Disclaimer: I received this pair of boots on the house, but I was not otherwise compensated. I did my best to be as objective as possible, but you should still know.

Golden Fox specializes in sturdy USA-made work boots that will stand the test of time without breaking the bank. Recently, they released the Boondockers, a dressier plain toe boot, furthering the company’s reach into the fashion side of boot-making. As you all know, Golden Fox’s moc toes are my go-to kicks, so I’ve been dying to get my feet in a pair of these.

Now, do note that these are my initial impressions. I’ve been wearing these boots for only a week now, but I want to let you all know my first thoughts. I plan on revisiting these after a month or two of wear, so we can see what kind of patina they’ve collected and how they’re holding up. For this reason I’m not going to score them because I feel that’s not pertinent and may be misleading.

Style

These boots are easily the most versatile shoes in my closet. Hands down. Chinos, jeans, and corduroys all pair exceedingly well, and they don’t look out of place with a t-shirt, a button down, or anything in between. They shine best when paired with raw denim and flannels, which brings out their true backcountry vibes, but don’t be afraid to wear them with a spring OCBD and slim khaki chinos. They won’t pull attention from other key pieces in your fits, but also certainly hold their own.

Avoid pairing them with black pants, since the color is a bit too dark. In general, lighter browns or tans pair well with black, but a very dark brown makes your bottom half look a bit muddled.

Now a moment about patina: these boots have the “beeswax” style finish that is similar to Clark’s infamous desert boot (look for my review later). This style of leather gets scuffed, and it gets scuffed often; you simply must accept that this is part of the beauty of these shoes. Don’t expect to keep them immaculate. You will fail. Miserably. The cool part about this leather is that it continues to evolve throughout its entire life. As you wear them the scuffs naturally fade away, and are replaced by new ones, so they become an ever-changing record of where you’ve been and how you’ve worn your boots.

Comfort

One of the biggest issues I have with most of the inexpensive shoes you can find on the market (e.g. H&M, Clarks, J.C. Penny) is that they are incredibly uncomfortable. I have one pair of insoles that I rotate between half of my boots just to make them wearable. My Golden Fox moc toes have always been the exception, never requiring an insole and still remaining my most comfortable boot.

I’m happy to say that the Boondockers are just as comfy, featuring wonderful arch support and cushion. They’re not overly squishy, and still feel solid, but they certain don’t need a different insole. My one complaint is that the arch support is a bit aggressive for my feet, but that doesn’t mean that it would be bad for everyone. The more I break them in, the more I imagine they will mold to my feet in particular.

When it comes to breaking them in, they were of course a bit stiff for the first two days. By day three, however, they were feeling much less abrasive. The back of the heel is taking the longest to break in, but that’s standard in my experience. The leather is already much more malleable, which is promising for the months to come.

Quality

This is hard for me. I wish I could be more critical of these boots, I really do. I wish I could point out various defects so you would know that I’m being totally fair, but honestly, these are a really well made pair of boots. For the life of my, I cannot find a single problem. The leather is cut so clean, the stitching is subtle yet gorgeous, the welt is sewn-in to perfection, and the tread on the sole is simply outstanding. These boondockers have by far exceeded my expectations for a pair of $140 boots, and they continue to impress me everyday.

This category in particular will be more informative when I revisit these boots in a couple of months, after a summer of hard wear. Look for that in the future, and I’ll give you the full run-down on their lifespan.

Final Thoughts

Like I said earlier, I won’t give these boots a score quite yet, but I must say that I adore them. They are incredibly well constructed, wonderfully comfortable, and look so goddamn good. I honestly feel comfortable recommending these boots to any of you already, despite having only had them for a week. I’ve worn my Golden Fox moc toes for over a year now, and if those are any indication, then these boondockers will only look better with time. I have not had a single quality issue with my moc toes, and haven’t had any signs of it with the boondockers either.

That’s it for now, but keep an eye on my Instagram feed to see them age over this summer. They’ve already taken over all my fits, and will be getting much love in the future. You can get the exact pair I’m wearing right here from their website.