Cowboy Boots are like any other product. You always want to find the best deal. The cheaper the better is a motto for a lot of consumers these days. If you’ve browsed around, I’m sure you have seen some cowboy boots from brands like Lucchese, Stallion, Tony Lama, etc… for 8 or 9 hundred dollars and up and thought, is this worth it?
The answer is yes, you just have to know which ones. Below I will give you the information on the most expensive cowboy boot brands and why they are worth it.
Cowboy Boots, Are They Really Expensive?
That’s my question to you. If you look at it in the long run their cheaper than your run-of-the-mill shoe or sneaker and it’s gonna make a huge difference down the line. There’s 3 things you’re gonna wanna think about regarding the cost of a cowboy boot. Where are they made? How are they made? What are they made of? All of those things go into deciding what the cost of a boot actually is.
Where are they made?
Now in North America (Canada, U.S., Mexico), a boot is gonna range from about $175 – $275. I’m talking about your cowhide normal (average) cowboy boot. When you go to Asia and look at the boots their making in India and China, those boots are gonna range from $50 – $150. Europe and the boots made in Spain and other places in Europe, those boots are gonna run you around $300 – $500 for a regular cowhide boot. That gets into how they are made. There are just a lot of things about how a boot is made. So if you make boots in a factory with machines, you can make them quicker and it’s gonna be cheaper. If you have a hybrid way (like a lot of the boots are made in Canada, U.S. and Mexico) you have some portions done by hand, some portions done by machine that will cost between $175 – $275 range. Then you get into that fully handmade or custom boot, which is gonna be really expensive because you have one person or several people doing every single thing by hand. Even the stitching in the shaft. Those boots are gonna run somewhere between $500 – $1,000 plus.
If I do buy expensive cowboy boots like the ones listed below, I buy them from one place. That is Pinto Ranch! The reason I shop there is pretty simple. Their customer service is awesome! Their return policy is amazing and the quality of boots is “Only the best”. Are they expensive? You bet ya, but there is a reason for that. All of their boots are top of the line. Is a Mercedes Benz expensive? You know it, but there is a reason for that. Like a good Mercedes, boots from Pinto are of the highest quality. Names like Lucchese, Stallion, Tony Lama, etc… have been around for decades even a century or more and there is a reason for this! Sure, these are some expensive cowboy boots, but they are worth every penny in my opinion!
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Stallion boots are known from the runways of Paris and Milan to being worn by Hollywood stars. Lol, you know they are gonna be some expensive boots but worth every penny!
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One of my all time favorite brands of cowboy boots (my Italian heritage I guess), Lucchese boots can be pretty expensive, but they also have some cheaper options. Check out Pinto Ranch to find some good ones.
What they are made of?
If you go past the cowhide or the bull hide leathers and you go into the more exotic skins like a pair of Lucchese ostrich skin boots or caiman, lizard, and alligator, these boots are gonna be more expensive just because those hides are harder and more expensive to pr occur. These cowboy boots are usually referred to as “exotics”. As you know, the word exotic in any product is kind of a fancy word for “it cost more”. Rightly so though in my opinion. It’s a lot easier and cheaper to get cowhide than it is crocodile or ostrich leather.
How They are Made?
This really doesn’t need any explanation in my opinion. Handmade cowboy boots have one person either making the entire boot or several people doing different parts of the boot by hand, but it is being handcrafted and they are experts in their field. They are basically putting their reputation into every pair they make and are physically observing the entire process. If a machine screws up and is sewing a bad piece of leather or stitching runs out or a machine gets bumped, etc… who knows how the final product is gonna turn out. I’m gonna choose handmade or handcrafted every time when it comes to boots or most any other product on the market.
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Rios of Mercedes boots are one of my new favorites! They aren’t new by any means, just new to me. They are of the highest quality boots out there and demand a high price if you ask me.
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Tony Lama handmade cowboy boots are royalty among boot lovers. They great thing about this brand is they come in a wide range of prices. If you like the more expensive pairs, god bless you!
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Black Jack boots is another brand that has been around since 1996. Not long in boot brand years, but trust me, they know what they are doing and the craftsmanship demands the price they are asking for!
Handmade Cowboy Boots, The Quality Is Unmatched
Everything from pasta to cookies, blankets to Panama hats, cowboy boots are no exception. Handmade beats factory / machine made items any day of the week! I really hope this is something you have already experienced and know firsthand. If you haven’t, you are really missing out. I’m not saying $150 – $200 boots aren’t a good pair of boots, I’m just saying a pair of boots that you may have been looking at that cost 3 times as much are most likely a lot better. There can be a couple major differences like the quality of the leather, sole, heel, etc… and there can also be some subtle differences that really make the boot. Some hand stitching is superb and you just might not find in a cheaper lower quality boot. The materials in the heel or the sole are usually of lesser quality and may cause you to repair them say once a year instead of every couple of years like in a higher priced boot. So many little things, a lot of that can add up. Usually if you purchase a boot from say Stallion, Lucchese, or Rios of Mercedes, you are gonna get quality that you just won’t find in say a pair of Tecovas or other lower quality boot.
What’s your favorite color, red or black? Check out these great black cowboy boots for men and women and these ladies red cowgirl boots!
These Boots Will Last Years Longer Than A Cheaper Pair
Not only will they last longer than a cheaper pair of boots, but think of an expensive pair of boots and then think of a pair of Nike sneakers you purchased recently. How long do these name brand sneakers usually last you? I’m talking about ones that you actually use for what they are intended for (i.e. running, exercise, sports, etc…)? A year if you are lucky. What’s the price tag on a pair of those bad boys. Now compare it with a $850 pair of Lucchese handmade cowboy boots. How long are those gonna last you? Maybe you don’t have any idea. Well guess what, it’s gonna be decades. You can literally have the same pair of boots for 10 or 20 years and that’s with minimal maintenance. You will have to maybe get it re-soled or heeled once in a while, but that cost isn’t bad. When you do this, you will pretty much have the exact same boot that is already form fitted to your foot. No break in period. This is one of the benefits of getting a higher priced boot. With the cheap lower cost boots, you most likely don’t have the top quality leathers (exotic or even cowhide) as you would in Lucchese, Stallion, etc…
When I say “you get what you pay for”, that just isn’t lip service, that’s an actual fact. If you know anyone with a pair of these boots, just ask. I guarantee they will be happy to tell you the same thing. You might be thinking “There’s no way I’m spending that much money on a pair of boots”! Hey, I get it. I thought the same thing when I bought my first pair, but a friend of mine assured me I wouldn’t regret it. He was right on the money so to speak. In the long run, they will pay for themselves.
Why You Shouldn’t Buy The Most Expensive Cowboy Boots Out There
The title of this paragraph might have you scratching your head. Why in the heck would he be saying this when he’s been talking about how buying expensive cowboy boots are worth it and the right thing to do. Well this has to do with your actions, not a fault of the cowboy boots themselves. Couple of reasons why you shouldn’t purchase a pair of boots like the $800 pair of boots I’ve talked about above. Something to think about.
Don’t buy them if the person is still too young. If the person in question is say 13 or 14 years old and their feet are still growing, I would not get them a pair of boots like this. You would think this would be common sense, but it’s not. I’ve heard of parents buying their kids a pair of Lucchese only very upset when they didn’t fit 6 months later. What did you think was going to happen?
Don’t buy an expensive brand of boots if you are rough on your footwear! This may also sound like something obvious, but you would be surprised. You wouldn’t take a Mercedes out 4 wheeling would you? Same thing when it comes to cowboy boots. The expensive brands might hold up better than a cheaper pair, but that doesn’t mean you should treat them rougher. These boots aren’t for the work site. They aren’t for hunting, fishing, or bull riding lol. They are a top quality pair of boots just like any other high end product and need to be treated that way.
These boots are built with the best leathers, heels, soles, stitching by the best boot makers in the world. You need to treat them as such. But hey, it’s up to you. If you don’t mind ruining a $900 pair of handmade boots, I guess that’s your choice. Tell you the truth, if I ruined a pair of boots that cost that much, I think I would cry.
Those Boots Are Made For Walking & Worth Every Penny
I hope you learned something here about expensive cowboy boot brands and why they are worth every penny! Sometimes when you see the price for a product, it’s not hard to dismiss it right away as costing too much and not being worth it. Sometimes it’s hard to see why it’s worth it. What it’s made from? Who made it and why they made it the way they did. All of these things can lead to a higher price tag, but over the long run, you are gonna save money.
To me it’s worth the extra money to have a pair of boots last years longer than a cheaper pair. I love that they form fit to my foot and I don’t have the hassle of breaking another pair in. This is something that is hard to put a price tag on. I really hope that you just don’t take my word for it. If you can, talk to someone that has a pair of boots like this and pick their brain. I can almost guarantee they will have the same feeling as I do. As always, I hope we’ve helped you find your new favorite pair of cowboy boots!
