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DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 2:23 pm
by R12 krad
Hi all , I noticed some old comments re DAK boots and was wondering if it was still possible to get my hands on a pair ? I bought a pair from Sanji in India but they are not up to the mark. Any tips or advice would be much appreciated. dank Dave

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 6:50 pm
by Heeresbergführer
well...a DAK veteran that I know, Leutnant Gerhard Hennes, told me that they wore the high top boots for maybe a week before they tossed them! They were way too hot and uncomfortable to wear in the desert. He says that they were issued both the high-cut and low-cut boots...he only wore the low-cut boots or locally purchased sandals. Hope that helps you out.

You can get Gerhard's book through Amazon:

http://www.amazon.com/Under-Crooked-Cro ... gy_b_img_b

Horrido!

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 8:48 pm
by Peiper
Hi kameraden :D
On the topic of DAK high-legs, i remember reading
something about it in the book "Rommel's Afrika-Korps".

Apparantly they also "cut them down" as well so they
came halfway up the calf instead of below the knee.

Regards Peiper.

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Thu Jul 02, 2009 9:43 pm
by Chorlitz|12.SS|

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 12:38 am
by SS-Schutze Schuller
What were they thinking when they designed them to come up to the knee, why did they need to be that high?

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 3:08 am
by Krupp
In the book: AfrikaKorps by Robert Kurtz there are pics of all the types of boots (High and low) that they used. There is even a pair of high-boots (page 244) that someone had cut down to be a pair of lowboots. I like wearing my jackboots because I hate tying boots when in a hurry. Maybe they had some kind thinking when dealing with all those eyelets. :?

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 6:23 am
by Andy
Hi! Regardless of their being practical or not in the field, the absolute best DAK tall and ankle boots available today are those custom-made and offered by Zeugmeisterei. I'm having a pair made for myself right now. If you are looking for a top-class reproduction which is as close as possible to the originals those are the ones to go for, no question about it.

cheers!

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Sun Jul 05, 2009 9:14 pm
by mario33
Andy, save your opinion at least until you see them ;) Always strikes me that ppl judge by emotions, not by experience...

To the merits. High-laced boots were long tradition in tropical environment. Supposed to save your legs from scrub, snakes, scorpios etc.

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Tue Jul 07, 2009 11:29 am
by Andy
But I DO have seen them, my friend :mrgreen: ...Think I'd shell out that amount of money without a good reason to do so :shock: ?

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Sat Aug 01, 2009 6:22 pm
by Andy2
Hi Kameraden

still same old Andy in his new incarnation - now it's Andy2, still from The Gothic Line. Don't ask :roll:

So - here they are at last! My brand new DAK tall boots by Zeugmeisterei :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: ! Boy are they a dandy - amazing manufacturing and they fit like a glove! No detail is missing - heavy, sturdy canvas in the correct faded olive green, correct number of hooks and eyelets, that subtly elusive shape of the multi-part leather shoe - which all other makers seem unable to reproduce - finally perfectly captured, strong yet supple natural leather with reinforced soles and wooden nails just exactly like the originals...This is pure bliss :D

Believe me - this is the third pair I go through. First I've been swindled by that bastard Sven Ponty with a pair of trashy Pakistani plastic booties, then I've treasured my damn expensive pair of SM Wholesale DAK low boots (nice heh, but no comparison to these!) but only now I've found nirvana with Zeugmeisterei's.

Sure they're expensive and slow to make (they're handmade after all) but you simply can't get any cooler than this. It was worth the wait, it was worth the desperate phone calls to Thomas (who's back and accepting orders finally now :mrgreen: ), it was worth the money. I might take Tobruk all by myself with these :mrgreen: :mrgreen: :mrgreen: ...Thomas may be slow in replying now and then, and his products are slow to manufacture (they're all made on order) but it's well worth the wait. For me Zeugmeisterei is simply the best (and no, I did not get a discount or a free smock for writing this :mrgreen: - but I did try a lot of the other makers, both in Europe and in the US...) and the only way to go if one can afford it!

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Mon Aug 03, 2009 8:56 pm
by holz21pz
I don't see any photo? How long did it take to get them?

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Tue Aug 04, 2009 7:33 am
by Andy2
Will post pics when I have a sec to take them, but in the meantime you can take a look at Zeugmeisterei's page:

http://www.zeugmeisterei.com/cms/en/ind ... pageid=540

Mine just look pretty identical (minus the ironworks which I asked not to install).

I'd say it took about two months to get them since I placed my order, not bad at all if one thinks of it. I'm ordering a pair of DAK ankle boots now, these are just too good :mrgreen:

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Wed Aug 19, 2009 12:17 am
by Schäfer
Very nice... how much were they?

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Thu Aug 20, 2009 11:28 am
by Andy2
I paid about 300,00 Euros including postage. Not cheap, but worth every penny...
I wish Thomas could fulfill more orders and faster, this is the kind of stuff I want and can't get anywhere else :(
Now it will be another three months before I get my DAK ankle boots, his shoemaker must date back to 1942 and work in slow-motion :roll:

Re: DAK early pattern High Boots

Posted: Thu Nov 05, 2009 2:10 pm
by R12 krad
Well after generating a bit of discussion on "High Boots" I can report that I tried to contact Zeug' and in the end I gave up. Way too long to respond to my request/s for info etc. I eventually went with SM and have to say that the whole process was faltless. Even to the extent that my order was rushed so that I recieved the boots in time for a particular upcoming event. (And I am in South Australia). For the price,I am happy with the SM boots. I appreciate they may not be as good as the Zeugs but I can also say that they are streets ahead of anything "out of India". By the way I won't be cutting them down......... cheers Dave