Breaking in Tall Boots

AutumnAttic · 05-14-2007, 07:17 PM

I got new tall boots, and they are stiff.
I started creasing them by hand at the ankles, like the lady at the tack shop showed me.

Other tips?

Thank you!
Amber

SunBun · 05-14-2007, 07:18 PM

walk around in them? lol

that's all I can think of. Stiff boots are the worst!

Abberlaze · 05-14-2007, 07:32 PM

Ugh. I"m doing that right now too. No fun....but shiny new tall boots are the reward! I'll survive. The only thing that makes it better is to put some conditioner on the ankle area to soften the leather and allow it to drop better.

Curious though....how did she tell you to break in the ankle?

AutumnAttic · 05-15-2007, 07:36 PM

thanks guys!
and she said by making folds in them with my hands . " butterfly folds" to be exact, lol.

codyntampa · 05-16-2007, 04:52 AM

Wear them around the house

Chester · 05-16-2007, 05:00 AM

Make sure you have a boot jack before wearing them.

HELP - QUICKLY. You're going to love this.

JBandRio · 05-16-2007, 03:25 PM

Honestly, just wear them. I wouldn't be actively putting creases in the ankle - the last thing you want is a crease that wouldn't have been there through normal wear and have it digging into you foot the while time.

I haven't ever been brave enough to try this, but people SWEAR by filling them with warm water and then wearing them until they are dry (so HOURS). This custom fits them to you.

MissCita · 05-16-2007, 03:50 PM

Quote:

I haven't ever been brave enough to try this, but people SWEAR by filling them with warm water and then wearing them until they are dry (so HOURS). This custom fits them to you.

My granny used to do that with all her leather shows. However I'm WAY too paranoid to even think about it.

I just got a new pair a few months ago, wear them as much as you can around the house, condition them, etc. I even slept in mine (they are zip offs) and that helped a lot!

PaintedPNH · 05-16-2007, 04:17 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by chester

Make sure you have a boot jack before wearing them.

HELP - QUICKLY. You're going to love this.

How did I ever miss that thread!?

JumpingBean · 05-16-2007, 04:55 PM

My three favorite tricks:

- Bend the calf of the boot forward over the toe. Stick it under the edge of a chair or something and leave it. Repeat with other boot. It makes them so much easier to flex your heels down in. You can also put them on and then stand on the edge of a step pushing your heels down in; this has the added bonus of stretching your tendons and ligaments as well as the boots.

- Put on the boots and get a clean, well-oiled stirrup leather. Rub it up and down the inside of the boot, especially the ankle (you may need a helper for this).

- Keep your saddle and girth well oiled, if they are leather. This does a super job of working the oil into the parts of your boot that come in contact with the saddle/girth/leathers and making them soft and supple. The zipper on one of my boots broke awhile back and I had to get it fixed, and the cobbler was SO sure I was overoiling my boots. Nope, it was all the saddle's doing -- they were only oiled once or twice the whole time I had 'em. They were so soft you could have rolled a cigar in the leather, and they were just ordinary mail-order boots (Ariat Challenge, I think).

05-14-2007, 07:17 PM	#1
AutumnAttic Senior Member+ Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Michigan U.S.A. Posts: 5,659 Images: 113	Breaking in Tall Boots I got new tall boots, and they are stiff. I started creasing them by hand at the ankles, like the lady at the tack shop showed me. Other tips? Thank you! Amber __________________ Amber I've been snowballed.

05-15-2007, 07:36 PM	#4
AutumnAttic Senior Member+ Join Date: Nov 2003 Location: Michigan U.S.A. Posts: 5,659 Images: 113	thanks guys! and she said by making folds in them with my hands . " butterfly folds" to be exact, lol. __________________ Amber I've been snowballed.

05-16-2007, 04:52 AM	#5
codyntampa Senior Member+ Join Date: Jul 2005 Location: Pennsylvania Posts: 2,846 Images: 259 Blog Entries: 1	Wear them around the house __________________ "When God Created Quarter Horses, he painted the good ones" -Katie- Codys Grand Cue -"Cody"- 8yr old 16.3h tobiano Paint gelding Cinful - "Harold" - 6yr old 16h bay Thoroughbred gelding

05-16-2007, 05:00 AM	#6
Chester Senior Member+ Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: inland of the coral sea Posts: 10,487 Images: 778	Make sure you have a boot jack before wearing them. HELP - QUICKLY. You're going to love this. __________________ Aussie Aussie Aussie OI OI OI "We're all members of the outback club, we don't back down and we don't give up" Lee Kernaghan "Good friends are worth more than money any day" Adam Brand Is it full moon time again? Did the cereal truck overturn and fruitloops got spilt?

05-16-2007, 03:25 PM	#7
JBandRio Senior Member+ Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: NC Posts: 24,433 Images: 146 Blog Entries: 12	Honestly, just wear them. I wouldn't be actively putting creases in the ankle - the last thing you want is a crease that wouldn't have been there through normal wear and have it digging into you foot the while time. I haven't ever been brave enough to try this, but people SWEAR by filling them with warm water and then wearing them until they are dry (so HOURS). This custom fits them to you. __________________ - JB Acres, owned and operated by Dynamite animals. - It's a wonder horses as a whole don't just kill us all and be done with their misery. - Keep your voice soothing and low - even when things get western (buck1173) - You can't hit me with all those snowballs!

05-14-2007, 07:32 PM	#3
Abberlaze Senior Member Join Date: Aug 2006 Location: PA Posts: 869 Images: 22	Ugh. I"m doing that right now too. No fun....but shiny new tall boots are the reward! I'll survive. The only thing that makes it better is to put some conditioner on the ankle area to soften the leather and allow it to drop better. Curious though....how did she tell you to break in the ankle?

05-16-2007, 04:55 PM	#10
JumpingBean Senior Member+ Join Date: May 2007 Location: Texas and Louisiana Posts: 1,658 Images: 15	My three favorite tricks: - Bend the calf of the boot forward over the toe. Stick it under the edge of a chair or something and leave it. Repeat with other boot. It makes them so much easier to flex your heels down in. You can also put them on and then stand on the edge of a step pushing your heels down in; this has the added bonus of stretching your tendons and ligaments as well as the boots. - Put on the boots and get a clean, well-oiled stirrup leather. Rub it up and down the inside of the boot, especially the ankle (you may need a helper for this). - Keep your saddle and girth well oiled, if they are leather. This does a super job of working the oil into the parts of your boot that come in contact with the saddle/girth/leathers and making them soft and supple. The zipper on one of my boots broke awhile back and I had to get it fixed, and the cobbler was SO sure I was overoiling my boots. Nope, it was all the saddle's doing -- they were only oiled once or twice the whole time I had 'em. They were so soft you could have rolled a cigar in the leather, and they were just ordinary mail-order boots (Ariat Challenge, I think). __________________ Everyone reaches for the stars, some people just reach a lil harder! ~Kellidahorsegirl

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