When the boots arrived, I liked the look of their construction, however their width was a problem.

Although I have no Pacific Islander blood in me that I know of, I have what are often described as "Hawaiian feet". I like to call them Fred Flintstone feet. They are big and very wide in the front of the foot and toes. It makes finding shoes difficult.

I ordered size 15 EEEE, which is the same size I wear in New Balance running and walking shoes with the SL-2 last. According to the chart on the New Balance web site (and a conversation I had on the phone with New Balance to verify this information), this boot is build on the MOL-1 last and New Balance CLAIMS that the SL-2 and the MOL-1 lasts have the same fit, but that is completely un-true. The toe box is much narrower in this boot than in all of my SL-2 last New Balance shoes. So if are looking for a New Balance boot with a wide toe box like their athletic shoes that are build on the SL-2 last, and you actually NEED all of that toe room as I do, then this is not the boot for you.

I returned the boots to Amazon, who was stellar about the return, and I ordered a pair of Drew Rockford boots instead. I'm still waiting for those to arrive, but from what I read, they should have much more room in the toe box, although they cost a lot more.

If you do not know what a shoe last is, imagine an old-fashioned shoe maker who uses a metal or wooden form or mold of a "foot" and they build the shoe to fit that mold. That mold is called a "last". Modern manufacturing still uses lasts, but they are usually made out of plastic. So there are shoe lasts that are the same SIZE, but some might be wider in the heel and narrower in the toe, or any combination like that, and these lasts are given designations by the shoe maker. This explains why two shoes from the same shoe maker that are the same size may fit differently, they were build on different lasts. Some quality shoe manufacturers today still publish the shoe last information for their shoes if you ask or take the time to look it up (which is how I know that this boot is on the New Balance MOL-1 last), so if you can find the size of shoe that fits you well in a certain brand and contact the manufacturer or dealer and find out what other shoes of that brand are the same last, then you can, at least in theory, find another shoe that fits EXACTLY the same without the slight fit variances that you often find from one shoe model to another within the same brand.

This is how I know that every New Balance 15 EEEE SL-2 last fits my feet perfectly. The only problem with these boots is that, while New Balance claims that the MOL-1 last is similar to the SL-2 last, it is different enough in the toe box area that it makes these boots pinch my toes, which is especially bad for a hiking boot. If only they made these boots on the SL-2 last instead, then I wouldn't have to order a pair of boots twice as expensive just to get ones that will (hopefully) fit.