How To Polish Boots (Fire, Police, Military)
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- Опубліковано 14 січ 2025
- This is the heat gun method. If you want boots looking like glass, I HIGHLY recommend getting one. The grain of leather on the boots in the video limit the shine potential. Other leather boots I have (and even rubber toed Haix brand) using this method turn out even shinier. The more coats the better.
This video was made for my fellow coworkers while we were in the tower for our department to aide them in their boot polishing. There are many ways to polish a boot, and this is mine. Hope it helps you.
Years later this is probably the best and most straightforward way to shine boots
I've been working in law enforcement throughout my career and I've been buying leather boots I've been doing spit shine boots been looking for that high gloss look on my boots never could I've trying a hair dryer still not looking for that high gloss did watch your video went out and pick up myself a heat gun and that's the look I'm looking for that high gloss look thank you again.
Brother in Blue.🇺🇸🎗️
Been working as a CO for 3 months now and always hated how my boots looked. Never realized you need more than 1 or 2 layers. I can damn near see my reflection in these now. Mad props man
Reaaaaally stoked I could help man!
I've been shining my boots for a little under a year and I did not know we had to wait for the Polish to dry. Thank you
I have been wondering what I've been doing wrong, your video is the first that I've realized that I'm failing to let the polish dry. Thanks.
You got it man!! Stoked to help.
yeah i had a lot of flaking and i was not waiting for the wax to dry. definitely using this for myself
You Got That Right.
I haven't worn my leather boots in about 7 years since boot camp and now I'm going to my first ship and have to wear them. Wanted to watch a video on shining them because I never was any good at shining them and was never happy with the result. I don't think I ever put more than a few layers. I'm looking forward to getting a shining kit tomorrow and trying it out. Thank you for the video.
Thanks for this video. I've been trying to figure out how to get this kind of shine, and now I have it! I've been doing it the hard way all these years with half the results. Just tried this and wow! I work security so this will help me stay looking sharp. Can't wait to try this on the rest of my boots.
Best video I've seen on the topic yet. Learned a lot from this great video.
You Got That Right.
I’ve tried so many videos to get a mirror polish, even though I know I won’t get it with one try but this video is the first one that my boots are properly shiny so over time I think I will get a mirror shine
Thank you so much for this video! I've been trying to buy the patent 1460 doc martens for a while. I just went ahead and got the matte version and followed this video! It really worked so well, I'll shine my other Demonia 20 holes! Thanks again so much 🏆
Heading to the academy in 2 weeks, thanks for the video man.
I just started my fire academy, this was super helpful, thanks for the great video
Good luck brother!
What boot you got? I was thinking on getting the thorogood jump boots that got the high shine toebox
Heading to basic in a little over a month! This video really helped, thanks a lot!
For large scuff marks especially on the toes I wrap a tee shirt around about 3 poker chips stacked up and rubber band at the top. I add extra polish to those areas put really push the polish into the scuff marks. By doing that it presses down the frayed leather and gets to stay in one spot; kind of like spackeling a wall. It has been working well so far.
haha awesome thanks for the tip
Thanks for the tip, I never thought about using my Wagner 2 temp Heat Gun. I have to get my new Corcoran jump boots ready, for my new appointment to the American Legion Honor Guard. I didn't want to ruin a $180 pair of jump boots with a lighter, since I haven't mirror polished a pair of shoes or boots in over 35 years.
Good tips. I have always been afraid of using heat because of cracking. My method is usually small circles with a cotton ball, slightly moist and do little circles of Kiwi. Then I let it dry and keep applying and then buff
A Excellent Video.. Highly Recommended.. Thank You Very Much For Sharing..
Thank you I needed help
His "dirty" boots in the beginning do actually look better than mine after cleaning them :D
hahaha to be fair they had already had a solid polish base on em
Very helpful, thank you. Nice g-shock too!
scuffs; you can find scuff remover right next to where you buy your shoe polish or if you really, really want to be industrious you can melt beeswax onto it.
Thanks for this. I'm in paramedic school and I gotta show up my firefighter classmates
Doooooo ittttttt show those salt dogs what’s up
@@thefiremensch I shined my boots right after I watched this video with your technique. It worked like a charm just so you know :)
@@andynonymous6769 love to hear it
If you want them realy glossy shiny put water on the cloth use kiwi polish and apply in small circular motions dip in water then polish and build up the layers eventually they will be very shinny but will have smears on them so run cold water from the tap and use a cotton ball wet and use circular motion again and you will have a glass finish
Best one !
im going to polish my sandals your way but with hair dryer, thank you for the video
looooool
Done polishing 3 sandals and 1 shoes, good shine but not as shiny like in video. Not sure because of using hair dryer instead heat gun, or too thin layer of polish from 1x application.
Hellô ! When I put a base coat with a brush, it always turn into a rude finition with rude shapes. In most videos I seen, it always looks sweet and ready to be polished.
Is the second brush make this nice repartition ?
When I use it, it tend to remove polish or it does nothing.
I have Galls fire station boots & I wear them all the time while I am on duty or off duty.
If I go to a live in academy will that let me have a heat gun?
I know in some academics do because they don't want you have a lighter
Sup man, this vid helped me in my police academy. Quick question, heard a few other things to add effect since then, when it comes to using the water to remove the cloudiness, is it better in your opinion to use ICE COLD water, along with a small dab of polish while doing the final wipe down? What do you think? I know this vid is old sorry!
K so let me tell you I haven’t polished boots probably since I put this video out so my memory is hazy on this 😂. That being said, I feel like I always used cool water, never hot. If you do your own trial and error on this, let me know what works better! 👊🏼
Great idea bro..
great video I'm hoping this method works as ive tried everything else and it doesnt work. ive applied 7 layers of of kiwi parade gloss on one boot so far and used the brush like shown. i used to hand apply with a cloth the whole boot and ive never done it this way. seams so much better they already look better than ever even before using my harbor frieght heat gun. wish me luck. thanks for sharing.
May I ask what brand of boots are those?
All-American is the brand
@@thefiremensch thank you so much
@@jeffersonsombillo2793 if you read comments below I get into more detail about em
I just heat up the toe box however you do it with the heat gun is fine.
1.Clean the boots. 2. Apply a cream polish the same color as the boots with bare hands, until friction is felt. 3. Apply coat of wax polish with bare hands until friction is felt. 4. Apply leather lotion with bare hands until friction is felt. 5. Apply another layer of wax polish with bare hands until friction is felt. A slight gloss can be seen as well; this also cuts down on drying time every time. 6. Brush until at least boots start to look glossy. 7. Spray water lightly onto brush; brush with light to medium pressure, respraying as needed. Spray boots lightly with water and buff with an old pantyhose. Repeat step 7 using neutral polish; buff with pantyhose to get boots as shiny as possible.
Gene Wagstaff thanks Gene! There are many ways to skin a cat, clearly!
@@thefiremensch The method I spit (water) shine with may not work for everyone, but if it helps anyone do a better shine it has served one of its purposes. What brands of boots do I have was asked. I still have both pairs of Corcoran jump boots I used during my Army days; my western-style boots are one pair each (both black) Tony Lamas, Dan Posts, and two pairs of Justins, one pair each black and brown. I acquired a habit during the fourteen months I was with the 82nd Airborne Division Band that I wili never be able to shake: spit (water) shining. And, yes, it works on regular shoes as well. I use only water with this method.
Gene Wagstaff uhhhh ok. rad. thanks
Thx man (also what temp is your heat gun)
LanTthap don’t know the exact temp. It has a high and low setting. I use the high now, but when I started I used the low as I had more room for error..
mine get pretty shiny with just polish and water, nothing else
Amazing 👌❤
Whenever I try using a heat gun it makes the polish shiny for a bit, but then it dries and completely loses its shine. What can I do about that? How do I get the shine to stick?
John Peter Konopak make sure you’re not keeping the heat on too long AND make sure you have a lot of layers built up before you use the heat. If you don’t have enough layers, it’s gonna just dry up.
Did you use low heat on your heat gun? Thank you.
Daniel S. I usually click it to ‘high’ as I know the timing now for how long I can hold it on without messing up all the work I’ve already done. With the higher heat setting, you can work faster, but your degree of error increases. I’d start with the low setting until you get the hang of it.
All that dirt flying right into that coffee cup. Haha
It’s just extra vitamins
You could just put the polish on a bit then buffer them
Please...what brand are those boots?
All American
What type of boots are those? Attach link please
I’ve answered this a few times in the comments on this video. They don’t make these boots anymore… or at least I can’t find them anywhere. The brand is All American.
Pls what is the name of this machine and how do I get it?
The heat gun? Whelp…it’s called a….*drumroll*…heat gun. Amazon it, I’m sure they have a bajillion of ‘em .
Can you tell me which brand of boots those are?
All American. Don’t know the model #, we don’t use these anymore at my dept
@@thefiremensch Well that narrows it down by allot since there‘s about a billion of those, still got them? Should have a label on the inside or atleast a brand name somewhere.
@@saudakar9004 Well aware of how to find info on my gear! Thank you! The brand name IS All American. I don’t have the model # because it’s worn off. A few years ago when I answered this question in the comments below, I looked for them on Google and couldn’t find the specific model we had. Seems to be discontinued. You wouldn’t want these anyways, they weren’t great.
@@thefiremensch ah ok
What is the brand of those boots?
Earl Gray All American
@@thefiremensch thank you. I am going to look them up. They are some nice looking boots.
Thank you sir 🔥
Not wear the leather boots from years . Don't know why I'm watching it.
Add a newspaper to protect your bench top
It's been 25 years never polished my shoes. 😂
Hahaha I feel ya! Confession for me is I haven’t polished mine since my rookie year!
Well shit, you can also use the burners of a stove top to heat up the polish really quick by angling the boots or shoes close enuff for that glossy REACTION... just be careful not to burn down the house 😂😂💀
Maybe it's like a rite of passage in fire school. That's why they like their boots so shiny: if you can do it without burning down your house, you're in. And if you accidentally burn down your house, well that's why you're in fire school!
those boots are hot !
What kind of boots are these? I'm looking for similar with vibram soles. Thank you.
+LLUrbanAchiever the brand is All American. Not sure the style, they're department issue for me, but All American has a few different styles, all with the Vibram soles.
+LLUrbanAchiever if you like these boots, check out redwing model 971
Always remove those laces bro. Attention to detail.
codetwohigh right on bro thanks for the advice!
What brand name and model are these boots? Thanks!
The brand is All American and the model closest to the ones in the video are the 'Structural Firefighting Boots' per their website. I've never seen the ones that I have with that extra leather deal on the toe for sale anywhere. If you're trying to go for this style, try Thorogood boots or Chippewas boots. They're much more comfortable than these. But if you just generally need a great and comfortable station boot, get the Haix Airpower XR1's.
Will this technique work with Dress Shoes?
1 more thing needed is water like spray bottle
👍🏻👌🏻
how many coats do you do
Dean Cutshaw hahaha a lot of coats. No specific number really, just till you see it shiny how you like. For your first coat "session" I would do no less than 10-12. You want a lot of layers of polish on there for the first time you heat gun it...
iamtingley cool thanks. I'm doing a police cadet program and I want to look the best I can
So has this guy worked in fire police and military
Just the fire department, but its polishing boots to the standards of all 3.
Heated shoe polish, layer after layer applied with cheesecloth, then buffed furiously with a soft cotton rag, like one of those microfiber polishing cloths you use to clean your glasses lenses. That's *it*. You make this WAY too complicated.
Jeff S. many ways to skin a cat, sir. I enjoy the scenic route. Thanks for the input
Step 1: Use big brush to clean to not get polish on dirt
Step 2: Use applicator brush to apply polish
Step 3: Wait 10 minutes for it to dry
Step 4: Use big brush to wax off
Step 5: Repeat multiple times for more shine
Definitely a police officer, these would be sub-standard for any fire department...
Not to mention the “DONUTS” mug
I am not a police officer. I am a firefighter and work for a very highly recognized department and they absolutely were above-standard for my recruit class.
firefighters eat donuts too :)
Its funny how he doesn't respond ^^^^
Chipper Garcia get wrecked pleb
Helped my buddy out, thank you 🫡