Street boot recommendations

Hi,

Just got my first streetbike, a 97 FZR600 w/1K miles. I see a
lot of Frank Thomas stuff in Cycle Gear and these boots on the
clearance page on their site:

http://www.cyclegear.com/spgm.cfm?L1=&L2=&L3=&L4=&item=FTL_SEB070-BLU-7_G&tier2=47&spec=Y
http://www.cyclegear.com/spgm.cfm?L1=&L2=&L3=&L4=&item=FTL_SEB075BZ7_G&tier2=47&spec=Y

They look good on the webpage, but at the same time I also see these:
http://www.cyclegear.com/spgm.cfm?L1=&L2=&L3=&L4=&item=ONL_0318-106_G&tier2=110&spec=Y

- which I would guess, with an original price of $99, do not provide
as much protection as top of the line Alpinestars or Sidis or maybe
even top of the line O'Neals.

I don't know how much protection the Frank Thomas boots offer, or what
Alpinestars or sidi models they compare to, or for that matter, which
alpinestars or sidi models do offer the most protection or are the
most popular, or what other brands I should consider. I see the
alpinestars smx plus roadracing boots, looks like that might be the
top of the alpinestars line, any opinions about those?

What do you recommend? Although I'm checking the sale table I'm more
interested in getting the best boots. Does anyone wear dirtbike
boots? Seems like they would bee a bit stiff and bulky but I haven't
tried them.

thanks in advance.
Doug

 

I've been very unhappy with a pair of Frank Thomas boots that I bought
on sale from Cycle Gear. The plastic at the front of the boot got
scratched
somehow and then split. Shortly after that, the fabric at the toe that
sat
underneath the plastic also began to pull away from the sole.

$99 thrown out money IMHO. I like the lacing and upper part of the
boot, but can't imagine why they put the toe together like that. I
would not expect a boot to fail that way and I would have expected
more substantial materials.

 

I tried my SIDI Force's (off-road boots) once while street
riding--what a mistake! They're stiff in places you need flex, and
slippery in places you need grip. Wouldn't recommend it.

I had a low end pair of Alpinestar road boots that were very
comfortable and well made, can't say they offered a lot of protection
when I compare it to an off-road boot, but fortunately I never had to
test that part.

I'd stay away from Cycle Gear's house brand. Hard to go wrong with
Alpinestar or SIDI. Lots of people like Daytonas. Also, aerostich has
some nice "combat touring boots" that seem kind of interesting (made
by SIDI). Most of these are probably around $300 or so.

 

Rob, did you try to get them to warranty the boot?

--
Heaven is where the police are British, the chefs Italian, the mechanics
German, the lovers French and it is all organized by the Swiss.

Hell is where the police are German, the chefs British, the mechanics
French, the lovers Swiss and it is all organized by Italians.

http://new.photos.yahoo.com/paul1cart/albums/

 

I did manage to "crash test" a pair of Joe Rocket boots and they did
their job well.

--
Heaven is where the police are British, the chefs Italian, the mechanics
German, the lovers French and it is all organized by the Swiss.

Hell is where the police are German, the chefs British, the mechanics
French, the lovers Swiss and it is all organized by Italians.

http://new.photos.yahoo.com/paul1cart/albums/

 

I bought a pair of those BMW Air Flow boots because I ride in the heat and
sweat a lot. They do flow air and they are very fast to put on compared to
some others I've owned. Seem very well made (Italy) and lined with
Cool-Max. Cost was around $180.

Mack