During the original intro to this Q&A about Gen. McChrystal’s dismissal, NY Times reporter John Burns mentions how R.M. Williams boots from Australia are now the standard boot of choice for war reporters.
...the band of brothers and sisters who have gone to war with their pens and notebooks, their flak jackets and helmets and R. M. Williams boots (from Australia, and by habit heavily scuffed; they are as indispensable to this generation of war correspondents and photographers as the dangling cigarette was to the generation of Ernie Pyle).
If a boot becomes the standard choice among war correspondents, I’m thinking it’s gotta be pretty damn good. Not sure if there’s a specific model these guys favor, but here’s a look at R.M. Williams’ Rigger Boot.
Unsurprisingly, the company seems pretty cool too. Like Saddleback Leather, R.M. Williams sells by using its history and educating customers. The founder’s backstory tells of his years in the bush and how he learned to build boots from a guy named Dollar Mick.
R.M. first went bush in his teens – lime burning and building in stone in Victoria and on the Western Australian goldfields. In the late 1920’s, he signed on as a camel boy with the missionary explorer, William Wade, in his treks across Australia’s central western deserts. He learned valuable bush lore and survival skills from the aboriginal peoples of the area, and honed his stock handling and bushcraft skills from the stockmen of the desert fringe cattle stations…
A self-taught genius in leatherworking, Dollar Mick passed on his skills to the 24 year old R.M. who made and sold his first pair of riding boots for 20 shillings to a man from Hilltaba Station whose name he can’t remember.
Having worked on some of the great pastoral runs of the interior, no one knew better than R.M. what men who were born in the saddle wanted when it came to footwear.
The catalog explains why the company builds boots from one piece of leather, the types of soles used, and the benefits of handcrafting.
Related: RM Williams Boots – Everything You Wanted to Know [styleforum]
eduardo
on 28 Jun 10They remind me of the Alden Indy Boots (yes, Indy from Indiana Jones):
http://www.aldenshop.com/DrawOneShoe.asp?CategoryID=109
Luis
on 28 Jun 10If you want a slightly cheaper version, go with Blundstone boots, also made in Australia. Also a great boot.
Ugur Gundogmus
on 28 Jun 10R.M. Williams boots are great but they are really expensive. I agree with Luis: Blundstone is an excellent brand as well and they have a similar story:
http://www.blundstone.com/history.cgi
Max
on 28 Jun 10RM Williams are great. “Blundies” are as well. I have 2 pair. Buy them from Australia where they are much less expensive than stateside.
Chad
on 28 Jun 10+1 on the blundstones. They’ve saved my feet a number of times.
Warren Henning
on 28 Jun 10next time I need a pair of boots, apparently the person to ask is an Australian.
Rob
on 28 Jun 10I dunno… I have bought 4-5 pairs over the years and to be honest – save your $$. Great boots but they just don’t last like the PR says… the sole splits off from the upper (I had 1 pair fixed by them but same thing happened). I still have 3 pairs that are waiting for me to get to the bootery (forget what they are called) if I can find one in the US.
H
on 29 Jun 10The standard boot is the Craftsman.
If you get a leather sole, it’ll need replacing once a year (probably less in the middle east’s drier climate), while the rubber or combination leather and rubber will need replacing only once every 2 years.
Tim
on 29 Jun 10I’m from Oz, and it gives me great pride to see this.
Re: Blundstones. Not so much with the Made in Australia-ness anymore. They used to be made in Tasmania, but I am pretty sure they’ve gone (fully, or partly) offshore to China.
I’ve owned many pairs, and yes, they’re pretty good, but not the ants pants.
Over here, RMs are seen (apart from those who wear them for realz) as the province of policiticians like former PM John Howard for use when they venture bush for a bit of hand gripping and politicking. Wack an Akubra on and a tucked-in RM shirt into white RM pants and you’ll look fair dinkum (mate). May as well chuck a Drizabone on, too, whilst yer at it.
Tim
Tim
on 29 Jun 10PS @ Max. It’s “Blunnies”, not “Blundies”.
Now, pass me another Bundy Red (filtered through Red Gum, for extra vanilla deliciousness).
I am looking forward to your Bundy Rum assessment, Signals.
Ric Hayman
on 29 Jun 10I got married in RM Williams boots 30 years ago, and still have that same pair – resoled once (and not worn so often these days – my feet have collapsed a little in the intervening years :) )
Nick Lo
on 29 Jun 10@Tim: Funny, I was reading this post thinking “Mmmm, I’ve been into RM Williams many times but never actually bought anything, maybe it’s local craftsmanship I’m not really taking advantage of…?!” but then was reminded exactly why after reading your post.
For those not over here, I can confer with Tim that RM Williams makes me think of pollies outback doing the walk and talk while awkwardly swatting flies. In contrast I’m looking at a pair of my own Blundstones sitting outside the front door.
There is no denying however that RM Williams has a firm grip on its marketing, to the extent that they have an “Outback Spectacular” show up in the Gold Coast, next door to the Wet and Wild and Warner Bros Movie World theme parks.
Just to add a little more to this, when I left the UK to move over here (almost 15 years ago) there was a trendy boutique store in Covent Garden, London, selling Aussie workwear for inflated prices. Much the same Aussie workwear that can be bought here in Kmart and BigW. I’m sure those of you in the US must be similarly amused at how inflated the prices for US workwear like Carhartt, Red Wings and Dickies get when sold overseas with a bit of careful marketing.
mrx
on 29 Jun 10Thier website is a disaster. Try to order anything in less then five minutes.
Cormac
on 29 Jun 10“If a boot becomes the standard choice among war correspondents, I’m thinking it’s gotta be pretty damn good.”
Haha! I’m thinking war correspondents are just as susceptible to the whims of fashion as the rest of us
Eric Diamond
on 29 Jun 10I’ve been wearing these boots for 15 years, thanks to the internet. Best shoes made in my opinion. The model that everyone is probably wearing in the wars is one of the elastic sided models, with a screw-down sole. They are nearly indestructible. And they are made with a single piece of leather which means they mold to your foot once broken in. Easy on and off when going through airport security. Expensive but worth it.
I also wear Blunnies and find that for everyday wear they are more practical. In fact, If I were going into the field I’d probably wear Blunnies before RM williams…better support. Buy your RM’s them at bootsonline.com.au. Tell Barry Eric Diamond from Chicago says hi. Nice guy, good prices and crazy fast delivery from Australia. I have no connection with them other than as a customer.
Aaron
on 29 Jun 10I think it just shows that Reporters are paid too much and that they tend towards group think.
joejoejoe
on 30 Jun 10Gen. McChyrstal drinks Bud Light Lime. Is that cool too?
William Hund
on 30 Jun 10I used to have the Bundstones as a kid, and whatever the target brand ones were.
The RM Williams ones are very well made and very expensive. They’re more likely to be worn by business and trendy people than workmen and farmers. The cheapest RM’s when I last went cost more than USD$200 and went up to USD$500.
Workmen like builders or tradesmen prefer cheaper boots, because the have a hard life and often need replacing.
Grant Bissett
on 30 Jun 10Nice boots, shame they’re made of skin. Also I don’t know what Tim’s talking about but we don’t actually wear this stuff in australia.
Beerzie
on 30 Jun 10Nice stuff, but their website is The Worst.
Adam O
on 30 Jun 10“9 out of 10 correspondents agree, RM Williams are the best boots to wear while propagandizing murder and genocide.”
Benjamin
on 30 Jun 10I can’t stand websites that adjust the size of my browser. It made me not want to view the catalog. I really don’t need my browser to take up my entire screen.
scott
on 01 Jul 10Have 2 pairs of the riggers boots pictured – they are excellent boots.
Quote Mentioned is from the book “Beneath Whose Hand” by Olaf Ruhen and RM Williams. Read it for an insight into an Australia which by and large no longer exists. RM Williams was a first rate bushman with tracking skills and knowledge gained from Aboriginal people. The descriptions of the early camel treks with Bill Wade are epic, as are the stories of working on building the railway line from Adelaide to Oodnadatta.
Ben
on 03 Jul 10I’ve had a dozen pairs of RMs since I was a kid, and several Blunnies. I’m from rural Australia, grew up on farms, but live in the City. Farmers continue to wear RMs, no matter what is said by other Aussies on this post – all my farmer mates have at least one or two pairs. Black goes well with a business suit, so I have those, and the brown ones are what I wear out in the dirt.
Blake
on 03 Jul 10Nice screw in the heel cringe
Joel
on 05 Jul 10Another Aussie wearing his right now. They’re my workshoe of choice (I often need to go on site) – Craftsman (rubber soled) in chestnut.
This discussion is closed.