The Flatbox’s lack of toe structure makes for a slimmer profile, although as I’ve worn them in, I sometimes fret that they’re perhaps too slim. I regularly encounter big Red Wing fans through my work, most of whom have guilelessly asked, “whoa, what brand are those?” The Red Wing Beckman Flatbox has an undeniably great look, and its unstructured toe calls to mind some of the brand’s far more expensive competitors. Luckily, Michiya and Red Wing Japan obviously proved them wrong. This leads him to believe that flatbox boots had been produced for Red Wing retailers as special custom orders, to cater to customers who preferred the style, even though many manufacturers asserted that one couldn’t even Goodyear welt a shoe without a structured toe box. They have been produced periodically since the 1920s, but usually to cut costs and not necessarily for style-he found several examples of iconic Red Wings (the 877 and 214) from the early 1960s that had been custom-made without the higher, rigid toe box. Michiya pitched the Flatbox Beckman to his colleagues around this time, but it wasn’t until 2015, when other brands started producing similar soft toe boots (mostly engineer boots) that Red Wing decided the time was right.Īn expert in Red Wing history, even Michiya notes the murky nature of flatbox history. In wear tests, Michiya found that boots with their unstructured toe boxes broke in more comfortably and better accommodated longer feet with higher arches. Some of these boots were Red Wings, but in the nascent heritage repro world, no one had yet reproduced this style, preferring the bulkier, more “traditional” work boot silhouettes.
We spoke to Michiya Suzuki, former manager of Red Wing Japan and the man who personally developed the Flatbox Beckman, to get the real story on how this boot came to be.īy 2010, Michiya became interested in soft-toe boots after finding several vintage examples that dated back to the 1930s-50s. Paraboot Avignon: a Wildly Comfortable, Personality-Filled ShoeĪ Brief History of the Red Wing Beckman Flatbox.A Deep Look at Heinrich Dinkelacker’s Signature Buda Brogue.Tricker’s Stow: A Two-Year Review of a Very Excellent Country Boot.Red Wing Iron Ranger: A Four-Year Review of a Timeless Boot.Tricker’s x Division Road Bourton: Five Months Deep Into Some Wonderful Kudu.Thorogood Moc-Toe Boot In Tobacco Leather: Five-Year Review.Onderhoud Handmade: Possibly the Best Value in Hand-Welted Boots.Alden Indy 403C Review: A Three-Year Look at a Near-Perfect Boot.Grant Stone Brass Boot: a Uniquely Intriguing, Wildly Versatile Moc-Toe.How I Cared For Them: Lightly wiped down if excessively dirty. Worn How Often: On average, 2-3 times a week.
Normally this is a Japan-only release but you can purchase them from Grown & Sewn in the US (However, a Red Wing employee got these for me during the internal warehouse sale, for…$75. Model: 9060 Beckman Flatbox in Black Klondike leather
Red wing boots care full#
My prayers for Red Wing boots that subverted the form were answered when a friend at Red Wing granted me access to the company’s full catalog-and the (almost) Japan-Exclusive Red Wing 9060 Beckman Flatbox.įriendly but strong encouragement: subscribe to Stitchdown’s free newsletter to ensure you never miss a single story I understand and respect why Iron Rangers are so ubiquitous, but personally, I just needed…something else. When it came time to choose a pair, I wanted to stretch. The thing with Red Wings though, for me, is also one of the reasons I love them so much: they’re everywhere. The urge set in for me about a year ago, when I decided I needed a good workhorse service boot-something that could work with anything, and hold up to whatever obstacles I (and it) might encounter. It’s a natural feeling to want a pair of Red Wings-a feeling certainly helped by boots from the Minnesotan maker being the most common high-quality boot to see out and about.
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