didn’t happen.

Specialized Defrosters. I bought the MTB ones from the Stafford concept store (im Diabetic and my feet suffer the most). What are they like? Pricey, but bloody marvelous!

Defrosters

cough cough……..

FS, Shimano xm9 winter boots. size 12. 5 rides old.

I had mw81’s and my feet still really suffered in them. I have found that a boot with plenty of room (some second hand mt 51’s a sz up work for me), merino wool socks, plastic freezer bags over the shoes and thick neoprene overshoes have worked better than anythin else. If you leave the bags inside the shoes eventually you feel them

Plastic bags are basically a (very) cheap Vapour Barrier Layer. Wear very thin socks then the VBL socks or plastic bags then decent thick socks. The VBL/plastic bag stops your sweat from making the thicker socks damp and therefore lessening their insulation value. You do need properly waterproof boots for it to work so that the thicker socks don’t get wet from water ingress and it probably should be a bit below freezing otherwise they feel like a sauna 😛

I bought a pair of Japanthers from Charlie the Bikemongers a few weeks ago. They are really comfy and warm. They are water resistant rather than waterproof so you can still get wet feet but even when wet they stayed nice and warm. The only issue I have with them is the zip can be quite tight to get done up. I also had to go for a size larger then usual as they seem to size up quite small.

Have a pair of OMW and they were excellent in the cold last year, however in the tropical region of Aberdeen where is barely been below 5c this winter they’ve not seen light of day.

I’d also look at the Giro Alpineduro (+ Sealskins in my case). I’ve had nice toastie feet all winter 🙂 fully immersed in a puddle last weekend, boots were damp, but the socks kept me dry, and I still managed another 2 hours.

again, I’ve got some Japanthers, sized up like the rest, bare in mind your going to have thicker socks on as well,

4 hour road ride today (i switch to spds for winter) average temp was 1 degree, wet and drizzly for a couple of hours, no mudguards so water spray everywhere, feet where wet when i took them off, but not cold in the slightest (i probably made this worse as i wore knee warmers, not full length bibs)

they are expensive though,

I use MT91s coupled with mini waiters. They look niche but work.

Have you considered the 45 N Wolvhammer boots? They haves redesigned and look the business. Charlie the bikemonger is your man for those!

Wolvhammer is a ‘proper’ winter boot but too warm for anything but sub-zero only IMO, particularly as I’ve sized-up for -20C conditions and now sporting some Yeti gaiters to cope with overflow. I have a pair of Mavic Scree (now Crossmax) for three winters and they’re still going strong but would probably look at the new Mavic winter boot, Crossmax Pro Thermo.

+1 for Japanthers , have been wearing mine this Winter and I really like them. No wet or cold feet , good stiff sole too.

bruneep – Member
Have a pair of OMW and they were excellent in the cold last year, however in the tropical region of Aberdeen where is barely been below 5c this winter they’ve not seen light of day.

Similar story here in Aviemore. When is it going to be cold enough to wear them again?

I’ve tried many winter boots but settled on the NW Celsius being the best for me as it’s warm, wind proof, water proof enough and importantly has a very stiff sole, much better than any other boot for use with clipless pedals IME

45NRTH good but make sure you go at least 1 or 2 sizes up they are a tight fit

What we consider to be “winter” is seen as a shoulder season elsewhere, temperatures hovering around 0C just aren’t that cold in the general scheme of things but do introduce their own problems. I use Spesh Defrosters if I’ve got SPDs on the bike and some Goretex lined walking boots if I’m using flats. The latter let me fit gaiters which help further against water ingress unless I’m actually wading across a beck.

For when it gets really cold I use a pair of old winter mountaineering boots with built in gaiters – a bit clunky and with the thick vibram sole I need to raise the saddle 😆 Sod all feel of the pedals through them but with a proper winter boot you aren’t going to get that anyway.

Whichever you go for, I’d second the advice above about gaiters.

Any waterproof boot will be soaking pretty quickly (and slow to dry) with water splashing onto socks and getting drawn down into the boot on a splashy ride.

With gaiters, my Shimano MW81 s will keep my feet dry and warm for hours on a wet winter ride. I also have wolvhammers which don’t get used much as they really are toasty.

I can’t comment on any others as I haven’t tried them. Whichever you go for though, go big to allow toes wiggle room. This is more important in keeping feet warm than thicker socks imo.

I have a pair of japanthers.
I my old Northwave Celcius Arctics wore out and were replaced with Japs this autumn. I really suffer with cold feet and the northwaves were an absolute revelation at the time, so this time I thought I’d up the anti and go with the Japs.
From a warmth point of view, I’d say my fleece lined northwaves were warmer with the same sock, but the Japs are a bigger, higher boot so I can wear Marino hikeing socks inside them. They don’t seem to breathe quite as well as the northwaves (slightly damp socks after a ride) but they come much higher up the calf which could be the reason. They are certainly far more robust and more watertight. With mt5000 waterproof over trousers over the top I’ve ridden through rediculous amounts of water and had dry feet at the end.
Charlie recommend going up a size when ordering, which I did but it still wasn’t enough, so I went from my normal 43 to a 45. Also, 45Nrth say you must use a metal protector plate between some cleats (time atac in my case) and the sole. (Crank brothers make them.)
On the whole, I’d say they are definitely a step up from the northwaves, but not the huge leap up that paying almost twice the price I’d hoped for. But i think my expectations were unrealistic.
In summary, warm, comfortable, tough as old boots, and very waterproof. I can definitely recommend them.

North wave Celsius here all good 🙂

Spec defrosters here, which are fine though pulling the top over the Boa is a bit of a pain.

I’d be lying if I said they were winter boots, as they get worn pretty much all year round…

Hardly snowmageddon but cold enough to dig out my OMW boots, roasty toasty feet 🙂

I picked up some OMW’s cheap but unused from eBay last week. First ride in to work this morning. Not necessarily a particularly rigorous test, but at 1° I would normally have cold toes with normal shoes and neoprene covers. Not an issue today, toasty warm and comfortable 🙂

Cheers, Rich