People don’t want to admit it but grant stone is better than most American made boots. Their finishing and quality consistency is better than the pnw brands.
Yeah, better than a lot for sure. I have 2 pairs of Trumans... and more GS than that... I honestly don't feel like the GS are any better built than the Truman. Haven't had any other PNW brands, though, so can't comment on that.
@@jca66 Those brands make plenty of more casual boots, too though. Grand Stone definitely beat some of those brands in consistency. I do think Trumans are a better value nonetheless.
Patrick, i just took delivery of my own Diesels in dark burgundy kudu. They are fantastic! They should be excellent for Denver winters: lug sole, 360 reverse split welt, semi-gusseted tongue, kudu is a tough and supposedly somewhat water resistant leather. Diesel, Edward, and Brass GS boots go for $395 max. The quality remains exceptional at this price. I own four Grant Stone boots right now. For me, made in China is a non issue. Regardless of where they are assembled, I care about the quality of the materials and the quality of construction. For the price, I think Grant Stone is still quite good in this regard. Keep up the great videos.
Oh NICE! Boot bros! :) Yeah - they'll be a killer bad weather boot for sure. I agree with your sentiment exactly. If it's a good product, it's good regardless of final assembly location. Thanks! I'll do my best.
I have a pair of Brass boots in dark burgundy kudu that I picked up during the Black Friday sale. I've worn them outside in our wet Midwest weather quite a few times in the last couple months. The waxy kudu that GS uses does a good job of shrugging off the rain and the snow.
I was mainly purchasing boots from grant stone, but since the price hike, I have shifted my purchases towards boots from Truman instead. Grant Stone boots are still excellent, but the price hike definitely influenced my decision towards purchasing boots from other brands instead.
Love Kudu. And that Burgundy color looks exceptional. I do think you’re spot on regarding GS pricing and their value messaging however. Same boots 2-3 years ago were $340-360 and now we’re just south of $400 with no discernible change in construction or material quality. Just an “annual price hike”. Still doesn’t dissuade me from purchasing. I just ordered their cap toe in burgundy CXL to have as a more “suit worthy” boot, but hitting the order button at $425 after tax, etc. made the experience a touch frustrating.
Thanks for the comment, Joseph! A burgundy CXL with a cap toe is going to be awesome dressed up, I'd say. Totally agree. After tax and stuff, it's a big chunk of change. You're right too.... my first Diesel was $340 in December 2021. And I do understand prices going up, but they seem to be increasing more than competitors, anecdotally. And I sent you a separate note, but welcome to the Rocky Mtn High club, my friend! :)
Grant Stone is still a better price than PNW boots ( I would buy some if I knew my size and which model I would like). Bought some Indonesian boots and even though they’re the right size, don’t wear them due to feeling awkward. Hopefully GS don’t creep up even more since I really like how the fit and look. I might try Bordon next, try their tucano and see if I like.
Sure, on price alone they are way cheaper than a Nicks or Whites and slightly less than a Truman. But the Nicks and Whites are just built for a different purpose. I have some Nicks on the way so I will have another point of comparison in the future. Thanks for the comment, mate!
I think Grant Stone are still a lot of bang for the buck. If you can buck the Chinese stigma, then you're still getting a lot. If you look at them back to back with other boots in that price range they're super nice. If they were getting up to $450 (I hope not, barring the cordovan offerings), then it would start to get harder to justify. They also have really good customer service. But it depends what you like to look at and what fits well. We're not always comparing apples to apples.
Definitely. They still have good value if you like the boot/leather options. But I think their position has eroded a bit since they are now coming in consistently higher than your Parkhurst/Caswell/Red Wing boots that man folks consider. Good value, but less of a "great value" i guess!
Nice video Patrick! The Burgundy Kudu Diesel was my second GS boot and still one of my favorites. Convinced me of the greatness of kudu and now I have four other kudu boots from GS and Parkhurst. Like everyone else, the only increase I enjoy is a salary bump. But I still believe GS boots are a great value. They seem to be committed to a high level of material, construction, and customer service as they have been. I buy from them with absolute confidence. But I also do the same from Parkhurst, Truman, Oak Street, and Viberg, among others. We live in a time of terrific options.
Good post, Tony! Yeah I agree they are still good value for sure, but perhaps just not the clear best value. But you are spot on... We are so spoiled for choice!
I actually really like those. I've looked at the diesel several times on line and they always look more like a dress boot then the heritage style I like to go for. Thanks for sharing. I see you rockin that Iron Heart!
Heck yeah, man! I wear this thing a lot when I'm at home. It's comfy... sort of like a flannel alternative. Wear it out, too, of course! And I totally get what you mean about the Diesel. A majority of them are quite dressy feeling, but this and the 2 others I mentioned are probably the exception. Cheers, mate!
Just ordered the discounted Field boots on the same dark burgundy Kudu. Cannot wait. What's your advice on the general care, cleaning and conditioning? Thanks
Nice score! I was looking at those pretty closely... I don't have a Field Boot yet and feel like I should... :) As far as care goes, with Kudu, you don't do much for awhile. I took some Bick 4 to a small part on the back and it's barely darker than when it started... almost imperceptible. After a few months, I'd try Bick 4 on a small part of the boot and see if you're OK with the color. Although, most other items will darken even more... so you just kinda gotta accept it to keep the leather hydrated. Good luck bro!
I mostly use Otter Wax's boot wax (beeswax & lanolin) on my dark burgundy kudu Brass boots to rub out scuffs and restore a bit of the waxy surface which will wear off over time. I've tried Smith's Leather Balm (cocoa butter, beeswax & sweet almond oil) on them too and it works nicely. This particular tannage of kudu is pretty waxy so if you want to maintain that I feel like anything with some wax in it would work. You can also let the wax wear away. Might lose some water resistance but the color will lighten up a little and reveal more of the natural character of the kudu.
Wonder if they forgot to wax mine... they aren't really waxy at all! Hah! Pretty dry actually... but I like your idea better. Get some boot wax for 'em. Think I'm gonna do that too.
@@rockymtnstyle I'm starting to wonder about that too. I believe Teik at Bootlosophy mentioned it in one of his videos recently. Perhaps they only do it on the Brass boot. The review on Stitchdown had some really gorgeous photos of them where they still looked halfway between waxy and well worn. That's what finally sold me on the leather.
I haven't tried one of their dress shoes yet. But if they are same quality as the boots, then 340-385 for their shoes isn't too crazy I think. Only shoe I have in that range are my new Parkhurst Bidwells and they are great. 👍
Yes, the more rugged leather might make sense with the more rugged outsole, BUT I consider burgundy [oxblood] more a dressy color, so neigh sure about the color for kudu here. BUT I don't know that I care for the shiny chromexel so much, which seems to be most the burgundy choices, like I got the Edward boot on the way because sale price and all that, which may be neither here nor there of some other tangents... BUT mostly want to mention that all their boots seem to run small and NARROW and that Size Down advice didn't work at all for me, and the Edward was narrower than the Diesel. If I went down half from Brannock instead just "regular" shoe size, I couldn't have gotten any of these on my feet, so I don't know what's happening there, but we are not in the same size range, either, so maybe something goes crazy in the middle?
Yes, I was hard-pressed to say if the Diesel is really WORTH twice as much as a Thursday boot and have heard arguments that I'm wrong, but I would say only because they might have a couple better leather options and overall I still am up in the air as to which boot companies can claim the highest status when I hear complaints about all the top dogs for being too expensive now, too, for similar style boots. But some of that is because they aren't offering more custom fits or options that they used to??? And I can't make all the best comparisons when there's too much lag time for the delivery and already bought a bunch of others that I haven't worn yet before I shell out $800 for one pair of THOSE that will hafta wait 'til next year maybe, etc.
I suppose it bothers me that they're Made in C---, but then a bunch of companies took themselves out of the running by not carrying what's supposed to be my size or costing twice as much, so, again, maybe I'll be more principled when I've worn through these and want something new and that may be just all MTO or true custom in the future if I can afford it.
AND, I think I've said before that I would respect Thursday a lot more if they'd just get all their sizing uniform and then raise the quality and allow the price to raise, too. I think I would rather pay more for a better Thursday boot than try to wonder what's the difference between if I should get two of their $200 boots or one pair of somebody's else $400 boots, etc.
I think I have a very tough time telling someone to spend twice as much if they're already reluctant to spend $200, when for most of them a $200 Thurs boot is still an upgrade from Doc Marten or Timberland or some Amzn brand, right? BUT then they're still not really good for WORK boots, which still seems to be most of the people who ask me about boots, anyway.
Thanks for watching, team! Lemme know if you have any questions!
People don’t want to admit it but grant stone is better than most American made boots. Their finishing and quality consistency is better than the pnw brands.
Yeah, better than a lot for sure. I have 2 pairs of Trumans... and more GS than that... I honestly don't feel like the GS are any better built than the Truman. Haven't had any other PNW brands, though, so can't comment on that.
They're great. I didn't get one with them because I find their sizing impossible. I don't know other people who have as much trouble, lol.😊
PNW boots are much more rugged and are made to be worked in. They aren’t trying to make their boots pretty.
@@jca66 Those brands make plenty of more casual boots, too though. Grand Stone definitely beat some of those brands in consistency. I do think Trumans are a better value nonetheless.
@@jca66 the pnw brands make a lot of casual boots as well. What’s your point?
Patrick, i just took delivery of my own Diesels in dark burgundy kudu. They are fantastic! They should be excellent for Denver winters: lug sole, 360 reverse split welt, semi-gusseted tongue, kudu is a tough and supposedly somewhat water resistant leather. Diesel, Edward, and Brass GS boots go for $395 max. The quality remains exceptional at this price. I own four Grant Stone boots right now. For me, made in China is a non issue. Regardless of where they are assembled, I care about the quality of the materials and the quality of construction. For the price, I think Grant Stone is still quite good in this regard. Keep up the great videos.
Oh NICE! Boot bros! :) Yeah - they'll be a killer bad weather boot for sure. I agree with your sentiment exactly. If it's a good product, it's good regardless of final assembly location. Thanks! I'll do my best.
I have a pair of Brass boots in dark burgundy kudu that I picked up during the Black Friday sale. I've worn them outside in our wet Midwest weather quite a few times in the last couple months. The waxy kudu that GS uses does a good job of shrugging off the rain and the snow.
I was mainly purchasing boots from grant stone, but since the price hike, I have shifted my purchases towards boots from Truman instead.
Grant Stone boots are still excellent, but the price hike definitely influenced my decision towards purchasing boots from other brands instead.
Thanks for sharing. I suspect you are not alone in that.
Love Kudu. And that Burgundy color looks exceptional. I do think you’re spot on regarding GS pricing and their value messaging however. Same boots 2-3 years ago were $340-360 and now we’re just south of $400 with no discernible change in construction or material quality. Just an “annual price hike”. Still doesn’t dissuade me from purchasing. I just ordered their cap toe in burgundy CXL to have as a more “suit worthy” boot, but hitting the order button at $425 after tax, etc. made the experience a touch frustrating.
Thanks for the comment, Joseph! A burgundy CXL with a cap toe is going to be awesome dressed up, I'd say. Totally agree. After tax and stuff, it's a big chunk of change. You're right too.... my first Diesel was $340 in December 2021. And I do understand prices going up, but they seem to be increasing more than competitors, anecdotally. And I sent you a separate note, but welcome to the Rocky Mtn High club, my friend! :)
Grant Stone is still a better price than PNW boots ( I would buy some if I knew my size and which model I would like). Bought some Indonesian boots and even though they’re the right size, don’t wear them due to feeling awkward. Hopefully GS don’t creep up even more since I really like how the fit and look. I might try Bordon next, try their tucano and see if I like.
Sure, on price alone they are way cheaper than a Nicks or Whites and slightly less than a Truman. But the Nicks and Whites are just built for a different purpose. I have some Nicks on the way so I will have another point of comparison in the future. Thanks for the comment, mate!
The value is still there mostly, but tons of competition around that price. Thanks for the video.
You are welcome! Agree the value is there in a vacuum, but GS I think has lost the "best value hands down" title. Now it's a debate! I love debates!
I think Grant Stone are still a lot of bang for the buck. If you can buck the Chinese stigma, then you're still getting a lot. If you look at them back to back with other boots in that price range they're super nice. If they were getting up to $450 (I hope not, barring the cordovan offerings), then it would start to get harder to justify. They also have really good customer service.
But it depends what you like to look at and what fits well. We're not always comparing apples to apples.
Definitely. They still have good value if you like the boot/leather options. But I think their position has eroded a bit since they are now coming in consistently higher than your Parkhurst/Caswell/Red Wing boots that man folks consider. Good value, but less of a "great value" i guess!
@@rockymtnstyle Can't argue with that! Thanks and keep up the great content, enjoying a lot.
I bet other brands will probably increase their prices by 10-20$ in 2024 due to inflation
Very possible!
Great commentary on the pricing. There are a lot of good options in this range now. Also, that’s a sweet looking flannel you’re rocking 🔥
Thanks, man... it feels great having to many legit options in that $340-$420 range. Oh it's a good'n!! ;)
Good job
I really like the Bison option you showed. Thanks Patrick!
Yeah i WILL get a Bison boot one of these days. They have such character. Thanks to you!
Nice video Patrick! The Burgundy Kudu Diesel was my second GS boot and still one of my favorites. Convinced me of the greatness of kudu and now I have four other kudu boots from GS and Parkhurst. Like everyone else, the only increase I enjoy is a salary bump. But I still believe GS boots are a great value. They seem to be committed to a high level of material, construction, and customer service as they have been. I buy from them with absolute confidence. But I also do the same from Parkhurst, Truman, Oak Street, and Viberg, among others. We live in a time of terrific options.
Good post, Tony! Yeah I agree they are still good value for sure, but perhaps just not the clear best value. But you are spot on... We are so spoiled for choice!
Why did the marketing team use "Grant Stone Diesel" and not something like "Jingna Zhang Nèiránjīchē" for the shoe name?
Clever.
I actually really like those. I've looked at the diesel several times on line and they always look more like a dress boot then the heritage style I like to go for. Thanks for sharing.
I see you rockin that Iron Heart!
Heck yeah, man! I wear this thing a lot when I'm at home. It's comfy... sort of like a flannel alternative. Wear it out, too, of course! And I totally get what you mean about the Diesel. A majority of them are quite dressy feeling, but this and the 2 others I mentioned are probably the exception. Cheers, mate!
I love mine, I wish I would have gotten b grades as these often show up on the site in my size.
I think B-grade Kudus are the dream! The leather is already so wild there's a good chance they look "perfect" anyways! Cheers, mate!
Those are solid looking! Really like that Kudo
Thx man! Yeah - the Kudu is King!!
Grant Stone has gotten way too expensive now
That is reasonable... but I still feel they are fairly priced. They are still very nice boots, after all.
I love the look of that kudu!
It's very distinctive!!
Just ordered the discounted Field boots on the same dark burgundy Kudu. Cannot wait.
What's your advice on the general care, cleaning and conditioning?
Thanks
Nice score! I was looking at those pretty closely... I don't have a Field Boot yet and feel like I should... :) As far as care goes, with Kudu, you don't do much for awhile. I took some Bick 4 to a small part on the back and it's barely darker than when it started... almost imperceptible. After a few months, I'd try Bick 4 on a small part of the boot and see if you're OK with the color. Although, most other items will darken even more... so you just kinda gotta accept it to keep the leather hydrated. Good luck bro!
I mostly use Otter Wax's boot wax (beeswax & lanolin) on my dark burgundy kudu Brass boots to rub out scuffs and restore a bit of the waxy surface which will wear off over time. I've tried Smith's Leather Balm (cocoa butter, beeswax & sweet almond oil) on them too and it works nicely. This particular tannage of kudu is pretty waxy so if you want to maintain that I feel like anything with some wax in it would work. You can also let the wax wear away. Might lose some water resistance but the color will lighten up a little and reveal more of the natural character of the kudu.
Wonder if they forgot to wax mine... they aren't really waxy at all! Hah! Pretty dry actually... but I like your idea better. Get some boot wax for 'em. Think I'm gonna do that too.
@@rockymtnstyle I'm starting to wonder about that too. I believe Teik at Bootlosophy mentioned it in one of his videos recently. Perhaps they only do it on the Brass boot. The review on Stitchdown had some really gorgeous photos of them where they still looked halfway between waxy and well worn. That's what finally sold me on the leather.
I need to try kudu leather. I'm a 9.5D in boots, do you think I could fit into a 10B with no issues?
Hmmmm. Honestly I don't know. I don't have much knowledge about length/width proportions going narrower from D. Do they make a B width?
@@rockymtnstyle Im not sure if grant stone make a B size but I'm looking a pair nicks tanker pro on eBay, just hoping to get someone else's thoughts.
I think it's likely that it might work... but really just guessing based on what I know.
You can call or email the GS team. That's what I did for my sizing question, and they were helpful.
Their move into dress shoes I don’t get. $400 for a midrange Chinese shoe? TONS of better competitors for $400.
I haven't tried one of their dress shoes yet. But if they are same quality as the boots, then 340-385 for their shoes isn't too crazy I think. Only shoe I have in that range are my new Parkhurst Bidwells and they are great. 👍
Yes, the more rugged leather might make sense with the more rugged outsole, BUT I consider burgundy [oxblood] more a dressy color, so neigh sure about the color for kudu here. BUT I don't know that I care for the shiny chromexel so much, which seems to be most the burgundy choices, like I got the Edward boot on the way because sale price and all that, which may be neither here nor there of some other tangents...
BUT mostly want to mention that all their boots seem to run small and NARROW and that Size Down advice didn't work at all for me, and the Edward was narrower than the Diesel. If I went down half from Brannock instead just "regular" shoe size, I couldn't have gotten any of these on my feet, so I don't know what's happening there, but we are not in the same size range, either, so maybe something goes crazy in the middle?
Yes, I was hard-pressed to say if the Diesel is really WORTH twice as much as a Thursday boot and have heard arguments that I'm wrong, but I would say only because they might have a couple better leather options and overall I still am up in the air as to which boot companies can claim the highest status when I hear complaints about all the top dogs for being too expensive now, too, for similar style boots. But some of that is because they aren't offering more custom fits or options that they used to??? And I can't make all the best comparisons when there's too much lag time for the delivery and already bought a bunch of others that I haven't worn yet before I shell out $800 for one pair of THOSE that will hafta wait 'til next year maybe, etc.
I suppose it bothers me that they're Made in C---, but then a bunch of companies took themselves out of the running by not carrying what's supposed to be my size or costing twice as much, so, again, maybe I'll be more principled when I've worn through these and want something new and that may be just all MTO or true custom in the future if I can afford it.
AND, I think I've said before that I would respect Thursday a lot more if they'd just get all their sizing uniform and then raise the quality and allow the price to raise, too. I think I would rather pay more for a better Thursday boot than try to wonder what's the difference between if I should get two of their $200 boots or one pair of somebody's else $400 boots, etc.
I think I have a very tough time telling someone to spend twice as much if they're already reluctant to spend $200, when for most of them a $200 Thurs boot is still an upgrade from Doc Marten or Timberland or some Amzn brand, right? BUT then they're still not really good for WORK boots, which still seems to be most of the people who ask me about boots, anyway.
Lots of good points as usual. What is your brannock measurement? If these are too narrow for you and you an E width or wider?