[Closed] Doc Martens : who wears them?

me. comfy too.

I have 5 pairs.

Cherry red

2 pairs waxed brown

Brown

And nubuck.

Tonight I shall be wading through big puddles to see which are the most waterproof after giving them a good wax.

Jerzei Balowski?

Had a few boots over the years, got one worn old pair and a slightly newer "smarter" pair on the go at the moment. Had a few pairs of trainers over the past few years as well.

I want a pair of the standard shoes (although the hard life version) but they're £130.

Me. Pair of brown 1460s.

Me. They fit me well and are durable. Kept struggling to find work shoes I like then thought sod it, £120 on DMs. Worth it.

I then bought another brown pair, not quite traditional style but I wanted something I could wear with chinos and both a t-shirt or smart shirt, as the traditionals look weird with a t-shirt I think, at least on me.

Wearing them right now. The Newton model which is noticeably lighter than the standard boot while also being a bit softer with no breaking in required.
Strung with red laces as I am still a rude boy in my head.

I wonder if he wears them?

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A pair of 1490 boots at work, my little kick against the office 'business attire' policy, and a pair of made in England 1461 shoes.

Both have yellow stitching, it must always be yellow stitching!

In Hebden Bridge all the ladies wear them.

I'm wearing a pair of purple docs with rainbow laces. Cause I can. 🙂

Me and Kerley.

Our friend habitually wears purple Docs - ecclesiastical purple - always has done, especially now he's a bishop.

I do.  8 eyelet in brown. Used to be a big wearer of 8  eyelet in black - both original and the greasy finish.

the griggs legacy

Alexie Sayle?

Yep, love 'em and worn them for years.

I'm currently down to 3 pairs - 2 x 1460's one of each in classic black (black laces) & cherry (yellow laces) and also a pair of their Rakem mid-olive 'urban explorer' boots that are even waterproof!

I really miss my old DM brogue boots (a bit like the Affleck but all leather and proper off road sole) that I got married in. They were the most comfortable boots I've ever had but the tongue developed a fault so had to go back and they'd stopped making them by then.

yep, brown leather chelsea boots. (can't be arsed with laces)

Just realised, I'm actually wearing the Rakem's at the moment.

I used to wear them, back when I worked for them. Hadn't worn them for years then thought I'd give them another try but the pair I bought were pretty shoddy. Shame really.

I'd all but forgotten about DMs until I was browsing in a fabulous shop in Kirkby Lonsdale. GR & RD Taylor. What an emporium of variety and delight. You can get a Robert's radio, an adze, firelighters, airguns, knives, bows, Zippo lighters, thermal socks, torches, a policeman's helmet (yep), an NYFD jacket, cartridge belts and lots of DMs.

If you're in Kirkby, it's well worth a look.

Cherry Reds.

And Billy Bolofski

Had a pair of the oxblood boots for ages and then several pairs of the black shoes both with shiny leather, matt leather or the greasey ones. Stopped buying them as the quality seemed to dip quite considerably and I had a 2 or 3 pairs in a row where the leather started tearing ao haven't bought any since, and just looking at the current prices I don't think I will be in the near future despite living 5 minutes from a shop who almost solely (sorry about the pun!) sell DMs. Such a shame that a great British product seems to have lost its way somewhat.

I would but they're too narrow for my feet.

Both my daughters have them for school shoes and they are ace, they last well, keep dry and about the same as Clarks

The made in the UK versions for better quality (and more £££). Shame they have stopped the For Life range.

2 pairs here - so comfy. Gone vegan since last purchase so I guess I guess I'll have to go down that option when the time comes to buy again.

I would but they’re too narrow for my feet.

They do different widths. Men's and unisex, with men's being the narrower. Which is odd, I can only imagine it's a style thing.

Yep ox blood boots with turned up jeans and Fred Perry is my pub wear. I think I look ace though others may disagree.

We all do in my family.

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Even The Boy wears a pair of 1461's and he's a die-hard trainer wearer.

Yep - brown Cabrillo crazy horse for any/every occasion. Not as industrial as the standard 8 hole bovver boots. Comfortable as slippers.

Safety ones on my feets at the moment, first pair for 20+ years. Seem ok so far.

Are they still agony for the first several months of wearing them or are they a bit softer now?

Me! Got around a dozen pairs at the last count I think. Pink, green, black, blue, brown, flowery, sequinned, posh ones with heels, you name them! Wear them every day for work as I’m on my feet all day. Nothing else is as comfy.
Bought quite a few at the outlet store at Cheshire Oaks so had a few bargains!

In a previous life I used to look after some of the Griggs family fortune. They were thoroughly old school and only moved the production to China when it was clear the unions would cause the firm to fold if they didn't. It was agonizing for them but worse for the 1000 that got made redundant. Good old unions eh!

I left my job about a year before they sold to private equity for 300 million....my old boss took the money and the credit. That's life!

Interesting the only pair of shoes I ever owned that literally fell apart on me was a pair of docs given to me by max.

Yep - been wearing the 8 hole black pair I bought in 1996 today - still look virtually new despite being older than nearly all of the people I was working with! Also got a pair of steel toe cap DM shoes from when I worked in a factory in the early 90’s - mainly for garden/DIY building projects now - my toes owe them many debts of gratitude!

I bought some earlier this year.

Wore them today.

Not really getting on with them to be honest. Make me walk a bit "ploddy"

Used to wear them all the time as a schoolboy but that was 40 years ago!

Gone vegan since last purchase so I guess I guess I’ll have to go down that option when the time comes to buy again.

They're supposed to be good now. I used the Steelie version in the early 90s when I was a toolmaker and they were made of something similar to cardboard. They just dissolved. But no other vegan options for work boots back then.

Got a pair of 'womens' black patent leather 1460 for best. Couldn't get 'mens' in patent at the time...

Just worn through the sole on a 4 year old pair of 2976 that I wear daily for work. Will be replaced by another pair (unless on a whim I go back to Blundstones) as I know they are wide enough (if I size up) to not aggravate my gippy feet.

Had an amazing pair of 1460s years ago - black canvas with multicoloured lace over the top. Wish they still did those...

I bought a black pair for winter dog walking. With the sown in tongue, they are just the ticket for walking through the mud and slop that the local footpaths have turned in to.

Are they still agony for the first several months of wearing them or are they a bit softer now?

I found mine were digging into the top of my right foot between the toes and ankle, for a while last year. Seem ok now though.

Yip, mostly to my Punk gigs

The safety boots that I posted the other day, that most people didn't like, as they looked like safety boots. Meh, I like chunky boots

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I got my first pair when I was 16, as I had a crush on a girl who liked the Smiths. She wore them.
I still have their steel toe jobs for work and a lovey comme de Garçon pair for dancing.
Before that it was monkey boots because my mother thought that anyone who wore Docs were fascist boot boys. Ha.

Yes, a pair of butterscotch coloured shoes. They are the dogs.

The safety boots that I posted the other day, that most people didn’t like, as they looked like safety boots. Meh, I like chunky boots

Those look much better on. Utilitarian in a good way. 😎

In the early 1990's I worked at Laura Ashley as a Saturday girl.
The manageress warned me that I wasn't to carry on wearing my black patent leather docs, as they didn't fit in with the 'look' that Laura Ashley wanted to uphold.
To be fair they did look a bit odd with the 'smocks' that were the uniform of the day, and floral floaty frocks.

I have CAT boots. Very similar. Black. Yellow stitching and logo. Mostly worn with my kilt.

I had some CAT boots years ago, I remember them being comfy and hard wearing. Now timberland have upped price and downed quality I may well get another pair of CATs when the time comes.

Just got some new waxy leather 939s.

My boots normally crack above my toe joint. What non sticky, waterproofing ,conditioner should I try?

10yr old daughter wears the to school, start em young.
As House of Pain once said;
'put on your sh1t kickers and kick some sh1t'.

Bought a pair 8 hole boots for the first time in years just before Christmas. Went into the shop in Reading and I was the oldest person in there.

"Are they for you sir ?" said the puzzled shop girl.

I felt like saying " look love, I was wearing DMs before your parents were a twinkle in you grandparents' eyes".

Instead I said "Yes, I find the soles give me confidence on icy pavements". 🙁

What non sticky, waterproofing ,conditioner should I try?

You could try DM's own made for that particular leather.

Still got a pair of 2976 in brown (Gaucho I think they call it) which are just so comfy they'll have to be replaced wit the same when they finally give up.

You could try DM’s own made for that particular leather.

Yep - DM wonder balsam is the best for these. Or for treating any (non patent) leather come to that.
Seems expensive for a small tin but one tin lasts for ages so it works out ok 👍

Don't own any now, but had to as a teen,.... due to being an art student, a fan of Indie music and lived in Rushden!

I'm in the market for a pair and was looking on ebay earlier......found these which the seller claims have only been worn twice.

what he didn't specifically say was that the first time he wore them it was for 15 minutes, and the second time for 15 months!!!

yup, steel toe cap safety boots, my standard work shoe when in a lab

At a trade fair and I'd say 90% of DM wearers are ladeez.

Mighty fine they look in them too.

I've just returned to them after 20yrs. 2 weeks ago I bought a pair of cherry 1460's, I forgot how long they take to break in but they are showing potential and I only need a couple of plasters now

Came here to see who would be brave enough to put the obvious stereotyped answer.....

sign of the times

I have a pair of Cherry 1460’s and a pair of their Crofton boots that i originally bought for work, but they are too nice to ruin. Easily the most comfortable pairs of footwear i have ever had.

Doc M boots are the stuff of childhood pain and nightmares.

Redwing, Chippewa or Fracap boots FTW.
I'm still hanging on to a pair of Timbie GTX moccasin boots. The best Timberland ever made IMO.

CAT....head wobble.

Same boots as zippy

Same boots as zippy

Me too. I wear them everyday as part of my “smart casual” work wear. The black collar bit is peeling horrifically now though..I’ll try the balsam.

Yup. Favourite footwear ever. Currently have three pairs of boots. Only today have I taken delivery of some 14-hole 1B99s to replace my beloved-but-knackered antique red 9733s. They are my work footwear of choice. And I’m a middle-aged woman.

I really don't get why DM's are trendy now.. They are just ugly

Every day at school for the last 20 years.
Get about 5 years out of a pair.
Oh crikes - one pair will be the last before retirement!

I really don’t get why DM’s are trendy now.. They are just ugly

Ummm, they’re not ‘trendy’ now, any more than they’ve ever been ‘trendy’ - they’re recognised and appreciated as a fine item of footwear with an established heritage among a wide section of society.
@zippykona - you could try Renapur wax. It’s great stuff, you can use it on waxed cotton and leather, I’ve got an old leather bike jacket I bought second-hand that was really stiff - it would literally stand upright! I bought a tub of Renapur for treating a waxed cotton coat, and gave the jacket a couple of good treatments, now it just collapses when I try to stand it up!
It’s still fairly stiff, but a lot more flexible than it was when I bought it.
Couldn’t bear to part with it, it’s got a Tank Girl sketch on the lining drawn by Jamie Hewlett when he was with Deadline Comic.
https://www.renapur.com/

No. Never saw the attraction.

Looked in the DM shop in Edinburgh and couldn't believe how much they cost nowadays. Had them when I was a teenager partly because they were cheap.

I really hope so!

Looked in the DM shop in Edinburgh and couldn’t believe how much they cost nowadays. Had them when I was a teenager partly because they were cheap.

Same here. Would love a pair of Docs now, but put off by the price and some reports that quality has dropped through the floor.

<fancy boots/a>

some reports that quality has dropped through the floor.

New Doc's time coming up soon and I've been reading that the quality control is a bit hit and miss these days. I'm trying to decide between a pair of made in England 1460's, or a pair of Solovair Derby's (their 1460). Not buying a pair of Martens after 45 years of wearing them feels dirty and like being unfaithful?

Anyone gone down the Solovair route? I'd miss the yellow stitching.

Anyone gone down the Solovair route? I’d miss the yellow stitching.

Thinking about it.
I was in the Glasgow Dr Martens shop at the weekend to have a look at the made in England 1490s in the flesh. You can see the differences, when you compare the made in England boots next to the imported ones.
I'm torn between a pair of Solovairs, or MiE DMs, as they are the same price. Leaning towards Solovair as they are a wee company, rather than the international concern that DMs are now.

I’m torn between a pair of Solovairs, or MiE DMs, as they are the same price. Leaning towards Solovair as they are a wee company, rather than the international concern that DMs are now.

This.

...but I need yellow stitching! 😃

I used to re yellow the stitching on my dms with the yellow crayon from a puncture outfit. That might work on your Solovairs.

Solovair here, like DMs but made in UK, pretty sure they used to make DMs