TACTICAL RESEARCH TR Men's Khyber TR550 Hot Weather Lightweight Mountain Hybrid Boot

I bought the original Tactical Research Khybers in 2012. Those were awesome! They felt broken-in right out of the box. I'm not sure what happened, but the new Belleville Khyber II and Sabres (just a knockoff of Khyber, but with a bigger price tag) just don't cut it. I think Tactical Research was an independent brand bought by Belleville who just made the boots worse and doubled the price (originals were $80!)So, what makes these worse are:1. Stiff. Very stiff. I think I could pass out standing up and I'd stay upright.2. These are 1" taller, and that extra inch puts more pressure on muscles below the calf.3. These no longer have the contoured heel. That contoured heel kept my heel locked in place and prevented blisters. The originals were the first boots in my 20 years that I didn't blister in.4. No more extra rawhide strip on the toe. That was really nice to keep your boots lasting longer since the toe gets beat up pretty bad.5. Air vents stick out. The old ones had vents that were sunken in a bit so the coloring didn't get worn off the metal. Sure, it may be a minor thing... until the senior NCO in your unit says you no longer can wear them because they shine.6. These new ones are nearly double the price, but still produced with similar sweatshop labor (originals were from China, new ones are from Viet Nam).Belleville took a great thing and just ruined it.

These boots are Awesome. I'm in the Army, and bought these as we transition to the OCP uniform pattern. These were a little awkward at first right out of the box, but after a couple of days to break them in, they fit great. The tan Khyber II's were my go-to boot for the ACU pattern, and worked beautifully on long field exercises and for 12+ mile ruck marches. I did the 25 mile Korea (Manchu Mile) Ruck March, and only had one small blister afterwards. These are light, comfy, rugged, and stable. These are much better than the crap the Army issues to Soldiers, and I will definitely buy another pair once these wear out. If you value your feet, get these.

I stepped outside my comfort zone when I bought these boots, usually, I buy a new pair of standard issue safety boots every two years but was tired of the Vibram soles cracking in half, so I bought these bootsPros:1. Good boot for winter, very warm.2. Lightweight.3. Great traction.4. Waterproof.5. Flexible.6. Came with a little rubber M-4 key-chain.Cons:1. Wide feels too narrow; maybe too many jumps caused my feet to flatten out, who knows.2. The padded upper digs into my calves, I combated this by not lacing top hole, seems to work.3. Hot boot, great for cold weather, not too good in 100F+ weather.4. Heel seems high causing foot to slide forward in boot.5. Insoles are super hard, I replaced with gel soles.I think these boots would be awesome if they came in a 2W or 4W version.

These boots are absolutely amazing. I am a former US Army Ranger and I would have killed for these when I was active. I just returned from hiking the Appalachian trail with these boots and they handled the rough terrain with flying colors. Superb traction on the wet rocky terrain even after a storm blew in. Extremely comfortable under weight on long section hikes. I had sore legs, sore knees and sore everywhere else except for my feet thanks to these boots. Definitely buy these.

This is (now) is a great boot. Solid and comfortable. I'll get to why not a 5th star in a moment.I've now had them a couple of weeks and worn them a dozen times. On pavement, dirt, gravel, river rocks, and up and down hills they been solid all the way. Took very little break in time. They have Vibram soles which are a dream for traction and stability, and the ankle support is superb. I'm anticipating many miles to come in these.The only con is regarding the laces. I like to tie a surgeon's knot down where my ankle breaks and create an ankle lock to keep my foot tight to the rear. To do that the laces need to be undone down to that point. Therefore I need speed hooks in the top four rows. These have thru laces all the way. I had to change those out. Local cobblers wanted between $5 and $8 a hook to do that, so 16 would have been a huge expense so I made swap myself. No big deal. Since this is my own personal fetish I wouldn't have knocked off a start for that.What did cost a star was the particular thru lace devices these come with. If they had been simple eyelets all the way up that would have been fine. I still would have swapped them for speed hooks, but at least they would have worked properly for normal lacing. But these came with weird vertical tube lace holders - and they are dreadful. Two problems: 1) when the laces are loosened but held in this vertical format the loops get all entangled with each other and 2) the laces fit so tightly in the tubes you frequently need to use both hands to pull them thru, one to hold the tube and one to pull the lace. It's a mess. Horrible design.In truth this is a really great boot. I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't want speed hooks on a tall boot, but to each his own. But please lose those damn tubes and put in regular eyelets.

Fit is about half a size large. Read reviews and ordered an 11.5 when I usually wear a 12. Other than that. This is perhaps the most comfortable boot I’ve ever put on. I have a pair of redWings that I thought I loved but these far surpass them. Feels like a running shoe with ankle support, good breathability and flexibility throuought all ranges of motion. They look good too which is a huge plus. Bought these because I spend a lot of time in the desert off-roading and exploring and will buy these again and again. Overall awesome. Bought some waterproofing spray and gave them 2 coats which changed the color to a slightly darker tan but I still dig it. Gonna try them on my trip to Alaska this week.