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Comment by exitb | Hacker News Reader

Asolo hiking boots. I had a pair for more than 10 years now. They appear very fatigued from the outside, but don’t show any structural issues. I don’t think I own any other clothing item that gets at least semi-regular usage that lasted this long.

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Hasn't the outsole (the underside of the shoe) worn off?

It gets completely flat on my hiking shoes after a year or two, leading to notably reduced grip, and that's the main reason I have to replace them once in a while. But mine are medium priced, so I am wondering if higher priced shoes like yours last longer.

They’re very visibly worn, but still retain some of the grippy shape. I think that might mostly depend on the soil and rocks you’re hiking on. I visited volcanic regions a couple of times and got the sense that it’s much harsher on the soles. My area is mostly full of limestone, which is rather soft.

If it’s high end hiking boots it can be worth changing soles if they are too worn. Probably not worth the price for lower priced shoes unless you really want to keep them. I have a pair of Swedish made Lundhags, and I think they charge 75$ for changing the soles.

Good boots can have their outsoles replaced by a cobbler. I bought Merell Wilderness boots with the intention of doing that but scuffed the toes so badly that I'm not sure I will bother. They're also the heaviest boot I've worn, adding effort to high difficulty mountain hikes. They were in the expensive category.

I had some I bought about 10 years ago, but did not use for 8 years. The sole completely de-laminated and fell off on a hike. Turns out not wearing them can lead to that

My wife and I owned several pairs of Asolo hiking boots and all of them opened at points adhesed together. I do not buy Asolo anymore.

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