Review of the R M Williams Craftsman Chelsea Boot

R M Williams is as Australian as this sunburnt country, this land of sweeping plains, its ragged mountain ranges and droughts and flooding rains.

 

Sorry, I got carried away there!

 

The R M Williams Craftsman Chelsea boot is the iconic backbone Chelsea boot of the entire R M Williams collection. The difference between the Craftsman and its brother, the Comfort Craftsman is that the Craftsman has a traditional leather sole, while the Comfort Craftsman has a thicker, flat rubber sole.

 

If you're Australian, you are practically issued these with your citizenship papers.

 

These are my second pair of R M Williams'. I bought these on a trip to Melbourne in about 2000, from R M Williams' biggest Melbourne store at the time, under the shot tower in Melbourne Central, so they're already over 20 years old.

 

 

They haven't been resoled yet, but the leather sole was wearing, and in order to preserve them, before they wore a hole through the footpad under the ball of the foot, I have had a Topy sole protector put on. In the last 20 years, I've worn them on all sorts of occasions, including during my work as a management consultant up in the northwest where I've had to travel through the wet season and through some pretty bad terrain.

 

As you can see from the photos I put here, they always clean up and polish up well.

 

 

As dressy as they look, these were made as outback workboots and can take the strain!

 

Nowadays, with my more extensive collection of boots, I wear these, primarily as dress boots in the office or on dressy social occasions. Aesthetically, they look dressy, especially in this leather, and with the slim last and the sleek profile, and the pointy chisel toe. The chisel toe and slim last are designed for slipping your feet into stirrups but they are still pretty cool and dressy even when not sitting on a horse!

 

 

The shaft is quite high for a Chelsea boot, a little over 6 inches when most other dressy Chelsea’s are about 5 inches, remembering its history as a riding boot that needs to keep your ankles and feet secure.

 

 

Chelsea boots were designed primarily as a riding boot, worn by Queen Victoria, and later made fashionable by the Beatles and the other fashionable Sixties Pop residents of the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea in London. It's distinguishable as it's without laces, and has these two elastic goring side panels that allow you to open the collar of the boot to slip them on and off.

 

I find the fit of a Chelsea boot requires a snug heel, ankle and vamp in order to avoid you flinging the boot off when you walk. People with a low-volume ankle may have issues fitting many Chelsea boots, but I find R M Williams’ shape over their last is perfect in that respect.

 

 

R M Williams was founded by Reginald Murray - or "R M" - Williams in the early 1930s. 

 

As a swagman - itinerant outback labourer - he learned leather craft and made saddlery and eventually found that his most successful product was his riding work boots.

 

In the '60s and '70s, R M Williams became famous as THE iconic Australian Chelsea boot and R M became a millionaire. Through the '80s it became a popular boot with inner city Australians, and just like the Timberland yellow boot in New York, became the darling footwear of stockbrokers and entrepreneurs.

 

R M sold the company in the late 1980s and since then it has gone through various hands, including a period with LVMH -  the Louis Vuitton luxury brand. Recently it was brought back into Australian hands when the company was bought by Australian mining magnate, Andrew Forrest.

 

Somewhere in that journey, the boot, having been burned into the consciousness of every Australian, became a fashionable luxury boot overseas.

 

Throughout its history, the various iterations of their Chelsea boots have always been made in Adelaide, South Australia. Some other products like bags and clothing are made overseas, But not their boots.

 

 

Now, let's turn to the construction of this boot.

 

Firstly, the company tells us that they are still handmade. The upper is a single piece of wholecut Yearling. This means the uppers have no seams other than a single seam running up the back. This is a difficult job to cut the pattern and then to mould the shape of a single piece of leather over a last by hand. In most other Chelsea boots, you're likely to see seams under the elastic panels, or sometimes seams that attach a vamp piece across the front.

 

Yearling cowhide is a fine-grained full-grain leather from one-year-old cows.

 

 

Due, I guess to their age, the leather is supple but durable and can be polished up to shine, or, as I've found, are pretty durable in light outdoor work conditions and still brush off well.

 

It has two side elastic panels called "goring", designed to make it easy to pull apart the collar so that you can slip your feet in and out, and also designed to snap back and keep the shaft snug against your ankle once your foot is in.

 

To assist you to pull them on, there are TWO pull tabs, front and back. 

 

 I've been asked by people why there are TWO pull tabs - they're designed for you to pull them apart as you slip your foot in, not just to pull them UP your foot. With one pull tab you can pull them up, but honestly, it's pretty tricky to put your feet into them BEFORE you pull them on - especially as they need to then be elastic enough to return to a snug fit.

 

 

The uppers are connected to the sole by a Goodyear welt.

 

A Goodyear welt is a thin strip of leather that goes around the outline of the boot. The inside edge of the welt is sewn to the tucked-in uppers and the outside edge of the welt is sewn directly to the outsole, through the midsole.

 

The advantage of the Goodyear welt construction is that it is more easily resoleable and recraftable, and more water resistant.

 

In this case, this is a 270-degree Goodyear welt - it starts on one side of the heel, and goes all the way around the front and ends on the other side of the heel. This leaves the heel cup tucked into the heel being attached by glue and nails, creating a sleek line at the back, from leather upper to heel block. The R M Williams Goodyear welt stitch is very finely sewn - you can hardly see the welt since it's almost tucked in under the uppers - and very different from American workboots like Iron Rangers that have an obvious "ledge" caused by the outside edge of the welt.

 

Then, there is a cork midsole and a leather outsole, and Inside is a fibreglass shank.

 

A shank is a thin strip of hard material that provides arch support between the heel block and the pad of the foot. The fibreglass is a good touch because it's light and it passes through airport security checks, unlike a steel shank that sets off alarms!

 

You can also get the "Comfort" Craftsman version of this boot, and the difference is that in the Comfort Craftsman, the sole is a thicker, softer rubber, and there is a removable comfort insole that both helps with shock absorption.

 

 

As for leather care, R M Williams sell their own leather care products which is great because in general, I like to listen to bootmakers and use the products they recommend. I've used R M Williams' conditioners and polishes to take care of these, but I think if you used a quality product like Venetian Shoe Cream, that would be fine.

 

In the case of these boots, I've been a bit lazy because this leather is extremely forgiving. When really muddy, I have saddle-soaped them, but usually, I just give them a wipe-down with a damp rag, then condition them and sometimes polish them with boot wax. Recently, since I wear these now as dress shoes with a suit, I mirror-shined the toes and heels, but that's not a regular occurrence.

 

Again, because I wear these "dressy" my most important care regime is a monthly brushing.

 

 

Let's take a look at sizing and fit, and I'll also talk about breaking them in.

 

In fact, let me start with break-in.

 

There was none.

 

Easy.

 

But the important thing to do to get the easy break-in is to get the right size, and with R M's it's not all that simple.

 

I'm about to talk about Australian sizes, which should be the same as UK sizes. This is usually one number down from US sizes - for example, if you're a US 8, that translates to a UK 7.

 

I measure UK 7.5 on a Brannock Device - the machine shoe stores use to get you to stand on.

 

Usually, in boots, I'd then take a half-size down to a 7. Sometimes, you get boots that are true to size, that is, a 7.5.

 

However I find that RM's, said to be true to size, have actually a very slim last - a very slim foot shape. I have played around with other RM’s in a 7.5 which were too tight, and even a 7.5 wide, which were too short and also too sloppy across the forefoot.

 

So, in R M Williams I find my best size is an 8 - and then sometimes, I need a thin foam insole to bulk it up a bit.

 

Where I usually wear US boots in a US size 8 with an average D width, these R M Williams' on the other hand, are a perfect fit at an equivalent US 9. There is no way I could buy a Red Wing or a Wolverine, or an Allen Edmonds in a US 9, they'd be huge. Go figure.

 

In this size, and with a thin foam insole, they are a perfect fit, snug all the way around the heel cup, snug across the instep, and snug around the ankles. Wearing these I feel totally comfortable and secure, my foot held in by these laceless boots. In fact, like the proverbial firm handshake.

 

 

Now, what would you wear them with?

 

Don't forget that they were initially designed as riding boots for Australian stock riders mustering cattle or sheep, or to be worn around the country or on a farm, by farmers, riders, drivers and swagmen.

 

This means that they go really well with denim jeans or moleskin trousers, and subsequently anything that's brown or khaki, whether these be chinos, five-pocket pants or more formal trousers. At the same time, certainly in Australia, we wear them with suits because, polished up, they’re super dressy.

 

 

These Chelsea’s are extremely versatile and you can pull them on almost with anything you’d wear - even with shorts!

 

Just think drover’s clothing and outfits!

 

 

Let’s turn to their cost and the other counterpoint to cost - their value.

 

RM Williams Chelsea boots sell for AUD $649 to $799 depending on leathers and their different soles. These black yearling Craftsman boots are AUD $649 although when I bought these, they were under AUD $400. It seems after each change of ownership my fellow bean counters work out that they can inch the price up. They have already increased by over $50 since the recent change of ownership back into Australian hands.

 

Compare these with the Aussie dollar prices for locally stocked Red Wing Chelsea’s at under AUD $400. The Aussie dollar price for mail order Grant Stone Chelseas is under AUD $450, albeit with postage on top. You can mail order Meermin Chelsea's for under $400 - shell cordovan Meermin makeups for about AUD $500.

 

So, RM’s are on the higher price level of the range.

 

But are they worth it?

 

The materials are undoubtedly top-notch. QC is excellent. Made in Australia, skilled wages and HR practices are at the top end of developed nations’ tables. As witnessed by this pair - they last and they look good the older they get.

 

You can make a case in every way that they’re worth the cost.

 

But you know what? At over AUD $600, I can’t help but wonder what profit premium we’re paying for a revered international brand name.

 

I'm glad I have a pair, and as an Aussie, I wear it with some pride. But at over AUD $600 I think they are at the very edge of “yes, they’re worth it”.

 

So that’s my review of the R M Williams Craftsman in black yearling leather. You can check out my review on YouTube here:

 

 

 

I have loads more videos to come, and with nearly 70 pairs of boots and counting, I’ll be back with more boot reviews here and on my YouTube channel.

 

Don’t miss them!

 

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