Hi-tec boots/Vibram soles – whats the catch?

In lots of places ‘Waterproof’ and quite cheap.

I wont be trekking in the alps etc etc etc but anyone owned hi-tec boots?

I remember avoiding hi-tec at school as ‘un cool’!

I’ve got some hi tec boots. They’re ok for a few hours but you begin to feel the path through the soles after a while. No trouble with waterproof-ness or warmth though.

What size are you?

Cheap and cheerful for everyday use. Wouldn’t use them for a serious walk, but for say <10 miles they’re fine. I’m after a new pair myself – what price for…?

Girlfriend has some and rates them pretty highly.

I had some hi-tec Magnums at work for a while. They are comfy and light, but not very hard wearing. Can’t speak for the rest of the range, though. Also, vibram soles are excellent.

I also remember hi-tec being a real no-no at school, along with the tesco “no frills” range!

I think the un cool bit is why they are cheap

I’m old enough to remember Hi tec trainers being very cool, I think about 1983-84

At school Gola and hitec were a no no.

Until recently I had a pair of goretex? Leather boots from …Nike £100 ten years ago! I think they were a failed Nike experiment but they lasted v.well)

Very thin sole, last about 100 miles …..

Captain crash… You missed a ‘Mine had a…’ From the start of that

I’ve had them in the past,and I’ve got two pairs on the go at the moment. No complaints whatsoever. I cover about seven miles at a time in mine.

I’ve used my HiTec v-lite boots for 8 years and covered several hundred miles over varied terrain without any problems.
Waterproof and very comfy. Soles are good and grippy. Looking tatty now but still waterproof.

I like them – but then I’m not a brand snob! 😉

Hi Tec are owned by Sports Direct I think.

Cheap stuff made cheaply. But if they fit well they will probably be OK.

Surprised they have a vibram sole.

Tiggs+1, my vlites have been everywhere and are still perfectly usable. Hitec silver shadow were cool when I was at school 😳

Had a waterproof pair of v-lites a few years ago, they were very comfy but leaked like a sieve from day one. Took them back to shop (Go Outdoors) after a couple months who were unsurprised and I was told that they were sold at a “pricepoint” and I shouldn’t have expected them to be waterproof. Offered a replacement pair which I declined and took a refund instead.

Don’t think HiTec have anything to do with Sports Direct as suggested above.

30 years ago Hitec were leading the way with light weight trekking boots. Before you could pretty much only get heavy leather hiking boots and then they started using Goretex membranes and lighter cordura type uppers.

No idea what they are like now but back then they were pretty revolutionary.

I have a pair of the national trust altitudes.

Comfy – wear them for when im working away , can walk miles and miles round places in em without worrying. Longest ive done is 25k round baku and no blisters

Worn them on the hill in the uk – dont have this thin sole issue and because im not doing technical walking they are soft enough to wear for just wandering.

Not saying they are for everyone but for what i need the fit and are comfy + can verify they are waterproof. Leather upers though so need to keep em treated

We had 150 pairs of fabric and leather HiTec’s and Regatta boots in our old kit store.
For the money (we paid about 60% off RRP permanently) they are superb. They are well made, robust enough and waterproof enough.
If I was buying my own boots, I would spend more as I don’t think they were the most comfy over longer walks / muti days (I tried a pair on a 4-day DofE trip, without blisters, but feet ached a lot).
Go for it.

Absolutely fine. Perhaps not up to the production standards of some of the big name brands but more than adequate for most UK walking. If they fitted the shape of my feet better I’d have them again (my last pair were dayglo yellow/pink so that will date them).

Also had a pair if Nikes way back when. They had the air pump tongue so you could get a really good fit. Shame they stopped making them.

These are the best cheap boots I’ve ever owned http://www.cnfoutdoors.co.uk/northwest-territory-mens-inuvik-hiking-boots?language=en&currency=GBP&utm_source=Google&utm_medium=products&utm_campaign=product%2Bsearch&gclid=COf3x5K8-LsCFdLItAodrx0AdQ. Very comfortable very durable and waterproof.

Silver Shadows +1 mmmmmm!

winston_dog – Member

Hi Tec are owned by Sports Direct I think.

Cheap stuff made cheaply. But if they fit well they will probably be OK.

Surprised they have a vibram sole.

I think you are confusing them with the Karrimor name which Sports Direct has ruined.

My wife’s Hi-Tec V-Lites have been great

Hi Tec were never cool even in 1983-84

They’re cheaply made and don’t carry a high brand status so aren’t expensive, I have pair of their walking shoes for taking the dog a longish walks. Comfy enough seem robust enough but not very waterproof wet grass leaks through them. For the price though they serve a purpose.

If want to invest a bit more there was some North Face boots for less than £50 think it was Go Outdoors doing them.

Edit:

It was Millets but no NF left they have others http://www.millets.co.uk/walking-hiking/mens-walking-boots/ use EXTRA25 for 25% off the displayed price, if the code still works.

Oooops! Just went to put them on and they’re Karrimor 😳

A lot of the better Karrimor stuff has Vibram soles.
They still do some exellent boots.

I’ve found the quality of the Hi Tec boots to be extremely variable – my leather ones shed their lining after a few months, were made out of cheap leather and generally not worth the cash.
Mrs S’s Ultralites are pretty good and have lasted well, but the sole isn’t grippy enough on wet rock and they don’t offer much support.

I’d go for Karrimor (KSB or Coniston) over Hi Tec any day.

Hi Tec worn at school would definitely have marked you out for a massive wedgie and having your dinner money nicked. So if you buy a pair then that’s exactly what’s happening to you! 🙂

Hmm, school maybe, but these:

were cooler than a witches fridge in the late 80’s.

Fluro laces essential. 🙂

Got some £29.99 Hi-Tex hiking boots for camping, general walking stuff about 6-7 years ago and they are still going strong. Don’t get used for proper ‘hiking’ duties, but get worn quite a lot.

As already said, I am not sure the sole will isolate you from rocky trails for really long walks, but up to 10 miles they should be OK.
Mine are still waterproof and they are pretty warm.

My wife has also got a pair of them; they are also fine but don’t get used as much.

Hi Tec worn at school would definitely have marked you out for a massive wedgie and having your dinner money nicked. So if you buy a pair then that’s exactly what’s happening to you! 🙂

That’s so true in my experience as a teacher! The kids stopped doing it when I started wearing 5:10’s.

😯

Had a pair of Hi-tec Trilogy boots with a Hi-tec sole for approx 14 years. They have been pretty comfortable and have been used on long walks including the Inca Trail and over the last couple of years have been worn very regularly on a number of long (10 miles plus) walks in the Dales and South West and have held up well, although the waterproofing has deteriorated recently and the grip on the sole is wearing out. They have proved to be superb value for money!

were cooler than a witches fridge in the late 80’s.

No, no they weren’t.

I’ve tried some on – felt like I was wearing the box not the boots – no padding, no support.

The ones I tried on are hyper comfy in the shop. Cant find the design anywhere on line and £25 in tkmaxx. Win-win???

Comfy and £25? Worth a try!

I just spent £45 on a pair of Adidas Goretex lined boots…worth the extra IMO…

I had some of the v lites when they first came out. Supremely comfortable but alas the thin vibram layer peeled off the soft trainer type midsole within two weeks use dog walking. That in itself disappointed me enough to have my money back and invest in some Lowa Mountain Boots for £140! That was 10 years ago and they only just need resoling,
The old adage of you get what you pay for I believe,

I’m old enough to remember Hi tec trainers being very cool, I think about 1983-84

I’m cool enough to remember that Hi-Tec trainers were certainly not cool in the early 80’s 😉

You would need to be hanging around with some seriously uncool computer geeks, playing dungeons and dragons after chess club if they thought your Hi-Tecs were cool 🙂

Hi Tec Paras here with Vibram sole for work.
Warm, dry, good fit, £60 at Sports Direct or £90 from the local boutique shop on the high street.

The British Knights were cool in the late eighties, not HiTec.

I use the HiTec V lights for work they’re light and comfortable and a good price!

Diadoras were cool

Drac – Moderator

were cooler than a witches fridge in the late 80’s.

No, no they weren’t.

Yeah, they were, honestly. 🙂

Amongst the, ahem, ‘Rock’ crowd at the time, they were hard currency matey. 😀
They were also the only white leather basketball boots you could actually buy. 😐

Anyway, they were cool.

PePPeR – Member

The British Knights were cool in the late eighties, not HiTec.
If you were eleven, possibly. 🙂

hora – Member

Diadoras were cool

Diadora Borg Elite were the ultimate expression of casual supremacy.

But not cool.
Because to afford them you had to either;
Have been bought them by your parents.
or
Be a drug dealer.
or
Have stolen them.

None of which were especially cool, even in the 80’s. 😀

And beside, the only really, genuinely cool kids were never taken in by the whole label thing in the first place & were still wearing Docs. 🙂

If you were eleven, possibly. 🙂

Eleven! Get away, BK’s were the mutts nutts for those 5 minutes in 1989!