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Barnacle Bill The Sailor
October 27, 2024
Nice looking casual boot with a "work boot" look.
I was looking for a pair of brown boots for casual wear, not work boots. This is my first pair of Justin's but I own a pair of Noconas and I can see the similarities in the fit and style. Not a surprise since Justin owns Nocona.The Noconas I own are brown but a light brown, sort what's called a cognac color and smooth polished leather. I wanted something in a darker brown and more of an oiled leather look instead of a polished look. These Justin Buck boots in a Bay Apache color seemed like exactly what I was looking for.I got them 2 days ago and the photos in the product listing are very accurate. They are a dark but not super dark brown. There's no shiny polish. It's a flat oiled leather look. And the quality seems really good for the price point. The inside of the shaft is very nicely finished. Smooth and easy to slip my feet into. The fit is good. I'll expand on that in a minute. The exterior of the shaft is likewise nicely finished. Same goes for the toe, vamp, and heel counter. There's a little distressing but it looks very natural. The heel is a typical western boot height of 1 9/16 inches. The out soles are leather and also well finished. You will need to rough them up a bit if you don't want to slide across carpet. I used a cordless mouse sander. It took about 30 seconds per boot to scuff of the black coating at the ball of the foot and create a little friction.So the fit. I wear a US 11 D (medium width) in athletic shoes and dress shoes. My usual rule of thumb is to go down a 1/2 size for cowboy boots. That's what I did here with a 10 1/2 D and the fit is great. It doesn't really require much break in. I will say the leather here appears to be thicker and stiffer than all the other boots I own, Tony Lama, Nocona, and Dan Post. So the fit is fine but the "break in" will be getting the foot to flex easily.There are 2 things I kinda didn't like about these boots but neither one is worth deducting a star for. One is just a styling thing I fixed in about 10 minutes. The other is a me problem that may not affect most people.1.) The welt stitching on these boots is a bright white. A little too bright for my taste. It didn't look bad. Just not what I wanted. So 10 minutes with some dark brown shoe polish and a small brush and the stitching is toned way down. It's still visible, just not as obvious. No big deal.2.) The shaft height on this boot is 13 inches. And I have some thick legs. 17 inch calf measurement. So the shaft of the boot comes up high enough that I feel it a lot more than my other boots. There's still room but I can definitely feel it. That may mean I don't reach for these in hot humid weather. But probably 9 months of the year I'll be OK. And the upside is that because the shaft is a little narrower than a lot of boots, you have a little more leeway with the pants you can wear with this boot. You don't have to wear a boot cut jean necessarily. So there's good and bad. Again, not a deal breaker for me.Hope this helps out anyone considering these boots.EDIT 12/9/2024: I liked the Brown Buck Bay Apache boots enough that I ordered the Black version. They're on the way. I think these are going to be my go to choice for daily wear.
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Robert J. Long
October 18, 2025
No fitment issues for me
Have been wearing cowboy boots since I was a toddler. Have worn all variety of brands from acme in the late 60s to Abilene, Justin and Ariat. Started wearing Justin’s and then Abilene when they started, tried Ariat but not an impressed with Ariat.Now all about the Justin boots. Justin has moved some manufacturing to Mexico and I don’t have an issue with that. Justin hasn’t changed much over the years compared to Abilene who have gone absolutely stupid with outsourcing their part that in no way conform to tradition and form factor. Justin is still sticking to keeping it real. Little snug but not a fight to put them on as it should be, if you have to fight to put them on then they are clearly to small, boots are not ment to fit like sneakers or dress shoes. A little snug and the break in will be few days and no damage to your feet.The overall quality is 100% and the smell is pure and doesn’t have any of that synthetic smell which tells me they haven’t cheapd out like Abilene. The color is consistent and didn’t notice any issues with the stitching or leather edges.Always prefer leather sole boots for the ability to resole, very few brands these days with plastic rubber soles can be and most cobblers will reluctantly accept the job, although having one pair with the fake soles is only for the rainy days in Miami and when they wear out I will have new fake soles simply stitched over them, and the Justin boots will get resolved till the day the boot itself is shot.
✔ Verified Purchase
It is what it is
I have fancy, expensive boots that I won’t wear on our ranch. In fact, I wear Army boots most of the time, for day to day work. But, we attend events where we have to walk on gravel, dirt, or sand, thru cattle pens that have cow pies, etc, but still need to be semi dressed up, and that’s where these boots come in. My first pair of cowboy boots were Justin, back in 1976, when they were still made with top quality in the USA. These boots are not made at that level.. On the positive side, they are “true to size”. I wear 9 1/2 D and these fit perfectly. Issues include poor stitching on the inside of the pull on straps, which I lightly sand down with an emory board. And, they are hard to get off, although it may get easier as they break in. I ordered a boot jack, though, Justin case! (See what I did there)? 🤠 Also, I do not like square toe boots, so I was glad to find these are still being made. So, round toe boots, at a fairly low price, for casual or light work, these are decent boots. Will they replace my Black Jack or Lucchese boots?? No, they won’t. I will wear them until the soles wear out, and have them re-soled about three times, then buy a new pair. I would recommend these boots to someone on a budget, or for light work or casual wear. Sure wish Justin still made their boots in the USA.
✔ Verified Purchase
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Klaatu Barada Nicto
December 16, 2016
Great Boots, Great Price
The boots are a bit more "distressed" than what I gathered from the description, but I slathered them with Bick 4 & buffed them out with a horsehair brush & they look great. A major western wear retailer listed these boots at $294, but I got them on Cyber Monday sale from Amazon for $131, so the price was too good to pass up. Being Justin's, they fit like a glove & are very comfortable. New boot break-in is usually a less than delightful experience, but the leather on these is very supple, so even wearing them all day at work has not been a problem; I'm sure the Bick 4 treatment helped, but the leather on these boots is very comfortable & pliable.
✔ Verified Purchase
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Romeo333
December 23, 2025
Justin is always top quality
I own a pair of Justin elephant skins from 44 years ago, and wanted to see this boot up close. Nice quality, but the heel isn’t my style and the toe is too round.
✔ Verified Purchase
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ArgoTheRipper
June 22, 2025
Comfortable
Sizes fit true and are comfy and stylish
✔ Verified Purchase
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Victor Chounard
December 25, 2025
Good quality
Wrong size sent but good quality and take forever to get refund. Sent on 3rd and it's 25th and still nothing
✔ Verified Purchase
