 I've had these six months now and I see on the website, Husk is a rich brown colour with burgundy overtones. Burgundy overtones? Really? And another thing, after six months, do I think this is a tough Pacific Northwest boot so well made that you wouldn't take it out for a hike through mud and rock trails? Stay tuned and I'll answer both of those questions. G'day, how are you going? Welcome to Boutlossophie and for those of you who are new here, my name is Tech. I acknowledge the traditional custodians of the lands I live and work on, the Wajap people. This is a Weiberg stitch-down service boot on their most popular last, the 2030 last, and it's built using leather from famous English tannery Charles F. Stead. I've had these for six months now. I did an unboxing as well as a review, which you can see up here. I think it's time though that I took a deep dive into how they've worn in six months. This service boot is a classic military pattern. In this case, revived from World War II Canadian Army boots. It has a lower five inch shaft when most service boots are nearer six inches. The shape of the backstay, the flat block heel and the open derby lace facings are all classic service boot patterns and in this case has what Weiberg calls a BCT or brogue cap toe. This leather is called oil collater and as the marketing documents describe it, it's a rich brown leather and supposedly with burgundy undertones. Does it though? Frankly, I find it hard to discern any burgundiness. To me, it's a rich brown, more a worn up brown color. My wife says that she can see some burgundy underneath, but I think that's the blue dress, white dress thing on Facebook from a few years ago. You tell me, do you see burgundy undertones? Whatever. It's certainly a stylish boot, especially in this 2030 last that closes into a rounded almond shaped toe. In this last and in this darker color, it can be worn dressy. I have got away with a suit, but honestly, it does look like I forgot to polish them. So it looks a little unkempt. I think the best look for this is a dress down business casual, say dark chinos, a chambray shirt and a blazer. You can also mix it up with jeans and a sports coat or just tan colored chinos and yeah, a sports coat. You most certainly can wear it rugged. I took it hiking in jeans, t-shirt and a Huckbray wax trucker jacket. But hey, that could answer my second question. Is this too finely made to wear out rugged? I'll answer that at the end, but a look at the brand might give you a clue. I already went through this in my original review, but if you don't want to watch that link, here's a refresher. Viberg is a Canadian company, started in 1931 and is still owned and run by the same family. Originally, it was founded in Saskatchewan, making boots for farmers. During the war, Viberg made boots for the Canadian military. After the war, Viberg moved to British Columbia. And where Saskatchewan was all agriculture, British Columbia was all logging. So guess what? Viberg used their experience of making work boots into making logging boots. American Pacific Northwest boot brands are an important subset of the American heritage boot world. Check out my review of the white MP boot up here. Viberg, despite being across the border, falls into this niche of making strong and sturdy work boots. But here's where it gets interesting. As we all know in the mid-2000s, Asia and in particular Japan, started to take on the American heritage clothing trend. In boots, I think it started with Red Wing, which even to this day, make models exclusively for the Japanese market. Brett Viberg, the third generation, spent a lot of time there and started Viberg making Japanese market focused boots. And then in the late 2000s, he really hit on the winner. Viberg pulled out their original military boots, updated them with some new British lasts and the Viberg service boot was reborn. It is not hyperbole to say that Viberg started the service boot trend that brands like Thursday, Grant Stone, Oak Street Bootmakers and Parkhurst are on today. Which is a good time to take a quick look at the construction. See how a tough boot with military and work boot origins can be made this finely. If you really want a detailed description of the construction, you really need to take a look at my original review. This model sits on a Ridgeway sole made by the same people who make day night. They are connected to the uppers using the stitch down method of boot construction. Now in stitch down, the uppers are stretched out over the last and then flared outwards and stitched down to the sole. In this case, it's an extremely fine and neat double stitch down. The first stitches the uppers to the midsole and then the second stitches the uppers through the midsole to the outsole. Inside the boot, the vamp and the tongue are lined with a soft kip leather. The uppers are a leather called oiled kulata from Charles F. Stead in England. Now people think kulata is a horse hide or horse rump but not necessarily. Kulata only means the back part and in this case it's from the rear bend and belly area of steer cattle. Now overall the construction quality is excellent but not just that. You can see that Brett Weiberg made a mind shift in direction and vision using Weiberg's experience in making tough durable boots but then making them with dress shoe finishing. These are finely made tough boots. The stitching is so tight and precise. The stitch density or how many stitches fit into an inch, they are incredible. The gap between the stitches are so precise you'd think they measured each stitch. Clicking or the choice of cuts from the hide is immaculate with no bad or marked pieces that I can see. In the last six months, now you know my crazy rotation with nearly a hundred pairs of boots but in the last six months I've worn these maybe a couple of hundred hours including a week where I took them on a hiking and wine tasting holiday. So apart from being supportive at the wine cellar, how have they gone? Let's start with fit and comfort. These run true to size but in UK sizing numbers. My US brandic size is eight and a half and since UK numbers are one number down these are seven and a half. Perfect fit and because it is the comfort has been really great. Once a six or seven day break-in was finished they were comfortable enough to go on long walks almost immediately. I have found the arch support to be extremely good something I've come to expect of all P&W boots with great lasts and all that leather underneath. This 2030 last is pretty good for me. Some people complain that because of the almond toe the big toe area squeezes in too much. I haven't found that. To me the last is snug in the heel and just right at the ball and also just right at the toe. Out of the box though these were stiff. Now six months later the rigid veg tan midsole has flexed a little bit and the uppers especially the shaft they haven't softened such but they really melded to the three-dimensional shape of my feet and feel supportive and comfortable. Comfort doesn't have to mean soft right? The uppers are still firm but the way they wrap around my feet almost bespoke is the comfort that I mean. The oil collater with its high oil content has developed a soft shine and luster. It does have some pull up and you can see the oils move around in there. If you look closely as the oils move it has very fine but irregular and attractive grain not smooth by any means. In use like horse hide or particularly horse rump it has developed rolls rather than creases and any creases are really very fine crystalline lines. One thing that has annoyed me in these last six months is the small all-islet hardware and the really skinny laces. They honestly are a pain to lace up and that's from someone who never complains. My fingers are just not delicate enough to not fiddle with them when I try to lace up but strangely enough when laced up you see why the design choice was to have a lot of small eyelets and these skinny laces it really does balance the boot. I think this is the complete package. The materials used are top of the tree. The way they're put together represents the best QC in my opinion but not just that for a heavy and obviously sturdy boot they look like they've been put together by someone who used to make bespoke several rows suits that's how fine the stitching is. So are they finished too finely to wear out bush bashing? Should you wear these boots as well made as they are delicately and finely finished? Out on a hike? Over rough terrain? Well I have. Go see my comparison between these and the white MP boots up there in the corner. Okay I must admit I had to do a paradigm shift because it first seemed such a silly thing to do. My wife saw me put them on before we went on a hike and she said really? But putting myself in a different mindset and going out there they took it no problem at all. Nothing has come apart nothing fell off. So yeah as much they look like something you wear only for dressy city-based activity go take them out there they'll be fine as for value though after six months they have certainly held up but the elephant in the room is that these sell for the US $900 mark that's nearly 1100 Aussie dollars. Insane right? Dear god I hope my wife didn't hear that but you know what I do not regret it one bit. Value is a personal thing right? Sure you base value on how long it lasts well check and what is made of and how it's made. Check check but you also base value on how you like it how it makes you feel. It's not all that superficial really but despite the price which is a barrier your brain ticks off all the objective things then like all other things you add the subjective to me they're worth it. To you how are you going to feel wearing this? So there you go question one no I cannot see the burgundy undertones can you? Question number two yes you absolutely can wear these out in the wild despite how insanely finished they are but you let me know in the comments below what do you think? Well agree or not I hope you like the review you know what to do like down there and if you're really new here or for some strange reason haven't subscribed yet subscribe what could go wrong more boot reviews coming up so go on until then take care and see you soon