Sam1911
Moderator Emeritus
If you're looking for good outdoor gear for your kids in the pre-teen to teenage years that won't break the bank, I'll recommend looking at what Allegheny Wholesale has to offer: http://stores.alleghenywholesale.com/StoreFront.bok
They seem to have on hand the real oddball sizes of gen-u-wine mil surplus gear that weren't needed for our soldiers, but the sizes they carry often translate into perfect fits for kids if you can do some basic conversions to get the sizing right.
We bought two pairs of Gore-tex ICB combat boots (one made by Wellco and one by Bellville, identical though) for a 12 year old girl who wears a woman's 7 shoe and an 8 year old boy who wears a youth size 3.
Those translated (after some careful measuring) to boot size 5.5W and 3.5. We were very pleased with the fit right off the bat.
These are waterproof and cushioned but not heavily insulated, with Cordura nylon shafts.
They also carry the ICW cold weather boots, full leather, with insulation, that come with two pairs of booties which is pretty nice.
Considering these are being sold at between $19 and $25 or so for most sizes, this is a GREAT deal on very solid boots that a kid will not wear out.
They've got boots down to size 2.5W, which would probably fit some kids down to 6-7.
These are really heavily-built boots, not much like most kids' hikers. That might be good or bad, but probably won't be what your kid is used to. You will want to get the sizing very close to right as these aren't going to stretch or be forgiving of a bad fit.
Shipping was reasonable, I think (actual shipping was noticeably less than quoted on the site) but took a full 2 weeks in our case.
---ALSO--- if you're a sasquatch and need gargantuan boots, they do have a few in sizes 13-15!
And lots of other interesting gear (pants, shirts, coats, etc.) in oddball sizes. And often for pennies on the dollar. (Cheaper than WalMart if you find your size!)
They seem to have on hand the real oddball sizes of gen-u-wine mil surplus gear that weren't needed for our soldiers, but the sizes they carry often translate into perfect fits for kids if you can do some basic conversions to get the sizing right.
We bought two pairs of Gore-tex ICB combat boots (one made by Wellco and one by Bellville, identical though) for a 12 year old girl who wears a woman's 7 shoe and an 8 year old boy who wears a youth size 3.
Those translated (after some careful measuring) to boot size 5.5W and 3.5. We were very pleased with the fit right off the bat.
These are waterproof and cushioned but not heavily insulated, with Cordura nylon shafts.
They also carry the ICW cold weather boots, full leather, with insulation, that come with two pairs of booties which is pretty nice.
Considering these are being sold at between $19 and $25 or so for most sizes, this is a GREAT deal on very solid boots that a kid will not wear out.
They've got boots down to size 2.5W, which would probably fit some kids down to 6-7.
These are really heavily-built boots, not much like most kids' hikers. That might be good or bad, but probably won't be what your kid is used to. You will want to get the sizing very close to right as these aren't going to stretch or be forgiving of a bad fit.
Shipping was reasonable, I think (actual shipping was noticeably less than quoted on the site) but took a full 2 weeks in our case.
---ALSO--- if you're a sasquatch and need gargantuan boots, they do have a few in sizes 13-15!
And lots of other interesting gear (pants, shirts, coats, etc.) in oddball sizes. And often for pennies on the dollar. (Cheaper than WalMart if you find your size!)
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