Oboz Firebrand II Low B-Dry Hiking Shoe - Men's Gray, 13

If you are like me and spend hours reading reviews before making an online purchase, I wanted to provide my review of this excellent hiking shoe to make your decision to buy this shoe easier. I own or have owned merrill's, la sportiva's and salomon's and my new go to shoe is the Firebrand II by Oboz.First, I'm not an avid hiker but do put lots of time in them doing my personal weekend hobbies. Down in New Orleans, the terrain isn't exactly mountainous, but there are plenty of outdoor activities around. Anyway, I took the family to Glacier National Park this July and we hiked pretty hard for the first three days. My kids pooped out by the fourth, so I took it easy on them and only hiked 6 miles that day. While my legs, calves and thighs ached, my feet felt great thanks to the excellent support of the Firebrand II's. As for fit, I was very excited about how well this shoot fit my foot. When ordering from the internet, it's always nerve racking not knowing what you'll get in the mail. I have a standard 10-1/2 size foot and ordered these like my running shoes - a half size up. The size 11 even fit my slightly smaller left foot just fine. The shoe hugs the heel so there's no slippage. The width is standard - again, worked perfect for my standard width foot. The toe box provided enough room side to side, but didn't feel sloppy when hiking on sidehill paths. The one part of a shoe that can begin to heat up for me is the rise of the shoe. Again, the Firebrand II was very comfortable, didn't tighten up, slide around and or pinch at the rise. I wore mid and or light weight hiking socks each day and pulled the laces to a comfortable tightness. Day in day out, these have been the most comfortable pair of shoes I've hiked in and or worn all day. I did purchase the BeDry series (waterproof lining inside) which adds weight, so decide if you need yours to be waterproof or not. Down in south Louisiana, we get lots of rain, so it was a no brainer for me.Out of the box, the shoe has a unique look with the seven eyelets. The colors are bold and earthy and just look like they belong on a hiking trail. I did spend a little time breaking them in, however, I don't think that was necessary. The shoes are not stiff out of the box, but I always like to break my shoe in before embarking on a trip. Once I stopped admiring how good looking they were, I checked out the workmanship. I am leery of the toe's of shoes like this. It always seems the glue gives way. However, I saw no indication these toe wraps would pop. The sole seems very rugged. They did an excellent job with traction. I never slipped going downhill on loose gravel or wet rock. Best thing was at the end of each day, I would hose down the bottom and sides and not worry about the water soaking through.All in all, these are great shoes and you will not regret your purchase. I've cleaned mine up and put them away for my next hiking adventure - Alaska! I hope this helps. My final thought, Oboz are good to go. Buy with confidence.

Been wearing Keens for years. Never heard of Oboz but tried them on and seemed good. Got my regular size and wore a couple days around the house and decided they were a bit small. Got 1/2 size larger and they fit perfect. It did take a while to get them broken in, maybe 1-2 weeks. They are more like a boot in that they are not soft and squishy. But they give great support and look great so I'm very happy with them.

These ones have a very sticky outsole and gel-like forgiveness against twisting. Traction is incredible, especially on wet leafy slopes. I can plant a heel firmly on stone and flex it right and left a few degrees without breaking it loose. My shoe is tightly fit, and the flex is all in the rubber of the heel. This allows lots of forgiveness toward ankle and knee tendons. I live in PA where the trails are famous for rockiness. This is my new sneaker. I laugh at all the other ones I've ever had now. It's heel counter is like something made by Osolo. There is no sneaker like heel rolling in these. I would gladly grab this shoe and a 35 pound pack for a day hike on mostly smooth trails, or even for a couple of weeks of fourteen mile days. With a fifty pound pack I'd get stone bruises on the bottoms of my feet. All day on big pointy gravel, even without a pack, my feet would be sore on the bottom. I'd like to see a removable thin delrin footplate, for times when I want to go where it's too rocky for this shoe's stone bruising permeability. Overall, I'd want the sole to be exactly as it is, though, as it grips so well as to confidently trail run leaf strewn hillsides half covered in snow, These shoes are put together better than the best legendary hiking boots of backpacking's heyday. No leaks in rain and slush, no separation of glued parts after three months, no complaints at all, except that I'd wish for a removable bottom plate under the removable footbed as part of the package. The removable footbed is about similar to $50 orthotic insoles. It cups the heel well, and relieves pain from a bone spur I got from other ill fitting workboots as well as those other orthotic insoles did. In these, the bone spur inflammation is healing up as well as with that other orthotic, and I like the Oboz insole better for comfort and balance. One can't tell easily from the photo, but the rubber toe cap is very sticky for good traction where one might do a toe jam, is attached bomb-proof enough for doing that, and is thick enough to kick rocks down the trail all day, or to kneel with the toe tops in the dirt without wearing out.

Alles, wie es sein sollte. Nach 1Wo. wie bestellt aus GB erhalten. Sehr gutes Produkt und Verarbeitung.

Prompt delivery and a perfect fit . I have found them the best walking shoes for my feet to date. I have been buying Oboz trainers for the past 10 years and have no complaints.

低山ハイキングに数回使いました。何足かprime wardrobeにて試した結果、幅広の私の足を締め付けず包み込むような履き心地と配色デザインが気に入り購入しました。包み込むような、というのは具体的には既に持っているメレルのモアブ2に近いと感じました。モアブ2と比較して良い点はソールが滑りにくいこと。山道ではなくコンビニなんかの硬く平らな床が雨で濡れている状況で、メレルモアブ2はすごく滑ります。その滑りやすさを５段階の5とすればこのオボズは3くらいだといえます。比較して悪い点は添付画像にもあるように靴ひもが解けやすいこと。5時間のハイキングで10回以上解けてストレスが溜まりました。ひもを替えれば解決すると思われますがその点で☆-1です。総じて言えば、日本人に多い幅広甲高の足にもフィットする足型、デザインがメレルのように野暮ったくない、洗練されているという2点においてオススメできる1足です。

11月の山歩きに使用したのでレビューします。履いてみてまず驚いたのはシャンクの適度な固さ。何というか腰の有る固さで、車の運転も支障無く出来ながらも、岩に足をかけた際や雪斜面でのキックステップでも重登山靴で登っている時と同じ安心感が有ります。ソールもグリップ良く、一般的な路面や雪面、沢渡りでも安心して歩く事が出来ますが、唯一、泥濘路での排泥性能はあまり良く無い感じです。（どの靴もそうですが…）BDRYも体中汗をかく状況でも靴中は蒸れることなく、中々良い性能を出しているように感じます。ローカットなので、同じObozのトラバースミッドに比べれば踵廻りのホールド感がもう一つかなと思いますが、行き帰りの運転でも支障無く出来、家を出てから帰るまで不足無く使用する事が出来る満足感の高い靴です。

This is my second pair after wearing the first ones out hiking. These are fantastic, dry, light shoes for medium trails and pack. I have another pair of Oboz as well, for more wintry conditions, but these are still the best. Strong recommendation.