TWO TOP BRANDS
THOROGOOD VS BRUNT
When you’re working 12 hour days, a good pair of boots is your foundation to prevent back pain, overall fatigue, etc. (we call this ‘Built from the Ground Up’). And, if you are like us, the next 12 hours off the clock are just as important for R&R with family and friends. Bad boots end up ruining your whole day – not just the working part.
There’s a lot of hype around Brunt and a LOT of ads on social media as to them being better or worse than the other major Brands like Thorogood, Irish Setter, and Timberland PRO. We tell our team all the time, its not about the brand, it’s about the ‘specific need’ and the ‘fit’ that makes somebody’s a good work boot. Johny whose 6’5” which monster feet is a bit different than skinny Larry whose 5’10” and 160lb soaking wet with chicken legs.
Brunt Marin vs. Thorogood Moc-Toe Work Boots
We broke this down into the most important segments:
- Price Point
- Fit & Break In Period
- Features and Technology
- Quality & Craftsmanship
Price Point:
- Thorogood $229+
- Brunt $155+
- Brunt wins the price point battle all day and depending on work application, the life of the boots are generally equal
- Thorogood is not trying to compete on price with the majority of their footwear, but they provide non-USA options in the same range.
Fit & Break In:
Out of the Box, Brunt has less break in period than Thorogood, but not because its ‘better’; the materials are significant different.
- Brunt Boots are lined with waterproof membranes which add comfort generally out of the box but this will compress over time.
- Most Thorogood Uppers are 100% USA Leather which has to FORM to your foot over time. Sometimes the tongue takes a week or so to break in.
- In general, we find the comfort level of each to be GOOD with Thorogood having longevity in the Upper and Re-soleable Capacity on the Lower if you elect to resole.
- Similar to life in general - buying for short term comfort wont always pay off in the long run.
- Thorogood Leather Quality is higher grade and generally goes through higher quality inspection in their American Factories than Brunt in China.
- There are over 100 people who build each Thorogood Boot in their Wisconsin Factories and they are badass
- Best way to think about the quality is Occidental Tool Belts vs. a Milwaukee Tool Belt. They are both functional. However, Occidental is built for Life, Milwaukee is built to replace over time.
Width Options:
- Thorogood is a true cut and sewn boot with insoles and the overall ‘last’ being designed for the individual wearer vs. generalist approach like BRUNT.
- We offer D to EE (Regular to Wide) but the factory make A to EEE which include narrow to Extra Wide.
- There is no One Size Fits All Model with Thorogood.
- BRUNT offers a wide and narrow ‘built in’ option that you simply remove the existing insole if you want a WIDE fit.
- This is awesome for many people since it provides FLEXIBILITY.
- However, taking out an ‘insole’ will reduce the comfort level of the boot over time since insoles are made of EVA foam that compresses.
Quality, Technology and Craftsmanship
Thorogood
We honestly want and tell Thorogood to market their Quality More – especially when they are seeing Brunt vs. Thorogood Competitive Ads trending on the internet that are Bias to one brand.
- However, they are old school and take the approach of ‘our boots speak for themselves’
That said, we had a chance to visit the factory in Wisconsin and saw the Quality Speak for Itself.
- Thorogood Uppers are higher quality than MOST boot brands since the Moc-Toe is a single piece of leather with ‘pressed’ down to create the moc toe appearance.
- 90% of Moc-Toe boots on the market are multiple pieces sewn together.
At the US Factories, over 130 people touch each boot before it goes out the door. It is insane to see what goes into making these boots.
- Each step (over 40) have individual Quality Inspections and they Reject a LOT
Brunt
Brunt’s quality has significantly improved since they launched and we imagine it will continue to improve.
We LOVE the BRUNT Toe design and how it solves the problem of having to put ‘shoegue toe caps’ on your brand new Moc Toe Boots.
They also stand behind their products and its not BS. If you don’t like them in 30 days, Brunt gives us a credit back – no questions asked.
- We see around 2-4% of Boots come back, but you cannot blame this all on Brunt.
- Fit and Comfort are subjective and based on the anatomy of your foot – not always the Boot itself
Overall Answer to which brand is better????
We love the style of look of each boot – especially comparing Moc Toe to Moc Toe.
If you have narrow to normal width feet, the Thorogood options will look/feel more narrow & fit your foot more comfortably.
If you love America, the choice is Thorogood all day. They’ve owned their factories for 100 years and personally employ the union workers at Weinbrenner.
If price is your driver, you have to go BRUNT. The value is unbeatable for the money – especially being waterproof under $169.
What Brand does more for their community and the trades?
Hard Question:
- Thorogood Employes almost 500 factory workers in USA and also supports the Amish Community a big way in Wisconsin which is RAD.
- Brunt is more of a marketing driven company and will make larger impacts to the Next Generation of Doers through partnerships, donations, and inspiring ads around Blue Collar Workers. – They are more socially driven and partnering with large scale ambassadors to help tell the story of their boots and other work wear categories.
