Anyone out there an Altberg devotee

Used to in days gone by. Brilliant boots for what I needed. And a service second to none by the company.

I don't use them nowadays but that is only because I don't live near enough to go for a fitting (laziness).

got some McKinnley's smashing boots on their second sole.

Do you have to buy them direct? Or can you get them through shops?

I went to Richmond to get e'm.As far as I know they do have stockists.

Not sure about stockists, but it is worth the trip to Richmond, believe me!

Yeah, but watch out for the Gurkhas though.

Too right, they lurk in the corners of all the best pubs in the market place (wearing Altbergs I might ad)

Altberg are fantastic. After years of using much longer standard sized boots than I needed Altberg had a custom fitted boot ready at second visit. Hugely worth the 720 mile round trip from Inverness to Richmond.

Don't know if this post is still running but after using and abusing my Altberg Defenders over many miles and carrying a 100litre Bergen for most of those miles I can vouch for the durability and comfort of Altbergs.I no longer need to wear black boots but I have recently been to the Altberg factory shop and bought a pair of Altberg Mallerstang Custom boots for general year round hill walking and trekking,The service and advice are excellent and the boots are a really good fit and very comfortable. Visit the web site if you need more info www.altberg.co.uk

I wanted to buy some custom boots, but after trying several times I've been unable to persuade them to sell me anything except an 'off the shelf' pair. I've come to the conclusion that they're not actually making custom boots any more, even though they don't say that.

If anyone knows different then please let me know - my weirdly shaped toes and odd sized feet are driving me mad!

The shop has closed, so it is just the factory now. I know many swear by them, but I had a pair custom made a couple of years ago that near crippled me. The toe box bent back and dug into the base of my toes.... still have a bump on the bone. More than likely my long thin feet to blame, find it just about to impossible to find boots to fit (hence the custom jobs).

Nightmare, Neil!

Did you tell them, and - if so - what was their response?

I bought a pair of Altberg boots about four years ago. I was having trouble with arthritis in my right ankle and foot and my podiatrist recommended a boot with a stiff sole and a custom-made footbed.

I got the impression that Altberg boots are not really custom-made although the company is prepared to tweak the basic design. I requested Gore-Tex linings but was turned down but did get extra padding under the tongue. I also had custom-made footbeds but these are now widely available in outdoor shops.

The boots are excellent, comfortable and have worn well but are on the heavy side. They are available in half sizes - I need a six-and-a-half and I do not understand why so many well-known brands have phased out the smaller sizes for men. I can't wear women's boots because I have exceptionally broad feet (they are almost square!) and a high instep.

The pain in my foot has largely disappeared for which I believe that a regimen of chondroitin and glucosamine, together with gentle stretching exercises, is largely responsible. The Altberg boots also helped by providing the stiffness that I needed at the time. I can now wear lightweight boots on backpacking trips without distress and find that Hi-Tech Sierra-Lite boots are better than Brasher Supalites even though they are approximately half the price. I am about to experiment with approach shoes.

To the best of my knowledge nobody, since Robert Laurie died many years ago, now makes hand-made walking boots and if anyone did I imagine that prices would be astronomical. But then, there may be a market since some walkers are prepared to spend vast sums of money on GPS receivers and mapping software rather than learn to map-read properly at a fraction of the cost...!

Peewiglet - Yes, I went back. I was offered some really thin conditioning oil to soften the leather. I could see the logic, but soft leather 'carpet slippers' for boots would scupper the overall stiffness. Tried it, didn't work.... or at least quick enough so binned them as I couldn't take the pain to try and sort it. At this time I found Brashers were a good fit (good enough on performance, but not optimum)so bought a couple of pairs of them. The nightmare continues as Brasher changed their last sizing, so I am currently unable to find a manufacture that can fit my long, thin feet.

Neil: This must be difficult for you. Do you ever visit the US? It's a peculair thing but it is a fact that Americans tend to have much narrower feet than Brits and this is reflected in shoe and boot sizing. It's no good buying US-made boot in this country because companies such as Timberland adjust their lasts for British feet.

I don't know whether this is an answer to your problem but it may be worth following up!

Good call Hugh, I know that us Brits tend to have broad feet. Just read a Karrimor shoe box (my wife bought a pair today, straight in the shop.. tried on... bought.... all within a few minutes - can only dream of it) and that goes on about Continental European & Americal markets being narrower footed. Certainly worth a look next time I'm on my jollies.

This is an interesting read.
I have big problems with most boots - finicky feet getting blisters regularly - and dream of visiting Altberg to have some boots properly fitted (and of course all my dreams will come true).
Again, its a bit of a trip from the South East of England, but I'm willing to give it a go. If I ever get there I'll let you know what happens!

Altberg do still make bespoke boots lasted to fit not cheap http://www.altberg.co.uk/Web/customm.jsp

According to the Altberg website their factory shop is still open.

I'm very much an Altberg devotee having been using them for over 10 yrs now. Have used the Peacekeeper, Defender, Jungle and desert boots as well as the field and fell. Customer service has always been excellent and now I'm in east Anglia, am trying to find an excuse to visit their factory shop as I'm a P****o user too.