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 | TomG
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 5406 Upper Ottawa Valley 
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2001-10-23 32617
I finally demonstrated a reason for wearing safety boots yesterday--they've been my standard footwear for years since I broke some toes in the sound business. Yesterday, during raising the carriage of my 3ph fork-lift with a come-along to attach the top-link, the carriage slid down its rails right on to my toes--nice cut through the leather. I figure the boots have saved me from more than a few bruises and broken toes over the years, but I believe this would have been a crushed forefoot without the boots. Keeping track of where your feet are when working on a tractor is one of the essentials. Mine was simply in the wrong place, and there was no good reason for it to be there. Just a lapse--the carriage slides down the rails every time I mount the forklift. I figure lapses are normal at least for me, and I'm real glad the boots saved me from myself.
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 | BillMullens
Join Date: Jun 2000 Posts: 649 Central West Virginia 
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2001-10-23 32618
Tom, I'm glad you're OK. Safety toes have saved my foot/toes from minor dings, if not major damage, many times. I started wearing them because of MSHA regs for mine sites that require toes and hard hats. Once I had a good pair (I like my Matterhorns), I started wearing them at home and never went back. They give you an extra measure of safety when you make bad decisions, and protect you from pure accidents. I've also noticed that as I get older I'm more cautious in general - I always use safety glasses and hearing protection when cutting firewood and weed-eating, for example. Now if I could just find a full Kevlar suit on Ebay....
Bill ....
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| Bird Senter
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 962 
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2001-10-23 32619
I've never worn the steel toed boots because when I was a kid, one of Dad's co-workers had them on in the oil field when a pipe crushed them onto his toes. I know if he hadn't had them on, it would have cut his toes off, but as it was the doctors had a major job just to get those darned boots off, and he still lost the toes. ....
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| Craig Dashner
Join Date: Posts: 1 
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2001-10-23 32622
I'm with Bird! I had horses step on my feet many times with no problems (maybe a bruise or two), until I was wearing steel toes once. The toe buckeled (bent) in on my foot (above the toes) and left one heck of a nasty spot on the top of my foot and ruined my boots on top of that. Same horse stepped on my feet many times without out causing damage. Steel toes did nothing but waste my money!! ....
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 | Peters
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 3034 Northern AL
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2001-10-23 32635
I have a number of pairs of steel toes, but use the rubber ones more often. I have saved my feet more than once with the old Adidas Superstars. Ugly as sin, wear like iron and protect the toes.
An old lacross player's favorite, but hard to find now.
....
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| TomG
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 5406 Upper Ottawa Valley
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2001-10-24 32637
Yes, safety boots are probably like seat belts--sometimes a good outcome and sometimes worse. But overall better with than without, at least in the construction industry. I'm happy enough to have gotten a good outcome. Rather than the boots themselves, my message maybe was a reminder mostly to myself to keep my feet out from under things. Most things attached to a tractor can drop unexpectedly. Reliable instincts are what prevent accidents, and my instincts just weren't there that day. Maybe I should start talking to myself like a sports coach. Whistle blows; all stop: 'Where are you? What are you doing? Where is the implement? Where are your feet?' On the side of not wearing safety boots, I was surprised that some movers were wearing running shoes. What one said was that if you wear boots it's tempting to rest cases on your toes to get a grip before lifting. Then, the lift then isn't right and you get back injuries. Of course, he also said that boots make marks on floors and then the owner has to deal with complaints--don't know which is the real reason. ....
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| Peters
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 3034 Northern AL
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2001-10-24 32643
Safety wear can give you a false sense of security. I cut wood for years in the westcoast woods commercially, always wore my falling pants and never even touched the pair. A few year ago in I need to cut fire wood to fuel the house. I found another pair of pants and started cutting. One day after a cut I set my little saw down on my leg to rest it as I was standing in an awkward position. I cut the pants as the saw was still spinning. You still need to keep you head and when tired it and rest if you are doing dangerous work. This includes driving.
Steel toes are available in more than boots. You can find them in runners and dress shoes. As an engineer I have a set of wingtips.
Peters ....
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| Peters
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 3034 Northern AL
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2001-10-24 32644
Safety wear can give you a false sense of security. I cut wood for years in the westcoast woods commercially, always wore my falling pants and never even touched the pair. A few year ago in I need to cut fire wood to fuel the house. I found another pair of pants and started cutting. One day after a cut I set my little saw down on my leg to rest it as I was standing in an awkward position. I cut the pants as the saw was still spinning. You still need to keep you head and when tired sit and rest, if you are doing dangerous work. This includes driving.
Steel toes are available in more than boots. You can find them in runners and dress shoes. As an engineer I have a set of wingtips.
Peters ....
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| CaseyR
Join Date: Jun 1999 Posts: 53 Columbia River Gorge, Oregon
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2001-10-24 32656
My problem with safety shoes is similar to my problem with regular shoes, only more so - finding ones that fit. My shoe size is 11 to 12 1/2 depending on brand, but the ball of my foot is an EEEE width while my heel is about a B. Most shoe manufacturers these days seem to think everybody is a C and safety shoe manufacturers seem to think feet come to a point in front. Anyone know of a safety shoe that is shaped somewhat like a Birkenstock? It is bad enough having my toes cramped by leather, which gives a bit, but steel toes generally don't break in very well... ....
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| TomG
Join Date: Feb 2002 Posts: 5406 Upper Ottawa Valley
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2001-10-25 32660
I sort of have Casey's problem, but mine is more due to a very high instep. I end up having to get boots that are too long to get enough room for the instep. I did try a safety-runner' type but they were too narrow. As Casey says, 'steel toes don't break-in very well.’ What I found is that insulated 'Terra Wildsiders' (made in Newfoundland) are fairly wide. The best size for me is still a bit sloppy so I put an extra liner in them and they’re OK. I never did solve the boot problem when I was playing soccer. The only soccer boot that fit were Italian, and they stopped being imported the year after I found them. When I wore out the ones I had, I either contended with blisters or killing a big toenail several times a season. Of course, I then got old and started managing the club. Can't play yourself too much when you’re the management, so ultimately that solved the boot problem. ....
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