Over the summer I got an email from Danner introducing their new Crafter work boot. I have reviewed Danner boots in the past (Viscious and Radical) and loved both boots.
I finally ditched my Radicals because the sole was so worn I was slipping on the jobsite too many times. The Viscious boots were great but I stretched them out wearing them on the roof. I’ve learned not to wear work boots while working on the roof because of this kind of issue. Since my feet roll to the outside, once a boot is stretched, it’s no good to me. Now those boots feel like I’m walking along a ridge with my feet on opposite sides. They just roll outward too much and my knees can bother me. I asked Danner to send me a pair of Crafters to try out.
Crafter at a glance. According to Danner this boot has no hot spots, zero break-in time and more room in the toes than is typical with safety-toe boots. Stress points are triple stitched for durability and it features a patent-pending Danner Comfort System. Danner says that the footbed has a “deep, full-length polyurethane core for all-day comfort”.
The safety toe is non-metallic, but meets safety standards. It is designed with a little extra room in the toe box. For water proofing, Danner combines nubuck leather with its proprietary “Dry lining” which they say pulls moisture away from your foot.
Fit and Function. I’ve been wearing these boots doing foundation work and framing for several months now. The first day it felt like my heel wasn’t seated properly. I had left the top eyelets unlaced because I don’t typically care to have them laced all the way up. We had a footing to set up and we had to walk all the materials up a steep temporary path, so I decided to lace them up through the top eyelets to see if that helped with what I was experiencing in my heel. After lacing them up all the way and wearing the boots all day, I fell in love with them.
This boot offers a lot of ankle support and my heel seated just right after I laced all the way up. Additionally since I have flat feet, the wider toe box was perfect. The Radicals did pitch my toes a little, not enough to cause any issues, but I always knew the safety toe was there. This is not the case with the Crafter.
This jobsite had just been excavated and we had lots of rain so it was muddy, and this boot was perfect. The next day we were back to framing and walking wall plates felt very stable. I don’t walk wall plates as often as I used to (we work off ladders for safety) but blocking joists is easier walking the wall so I was glad to have the stability when performing this task.
I don’t have any complaints about these boots. Since there is no toe guard, if you kneel a lot you will likely wear them out. I’ve never had this happen to me, but another guy on my crew has.
I wear a 10 ½, which fit right on the money. I recommend this boot and now that the heavy rain has hit my region, I’ll be wearing this boot (and rain gear) until spring. One caveat, I did noticed that my feet sweat more in this boot with the temp in the 60’s. But I wouldn’t normally wear waterproof in warm dry weather.
SPECS:Approximate weight per shoe: 1lb. 12oz.
Weather: Wet - Waterproof
Gender: Men
Features: Electrical hazard protection ASTM F2892-11 EH, Airthotic® heel clip
Upper: Oiled Leather; available in 6-in. or 8-in.; also available as a 3-in. slip-on
COO: Imported from Vietnam
Price: $160
www.danner.com
