Polar Fox Men's Casual Cap-Toe Ankle Boot Collection | Lace-Up Work, Combat, and Chukka Styles

Okay, for full disclosure, I have something of a boot fetish. I mean, it's not anything that gets in the way of my life, and I don't really need therapy or professional help for it, but I like boots. Not in any unnatural way mind you. I just like them. And I live in Southern California, where it's too warm for boots about 10 months of the year, so that's a problem... but I digress. As a consequence of my obsession, I have a lot of boots. Like children, cats, and desserts, there are some I like more than others. These are my new favorite boots. By a long shot. But it's like art, they aren't going to be for everyone. I just like the way they look. They are comfortable. They fit great (I'm usually an 11, but got a 10.5 based on other reviews here. The fit is perfect). They slide on and off easily. They are Southern California heavy, but probably not something you'd want to hike the Alps in. No big deal there, the Alps are a ways away from me. Since buying these boots and wearing them around town, my life has changed in so many ways. I'm lifting heavier weights at the gym, even though I don't wear these boots to the gym. Women find me more attractive. Heck, men find me more attractive. Packs of dogs follow me around, sniffing at the awesomeness of my new boots. I see colors brighter and more vibrantly. Food tastes better. I've stopped snoring. My boss is still a clueless jerk, and my ex-wife is still insane, but I'll take what I can get here.... they are just boots after all. Seriously, if you want a nice pair of lightweight casual boots that look good with jeans or ass-less leather chaps, just buy these. You won't be disappointed.

This Polar Fox Ronny is virtually identical to the Bull Boxer Brosus. The only differences I can find are: 1 - Polar Fox made in China / Bull Boxer made in Portugal 2. The inner lining. Polar Fox seems like flannel / Bull Boxer feels more like a foamish type liner 3. Slight difference in tread on the heel. Rest of the tread is the same. Quality - the Brosus has an edge. This could be the difference between being made in Portugal vs China. The Ronny heel seems layered and I’m concerned some layers could separate at some point in the future with wear. Another reviewer posted a picture of part of the heel breaking off. Comfort - seems equal. I've been wearing my Brosus for over a year and they are worn in nicely. The Ronny are still fairly new at the time of this review but after a few wears breaking in and becoming more soft. Sizing - I normally wear an 11.5 size shoe. At the suggestion of reviews and the sizing recommendation I went with a size 11. It is still slightly bigger in length than i would like but I think the 10.5 would be too small in width, even with loosening the laces. Overall, I’m impressed and happy with the Polar Fox Ronny. I love the look and style of my brown Brosus boots and always wished they came in different colors. I've been searching for a similar boot in black or grey for a few weeks when i stumbled upon the Polar Fox Ronny. When i ordered them (i chose grey) i knew they looked similar to the Brosus, but didn't realize the actually look exactly the same. At a price point of $40 less than the identical Brosus, these boots are a steal. If they hold up after a month or two of wear then i'll be buying another pair in black.

Some reviews complain that the zippers are problematic. If you line the two sides of the zipper up and make sure the dust flap is behind the teeth they zip quick and easy, almost completely effortless. If you make the laces really tight I could see having an occasional alignment issue but all I did was loosen the laces, put them on, zipped them up, lace them up fairly snug, and haven't touched the laces since and the one working zipper on each boot always does its' job easily and properly for me. Note that there are 2 zippers on each boot but only the in-seam side zipper is functional, the other one is only there for decoration. Some reviews say this boot is uncomfortable and falls apart quickly. So far I've walked the entire New Orleans French Quarter several times like a tourist, rode the "street car" all the way down St. Charles Avenue and walked all the way back, spent 2 weeks clearing a lot including cutting and hauling trees, running a push lawn mower twice, and I continue to wear these boots as my regular work footwear without a single blister and other than losing some shine and having new wrinkles and creases in the typical foot joints they're still fully intact, the soles are still completely attached, I can stay in them all day with lots of walking and/or lots of standing around, and for the price I'm amazed at how well they fit and how well they're holding up, especially after everything I've put them through, based on so many negative reviews... As for the reviews complaining that they're really "squeaky". For the first few weeks there was lots of leather on leather creaking with every step I took as the tongue rubbed against the shaft while I walked in these boots so sneaking up on someone was almost impossible at first but that has pretty much faded away with continued wearing. I've had far more expensive hi-top sneakers, cowboy boots, and motorcycle boots make that same noise until they were fully broken in so to me that's just "a boot thing"... I don't expect them to hold up as well as or as long as any of my motorcycle boots and cowboy boots but for daily casual footwear at such a cheap price I'm surprised and totally happy so far.

Fits as expected when you follow the guidelines to order half a size smaller (typically I wear size 8, ordered 7.5 as recommended). I noticed what some of the other reviewers mentioned about the opening being a bit small, but that was easily solved just by loosening the laces a lot. I find myself unlacing the very top to get my foot in easily, but once my foot is in the boot and it's laced up completely it fits very well. I do recommend taking a little time to break them in as they are stiff. I wore them for a few hours at a time, low to moderate activity, for a couple days and that seems to be all they needed to make them less stiff. There is a fairly strong smell when I first received them but it pretty much dissipated by the time I broke them in. I found them to be water resistant enough to keep my feet dry while walking around rainy Seattle but I didn't try slogging through a puddle or snow. They are not heavy-duty work-boots by any means, but they look good and I was able to walk around a city all day with no problems.

I don't have any conplain regarding the design, however, that's something obviously subjective; The boots are beautiful and visually the exact same thing they show on photos. That's the only reason they got 1 out of 5. About the quality, hell no! I know they aren't leather boots and I know they're “cheap” (also subjective), but having issues with broken soles and peeling uppers after wearing them just five or six times? No! That is unacceptable. There's no point of having “beautiful” boots, but having no chance of wearing them more than three times without getting them damaged. Does that mean that they could be used for one year only if you wear them once a month? No way!

I have had these boots for almost a week and they are pretty good so far. They are still a bit stiff, and a little narrow for my feet, but still comfortable. They grip more than I expected, but that is a personal preference. They are neat and trim; there are not a lot of loose threads. The only issue I have are the laces are excessively long. I will look up lacing methods to trim the length a bit. Edit: After wearing these boots regularly for 3 months, I notice some problems. First, the stiffness has persisted for the most part, but that's not a big deal. The laces are sheering, which is odd for a zipping boot. My biggest issues are with the heels and soles. The glue is wearing out on the soles and I foresee them coming apart in the near future. One of the heels is also coming apart, and I imagine it will come off soon as well. I work in an office; I am not rough with these boots, so there is no reason for them to be coming apart like this so soon. I doubt these will last the rest of the year. For the quality issue, I had to reduce my rating to 3 stars. They are inexpensive boots, so you get what you pay for.

I was disappointed when I opened the box and realized that the boots aren’t as shiny as shown in the pictures. They are nice nonetheless, and I can polish them for a greater shine if I want but I don’t think I will. They are good as is. Unlike some reviewers, these boots do not run large. They are true to size. My size is 9.5 and I usually wear 10 in winter boots because of my thick socks (Carhartt Men’s Extremes). Because of the other reviews I decided to buy 9.5. I regret this decision. I should’ve stuck with 10. Two days ago I got another pair of boots on Amazon from another company (Global Win) for $13.00. Those boots have a nice fur inner lining. These boots have no such inner lining. The comparison is on! Intended Use - The winter season is almost over. I bought this primarily to wear each weekend for church so this will get at least 7 wears by the end of March. I will probably wear this during the week on the odd occasion. I don’t see myself as having to walk through inches of snow based on my normal routine. Since it does not have inner-fur and fits slightly tight with my winter socks, I guess I will be able to wear these boots during spring and summer. We'll see. UPDATE: I bought this pair in February 2018. It's now February 2020 and still looks great, no deterioration or defects manifested.

First impression is a great one. Packaging is a plain shoe box in a plastic bag-mailer. A quick Inspection showed no apparent defects in manufacturing. One of the padded insoles is loose in the heel, but doesn't seen it'll be an issue. I bought my size (USA 11) instead of down one and I'm glad I did. These boots fit a bit tight. They have a narrow width. The toe box is roomy enough though. The heel feels like it's being gripped tight. They are beautiful inside and out. I really hope they last awhile despite being an inexpensive shoe. I'm starting with five stars and will edit this if needed.

Great boots! Fashionable and reasonably warm as well.