Thursday Captain in Brown Thursday Chrome

I confess.

 

I have indulged in a gateway "drug" that hooked me into collecting boots.

 

The Thursday Boot Company's Captain Boot, in brown Thursday Chrome, was my gateway drug into American-style heritage boots!

 

The Thursday Captain boot comes in a variety of different leathers. This one is in their brown Thursday Chrome, which is their version of the famed Horween Chromexcel, which I'll talk about in more detail later.

 

 

 

I bought this pair in November 2020 - and after this buy, I really started getting into quality Goodyear welted service and work boots, so it ended up in my regular rotation, which with (to date) up to 70 pairs of boots, means that it doesn't get the wear it deserves.

 

Still, every time I put it on, the comfort and looks make me really regret not wearing it as often as I do.

 

I've owned, I suppose you could call them "lower quality" boots before - primarily Timberland boots and a no-name cowboy boot are in my original rotation. And of course, being an Australian, I had a couple of pairs of really high-quality R M Williams' Chelsea boots to start with.

 

But I really wanted an "army boot" style of boot and watching YouTube channels like Stridewise and others, I stumbled on one of the more affordable, Goodyear welted dress/service boots in the Thursday Captain.

 

 

The Thursday Captain is a sleek-looking but still functionally tough-looking combination service, work and dress boot. The design follows heritage models like the Iron Ranger with the cap toe and typical 6" uppers, but it's sleeked down to make it look dressier and more versatile.

 

The toe box has more of a slim, almond shape to it, and the profile has a lower, sleek pointiness to it, more like a cap-toe dress shoe than a chunky service boot.

 

 

Each boot weighs about 645 grams, or just over 1.4 pounds - not particularly light because of the Goodyear welt which I'll talk about when I get to construction - but lighter than many other entry-level service and work boots that you might compare it with. 

 

It comes in a variety of leathers and some with lug soles - these are studded - so at the time of writing comes in 19 different make-ups. When I made the video version of this review six months ago, there were only 17. 

 

They've been reproducing.

 

If you don't find a pair that you like the look of, man, you're hard to buy for!

 

 

The Thursday Boot Company was started by two MBA students, Nolan Walsh and Connor Wilson, in 2014.

 

As a management consultant myself in real life, I love the idea of two MBA nerds who do what MBAs do, start their own company, but in the boot-making world in which neither had any experience!

 

Legend has it that while still doing their MBA, they went on a surfing trip to Nicaragua and through a chance encounter with someone who made bespoke boots, identified a real gap in the market, clarified their vision, and made it their mission to make a combination dressy service boot that could be worn in a variety of occasions, at an affordable, sub US $200 price. In fact, just what they had been looking for themselves, but were unable to find.

 

As fairytale-like as was their success, it is not without controversy.

 

Firstly, the Captain uses non-heritage materials - EVA and Poron in particular - and many boot enthusiasts turn their noses down at that. Also, Thursday boots are largely made in Mexico, with mostly leathers from a Mexican tannery. While there is a US-made range, the Thursday boot is made in Leon, Mexico.

 

Some say that because of that, there is a concurrent lowering of quality, but others, who have had the experience of the brand since 2014, say that the improvements in materials and construction have improved considerably.

 

I own a number of Thursday boots since this buy and I have to say the ones that I have most QC issues with were the American-made Vanguards.

 

Today’s economics is global.

 

Don't forget, Walsh and Wilson are Americans, Thursday is an American company, they employ Americans in New York and elsewhere, and they pay American taxes.

 

If you are making a political choice - i.e., only made in America, well good on you, mate.

 

But if you think that made somewhere else is automatically not as good quality, then I don't think that holds water. Quality is about process and procedures, not about where it's made. A good company can, and they do, apply strong QC processes during manufacture, anywhere in the world, and back it up with good customer service.

 

And that's one thing that Thursday shines through on - if you pay attention to the reviews and various Facebook group comments - their customer service is lauded as among the best, focused on making sure the customer is happy, to the point of offering credits or exchanges in situations where I have seen other companies laugh in your face.

 

At the end of the day though, in terms of ULTIMATE quality, you are not getting a $600 pair of Aldens or an $800 pair of Vibergs. At US$200 you get what you pay for, but in my opinion, you get pretty awesome value for money at that price point.

 

Let's go on and see why I think so.

 

 

Let's first look at how this boot is constructed.

 

Starting from the bottom, the outsole is a studded rubber outsole. For those of you who don't know, it's modelled after the famous UK-made Dainite sole which you will see on many mid- to high-end boots, even those made in America.

 

 

The rubber composition is not as hard as a Dainite sole - that helps in overall comfort - but may not be as long-lasting, and the studs make it quite grippy in my use case scenarios. I wear these as casual and dress boots, in a mainly urban environment, walking around carpeted offices, outside on pavements and grass lawns, and on tiled shopping centre floors and timber pub floors.

 

I haven't slipped in these use cases and they always feel safe.

 

The heel is a stacked leather heel. I think the leather stacks are perhaps moving against each other and showing signs of wear in the layers - but I'm not worried about it coming apart. If you watch a video by Trenton & Heath on YouTube where they resole a Captain boot, you'll see the heel stack is well fixed!

 

The sole is attached to the uppers using the Goodyear welted construction. The Captain uses a 360-degree Goodyear welt. Goodyear welting is a type of stitched construction to attach the uppers to the sole. A thin strip of leather, called the welt, goes all the way around the circumference of the boot and is stitched to the turned-in uppers on the inside edge of the welt, and the outside edge of the welt is then stitched through the midsole and directly to the outsole. A 360-degree Goodyear welt means that the welt goes all the way around the boot, whereas a 270-degree Goodyear welt means that it only goes three-quarters of the way around, and the heel area is not welted but stitched, glued and nailed to the sole-construction.

 

The proffered advantage is that it is easily resoleable - a good cobbler can cut the outside stitches, remove the outsole, and without tampering with the uppers or the welt, restitch them to a new outsole.

 

Because there is an added layer that is not directly sewn through to the sole on the inside, Goodyear welt construction is also meant to be more water resistant.

 

Fewer holes you see.

 

Especially in a 360-degree Goodyear welt, because that protection goes all the way around.

 

Some people say the downside is that you have a less sleek heel - you have a kind of ledge where the back of the uppers meets the heel - but to be honest, these are made quite close to the heel cup to still look sleek enough.

 

 

Moving up, inside the boot is an EVA midsole.

 

This is where some of the contentions arise. Traditional boots are made with leather and cork insoles that are supposed to mould to the shape of your feet over time, and therefore become more and more comfortable over time as the inside of the boot becomes more and more like the contours of your own feet.

 

EVA foam is used in athletic shoes and sneakers so is very shock absorbing. But not very traditional.

 

There is also a steel shank in the arch between the front pad of the foot and the heel, which provides arch support and provides torsional stability over rough ground.

 

Then the insole itself is a Poron insole - a kind of memory foam, wrapped in a leather cover.

 

The long and short of it is that this is a very comfortable, shock-absorbing boot from day one, hour one, minute one. However, the negative is that the EVA midsole, and the Poron insole, like in your athletic sneakers, may get squashed over time and lose the memory in the memory foam, and be less comfortable over that time, just as traditional leather and cork midsoles start to become more comfortable.

 

So, the argument goes, "why have a resoleable shoe when it becomes less comfy just when you need to resole it?"

 

I don't know - I haven't had it long enough for the Poron and EVA strip to wear down, and I know I have had seriously uncomfortable break-ins with traditional boots so, who's right? To me, this is a boot for wearing comfortably and enjoying now.

 

As I said earlier, the uppers are Thursday's own chrome-tanned pull-up leather, also from Leon, Mexico. It's their version of the famous - and seen everywhere - Chromexcel leather from Horween tannery in Chicago.

 

I have boots in both.

 

There is no mistaking the depth in colour and the oily, waxy feel of Chromexcel. No, this leather is not Chromexcel, but it's a pretty good substitute - it wears well, and although like CXL it scuffs easily, like CXL you can easily restore it by rubbing it with your thumb and giving it a good brushing. because it is so full of waxes and oils.

 

The boot is fully leather lined so altogether is about 3 millimetres thick - pretty usual for boots like these. 

 

The stitching is pretty good - three stitches in a one-plus-two pattern across the toe cap, and the same double and triple stitching in the quarters. There's double stitching around the one-piece heel stay.

 

There are five washer-backed eyelets and two, also backed speed hooks, which are all pretty sturdy. In over a year's wear, I haven't come across loose hardware or loose stitching.

 

 

I have a problem with the tongue though. It is an ungusseted tongue, just attached to the vamp right at the front. My problem with ungusseted tongues is that if the tongue isn't wide enough, the tongues of my boots tend to slide to the side.

 

I know you can get a cobbler to put a couple of stitches to one side just to keep the tongue in place, but I did my own DIY solution and used a chisel to punch a couple of slits so that I could thread the laces through.

 

 

Care for this leather is pretty simple. I don't wear these particularly hard so I haven't needed any saddle soap - just a wipe down with a damp cloth, a good brushing, and then I use Venetian Shoe Cream to condition it, maybe a couple of times a year.

 

The leather has a maroon or burgundy base to it, so I wouldn't necessarily recommend brown shoe cream. The Venetian I use is neutral, and I guess if it were badly scuffed, I might use some burgundy shoe cream to put some colour back.

 

My Buy Stuff page on the website will have links to where you can get some of these care products.

 

 

Now let's take a look at sizing and fit.

 

My Brannock size - you know that aluminium machine you stand on to measure your feet - is a US 8 1/2 in a D width. Following Thursday's customer service - I emailed them for advice - I sized half down to an 8 "Standard"  and it's a good fit. The Captains don't have width measures, only "Standard" or "Wide" which is supposed to fit EE and EEE widths.

 

If you're in the UK or in Australia, US sizes are one number up from ours. For example, my British Brannock size is 7.5 and that's equivalent to a US 8.5.

 

I had some initial break-in issues at the beginning, mainly due to the sleek design of the toe box. My toes, exactly where the cap toe stitch was, were a little squeezed and sore after a day's wear. They eventually broke in after two weeks.

 

I helped it along by conditioning the toe cap stitches outside and inside and using a ball pein hammer to just massage the inside out while I was watching TV of an evening. I can tell you that after two weeks' wear and a walk in the rain, these are one of the most comfortable boots I own.

 

I am always surprised by how comfy they are every time I put them on.

 

The leather, despite the full leather lining, is soft and supple, the shock absorption is probably the best I have.

 

I suspect though, that the last - the form on which they build the boot - is not necessarily as kind to a wider foot because of the sleek design. Unfortunately, Thursday doesn't offer wide sizes in all their boots, but if you live in the US they offer free returns.

 

Not so much if you live overseas, but I'll talk about that below.

 

 

What do I wear them with?

 

As I said earlier my use cases are usually urban. So, the sleekness and colour mean that I've even worn them with a charcoal as well as a navy suit. With the shaft covered up by your trousers, and nicely polished, I think they look like dressy cap toe shoes.

 

The slimness of that sole helps that look as well.

 

To me, this is not a work boot - it's a combination service/dress boot. So, to me, you can pair it with anything casual, ranging from jeans to rugged casual, I think even to dressy or business casual.

 

 

I wear the Captains with dark jeans for a more dressy look, or with mid-wash or light wash denim. I wear them with khaki chinos and a polo shirt or a button-down, 5-pocket pants and a T-shirt. I'd be totally happy wearing them with business casual, in dressier pants or chinos, a button-up dress shirt and a blazer or sports coat.

 

I think this is a really versatile boot in terms of pairing with clothes and will suit a range of many occasions.

 

 

Now let's take a look at where to buy them from and the value - is it worth it?

 

The Captain sells for US$199 and is available on their website or at the only Thursday store in New York City, or through their own Amazon store. They do not have discount websites, and if you want to look for factory seconds you have to email their customer service who will give you a link to their Factory Seconds hidden page.

 

Do not fall for fake websites.

 

If you're in the US, they offer free returns if they don't fit or there is a problem. That service is not provided to us who are not in the US, although I have seen that they provide credits or refunds taking your original cost down to a Factory Second level.

 

However, if you really want a boot but it doesn't fit, you can't return it which is why I bought them from Thursday's own Amazon store, only available from Amazon's non-US sites, so I could take advantage of Amazon's own free return policies. 

 

As an entry into quality boots, it's really set at a great price for what you get. Comparing them at US$199, Timberland boots sell for around US$150 to $190, Doc Marten boots sell for US$130 to $200, but to get heritage Goodyear welted boots under $200 you'd have to search and probably come up with some unknown brands.

 

The next level of boot brands - and a subsequent increase in quality perhaps - are the $300 to $400 range of boots like Red Wing.

 

OK, once you come into the boot world, this may be an entry-level boot for you, and you may graduate to some of the more expensive quality brands, but certainly, as an entry-level boot, you can't get more for your US$200.

 

Let's say this lasts you for a couple of years before you have to resole - that's a cost of $100 per year, say, a cost per wear of about $1 a day if you wear them about a couple of times a week. That's affordable, isn't it?

 

In conclusion, I think the Thursday Boot Company's Captain Boot is the most versatile dress/service boot you can get, and unbeatable value in terms of construction, materials, wear and looks for US$199.

 

If you liked the review, you can watch the review here :-

 

 

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