I bought these to be used with a Star Wars Sith costume. They're costume boots, for a good price, and they look pretty good. The ridged thing in front is just an insert under the belts. They looked terrible. I took them out. The belts try to hold it in place, but it doesn't really work. the belts, by the way, don't come off on the one I received. Without the insert, they're a bit loose. They don't look horrible that way, but if you want a tighter look or really like the ridges, I'd skip these. For the price, though, you can't really beat this. Where else can you get a boot in this style for this price?

In any case, I was going for a Starkiller look from the Force Unleashed games, so all I ended up doing is taking some cloth and wrapping these boots up in any case. Still, I have to say it seems to be put together pretty well. You're not buying leather, but it looks close enough to count for costume purposes. I would recommend getting some of those liners for the bottom, though, as these boots leave a lot to be desired for overall foot comfort. They're just flat, inside, with a very basic liner in there with very little cushion. They were a little big on me, but pretty close, which was awesome considering it was a generic size to cover 2 full foot sizes. I'm normally a size 10-10.5 depending on manufacturer, sometimes wide too, and these still fit pretty well.

If you're looking for actual boots, skip these, and buy a real pair of boots. For a costume, though, these worked out pretty well. I can't really complain (even though I just did) about these since they did the job and for a price I could live with. I'll use these a bunch more before I'm done with them and have confidence that they'll be up to the task.