Mark III Boots - Polishing...

[Ipip12]

Hi,

First off, I realise that this may have been discussed elsewhere. But I'm err, a noob and don't know where to ask this...  :brickwall:

I'm not in the military - not even close  :blotto: - but I like your boots. I was given a pair of Mark III boots a few years ago by an officer who somehow hung on to them (I don't know anything about policies regarding equipment after leaving the forces). Now here's the problem: I love them.

I started wearing these boots regularly after I realised I was getting through many, many pairs of sneakers, skate and running shoes etc. every year. Confronted with the fact that I had no shoes to wear to school, I wore those instead. They were very comfortable and fit my feet perfectly, unlike the other shoes I had been wearing, which were awkward due to my weird foot shape. I eventually put insoles in (the ones they came with were "rough"?), and it feels like I'm walking on kittens (and they aren't even scratching at my feet!).

Now comes the real issue: what do YOU do to keep your boots black and shiny. I'm assuming they still use these, or at least something similar.

I've had a few problems, to be honest. I can get the toe cap of the boot jet-black and reflective, so much so that I could read stuff in the reflection. However, once I started to move beyond that, there is a point where it turns from the smooth cap into some sort of weird textured leather like pebble grain. This ruins the reflection, giving off a dull black that doesn't really sit well with the polished cap.  Is it supposed to be like this?

The second problem I have comes with "creases" in the leather. I polish the entire boot so it's shiny, but places where the leather bends while walking (particularly the part between the tongue and the toe cap), the polish slowly flakes off after a day's hike. The result is a black boot with faint yet ugly gray creases showing! Argh.

 

[Ipip12]

Maybe I'm just being picky. Maybe I'm doing something wrong, or maybe I'm just an incompetent boob. That's what I'm here to find out.

What I do (I've never actually heard the correct method, I just found this way to be best):

- Dip a soft Kiwi cloth into a little tub of water.
- Rub it in the polish tin (may actually heat the polish if I can find the heat gun)
- Apply the polish to the boot, rubbing in circles until I see a dull shine.
- Buff with either a second kiwi cloth (which is clean) or a brush if it's one of the first coats of polish after being stripped by something nasty, e.g. walking in deep salt water or hiking in the snow.


Yet I can never get it completely black due to those creases and textures (or, I can get it black and then it will flake off in certain areas).

I would like to maintain these boots. If it helps, they are VERY old - possibly older than I am. How do I do this properly?

 

[dimsum]

You can keep boots after you leave the Forces, provided that they're marked by a hole punched into the top of the tongue (like one of those 3-hole punches.) 

The whole idea of the pebbly leather is that you aren't supposed to polish them to a highly-reflective shine; it does you no favours when you're in the field and your toes give your position away!  Now I'll stand aside and let the army folk (who wear them a lot more than I did) comment on what actually happens.  :nod:

 

[Ipip12]

*looks carefully*

Ehm, no, these aren't marked at all. Shh, don't tell anyone  >

OH I love tic-tacs...

 

[medaid]

You... Are amongst the few that actually like these abominations.

We don't shine them, we blacken them with kiwi polish or... If you want to get gung ho the boot blackener.

That's it. No makey shiny.

 

[SeanNewman]

...The whole idea of the pebbly leather is that you aren't supposed to polish them to a highly-reflective shine; it does you no favours when you're in the field and your toes give your position away...

I'm not so sure that's the real whole idea.  It may be the whole theory, but even the most hard-core soldiers only spend about 1% of 1% of their time in the military actually hiding from someone and not wanting to be seen (whether in combat or on exercise).  The rest of the time, they're walking around or on parade for something or other, often indoors, and getting jacked up by their Sergeant Major if their boots aren't shiny enough.

Typically people have more than one set of boots, at minimum their set of issued boots that are nice and shiny and a set of non-issued really comfortable boots they wear in the field that they don't care if they get dirty.

 

[George Wallace]

The whole idea of the pebbly leather is that you aren't supposed to polish them to a highly-reflective shine; it does you no favours when you're in the field and your toes give your position away!

Umm?  What would your toes be doing up in such a position as to give your position away.  They sure didn't do that when I was in the turret or in a trench.  I usually lay on my belly in the prone position so they usually get pretty scuffed up.  If I were on my back with my toes up, my boots were usually of,f off, and I was resting in a very secure position.

 

[Ipip12]

You... Are amongst the few that actually like these abominations.

We don't shine them, we blacken them with kiwi polish or... If you want to get gung ho the boot blackener.

That's it. No makey shiny.

Why... Are there better ones now?

The rest of the time, they're walking around or on parade for something or other, often indoors, and getting jacked up by their Sergeant Major if their boots aren't shiny enough.

Ahh... That's what I thought. :nod:

So how would I stop the polish from flaking on a pair of "formal" boots used indoors or whatnot?

 

[SeanNewman]

So how would I stop the polish from flaking on a pair of "formal" boots used indoors or whatnot?

Combat boots should never flake if you just apply polish and brush it off with a brush.  The only time I have ever seen a finish crack/flake is when someone gets burn-shining of parade boots wrong.

Please understand that when I talk about indoor boots for a parade, I am still talking about combat boots that we wear with camouflage and just a unit parade, not a formal parade like Remembrance Day.

Actual parade boots are what we wear with our dress uniforms, and those are the super-glossy ones that you've probably heard stories about cracking/flaking, and those are the ones that you get the soft yellow rag out for.

If you just have the Mark3 combat boots, then just regular Kiwi brush and polish is all you need.  There are a chosen few who attempt to "parade polish" their combat boots to be Garrison superstars, but that is the minority.

 

[NSDreamer]

I don't even use Kiwi polish myself, I use the Gortex Boot paste, which I find adds to the amount of time I can operate in wet fields without having to worry about my feet getting disgusting...er. From what I've been told M3's do have the gortex application on them.

That being said, most people use Kiwi on them and never report any problems.

Strategy I tend to use? Rub a bit of gortex paste on them here or there, then take a slightly damp kiwi cloth and rub in alllll over. If I'm getting inspected, I usually undo the laces and polish underneath them as well.

 

[SeanNewman]

While I can't speak for everyone, I don't think the GoreTex paste ever took off for the majority.

I can't see any reason at all to use it on the M3s because there certainly isn't any GoreTex on them.

I even ended up using regular black Kiwi polish on my boots that are GoreTex, and as far as I know there are no issues.

 

[George Wallace]

While I can't speak for everyone, I don't think the GoreTex paste ever took off for the majority.

I can't see any reason at all to use it on the M3s because there certainly isn't any GoreTex on them.

I even ended up using regular black Kiwi polish on my boots that are GoreTex, and as far as I know there are no issues.

IIRC, the original Mk IIIs were Greb Kodiaks and their leather was "breathable".  Kiwi Polish only fills up the pores and cuts the ability of the leather to "breath".  The GoreTex paste may be a better idea, as the old Silicone treatment is hard to find or no longer available.  If you wonder why your feet sweat so much, perhaps this is why......too much polish plugging the pores in the leather. 

 

[snoman317]

If you just have the Mark3 combat boots, then just regular Kiwi brush and polish is all you need.  There are a chosen few who attempt to "parade polish" their combat boots to be Garrison superstars, but that is the minority.

You can still get a good shine with just some polish and brush too. That's all I've ever used on my combats and people are always asking me what I did to them.. I don't know what they're doing different than me though.

 

[KellGunner]

am i the only person that thinks this guy is nuts??? i mean the Mk IIIs were the worst boots (in recent history) ever made!!!

as for polishing them, you have a polish applicator-use this to put on the boot polish, after this take a boot brush (its usually bigger) and brush them to a bit of a shine

combat boots arent meant to be super shiny just clean and presentable

 

[George Wallace]

am i the only person that thinks this guy is nuts??? i mean the Mk IIIs were the worst boots (in recent history) ever made!!!

Don't know who you really think is nuts, but I have worn Mk Is, Mk IIs and Mk IIIs for a long time.  They are far from being the "worst boots (in recent history) ever made".  That distinction I would splt evenly between the CWW boots and the GP boots.  I could easily do a BFT in Mk IIIs with little problem of blisters, compared to the heel of the GP boots cutting 1/4 inch deep gashes out of my heels during BFT workup training on the first day.  Blisters the size of Toonies torn through several layers of skin by a pair of GP boots I had been wearing for a couple of years, really doesn't give them any high marks in my books.

The polishing bit has been covered ad nauseum.

 

[Kat Stevens]

Don't know who you really think is nuts, but I have worn Mk Is, Mk IIs and Mk IIIs for a long time.  They are far from being the "worst boots (in recent history) ever made".  That distinction I would splt evenly between the CWW boots and the GP boots.  I could easily do a BFT in Mk IIIs with little problem of blisters, compared to the heel of the GP boots cutting 1/4 inch deep gashes out of my heels during BFT workup training on the first day.  Blisters the size of Toonies torn through several layers of skin by a pair of GP boots I had been wearing for a couple of years, really doesn't give them any high marks in my books.

The polishing bit has been covered ad nauseum.

Don't forget garrison boots.  As soldiers footwear goes, they were great curling shoes.

 

[MJP]

Don't know who you really think is nuts, but I have worn Mk Is, Mk IIs and Mk IIIs for a long time.  They are far from being the "worst boots (in recent history) ever made".  That distinction I would splt evenly between the CWW boots and the GP boots.  I could easily do a BFT in Mk IIIs with little problem of blisters, compared to the heel of the GP boots cutting 1/4 inch deep gashes out of my heels during BFT workup training on the first day.  Blisters the size of Toonies torn through several layers of skin by a pair of GP boots I had been wearing for a couple of years, really doesn't give them any high marks in my books.

The polishing bit has been covered ad nauseum.

Aye I am with George on this one.  I love my MK III boots, I am already dreading the day when my last two pair wear out on me.  I can ruck all day in them and barely have a hot spot. 

 

[armyvern]

Aye I am with George on this one.  I love my MK III boots, I am already dreading the day when my last two pair wear out on me.  I can ruck all day in them and barely have a hot spot.

Moi aussi. 2 pr - often exchanged now -, with the original soles (vice having them vibramed as some have done), 22 years, umpteen BFTs ... no issues with my feet. I rue the day these ones wear out.

 

[KellGunner]

Aye I am with George on this one.  I love my MK III boots, I am already dreading the day when my last two pair wear out on me.  I can ruck all day in them and barely have a hot spot.

Maybe it's just my general dislike for army boots that i made that statement, the sad thing is i have done a few BFTs in the Wet Weather Boots and didnt have a problem with my feet.

 

[armyvern]

Maybe it's just my general dislike for army boots that i made that statement, the sad thing is i have done a few BFTs in the Wet Weather Boots and didnt have a problem with my feet.

Then you are one of the very very few.