Belleville 310

This is a great fitting, comfortable, lighter weight hiking boot that falls short on durability and short on the manufacturer's claims.

I actually bought these boots for my work. I usually average about 5 miles a day walking trails, gravel/dirt roads, and some paved walkways. Like most people I was looking for something comfortable and well fitting, lighter weight, durable, with good support and traction. I was also wanting an affordable "made in USA" boot. I settled on these and had them shipped to me direct from the manufacturer this past February. This is what they look like after about 150 miles of use

My first thoughts after opening the box were they were made really well and appeared to be very good quality, having double or triple stitching in important areas. I also noticed they were very light compared to what I am used to wearing. They use a Meramax brand sole that the manufacturer describes as reducing weight.

Initial fit was a little awkward in the arch area until they were broken in. Break-in time was about  15 miles, after which they fit like a glove. I have three pairs of Belleville boots and they all act this way at first. One thing I really like is the fact that there is ample room in the toe box compared with most of the traditional hiking boots I have used in the past. No squishing of the toes and no uncomfortable rubbing.

Also, unlike most traditional hiking boots I have used in the past, the factory insole was more than adequate and provided ample support and cushioning and did not need to be immediately discarded for something better. I must admit, when it comes to comfort, these are the 2nd most comfortable shoes I have ever worn. I love that aspect.

Two other notables, the laces are extremely long and require double knotting as in most military style boots, and there is some confusion on Belleville's website regarding proper sizing. It says they run 1-1.5 times larger than your normal size. For me these run true to size. I wear a 9.5 in almost all brand boots and a 9.5 in these.

The shortcoming on these boots are soles.

The Belleville website says "A tactical boot in design, the 310 uses a breakthrough polyurethane MeraMax® outsole specifically designed for the high performance demands of military boots. This tough and durable outsole not only reduces the weight of the boots but is also long-wearing, slip resistant, flexible, shock absorbing, energy returning, heat and flame resistant, oil/solvent resistant and hydrolytically stable."

The soles of these boots are not tough, durable, and long-wearing as the company states. After just 3 months of use, the soles started to delaminate and come apart.






It appears that there is a layering system on the soles. Something I have never seen before. My other two pairs of Belleville boots have the Vibram soles and have much more use and many more miles and still look almost perfect.

I tried to contact the company multiple times via-email and never heard back from them. I even posted a review on their website but they never put it up. I guess because it was not a 5 star rating and they did not want a bad review. This will be the last pair of Belleville boot I will own. I will not do business with a company that disregards their customers this way.