Unmarked El Torino Boots

* Last: Munson Last
* Uppers: Top Graded Full Grain 6-7 oz Oil-tanned Leather
* Construction: Goodyear Welted
* Sole: Dr. Sole #1220 Supergrip Full Sole
* Heel: Dr. Sole #1100 Original Whole Heel
* Size: US 6.5 - 11 (Including halves)

Dr. Sole OZ Trooper Service Boots / Black Smooth

Inspired by a pair of post WWII Australian Army Ankle Boots (pattern 10085) from our vintage boots archive, the OZ Trooper (a short name of “Aussie Trooper”) is the second house-made boots under the Pioneer Brand.

The reason why the Australian Army Boots caught our eyes is the simplicity of the pattern design. Instead of adding an additional piece of leather to make toe cap, the toe cap is presented by stitching; instead of 7-9 pairs of eyelets, the eyelets are merely 6 pairs; instead of 3-4 rows of stitching at the counter piece, it only has a single row, and so on. We may see the simplification as a reaction to saving materials during the war time. But in today’s point of view,  it is a presentation of minimalism that all the unnecessities are eliminated. It is very fascinating for us that despite the simplification presented on the Australian Army Ankle Boots, the essential design and functionality of military boots are still retained. This is the main motivation that triggered us to re-introduce them to the boot community worldwide!

Rather than 100% replicating the boots, we add a “twist” to make OZ Trooper look totally different from its original reference. We build them with the world famous Munson last, which was invented by a US senior officer, Edward Lyman Munson in 1912, who studied over 8000 soldiers’ feet to develop the Munson last that snug up the arch and heel when the shoe or boot is laced up and has a roomy, slightly upturned toe area, providing a totally different feel than other shoes.

Simply put, OZ Trooper is not just Dr. Sole’s interpretation of service boots, but a combination of a minimal pattern design from the Australian Army Ankle Boots and a guaranteed comfortable fit tested by the US Soldiers for over 100 years.

Available in two leather options, black smooth and black roughout leather. We select the top graded full grain 6-7 oz oil-tanned leather to provide the toughness and comfort at the same time. Equipped with Dr. Sole Super-grip full soles and single leather midsole (just like the configurations commonly seen on US field boots), the OZ Trooper boots are as tough as they should be!