ROCKY AlphaForce Zipper Composite Toe Public Service Boot

Rocky boots are always well worth the money, but these in particular are even better. Tough, rugged, comfortable, and now this style has the composite toe. I had the previous exact same boot type that doesn't have a composite toe, and they held up to all kinds of rough use.

Love these boots. Comfortable and solid structure.

I ordered 9.5w, the right was labled 9.5w but fit like a 9.5, the left was also labled 9.5w but was extremely tight across the toe knuckles. There was a visible difference in external width. The soles were of a harder more plastic like material than a regular rubber sole boot, this made them lose traction on hard surfaces with any kind of grit, like a concrete shop floor has.

Purchased these for my college aged son. He was in the firefighter program at the local college and he needed a good, solid, reliable pair of boots. My bf who is retired Airforce and Police recommended these due to his years of wearing them on the force. Best investment I could have made. They got my son through the fire academy and now he’s applying to jobs and the boots are still going strong. According to him they’re very comfortable and true to size. When he needs his next pair this is definitely what will be purchased (just by him next time..lol)

Factory laces are substandard, and frankly, cheap. The side zippers are next to useless unless you've no ankle bones to speak of. You cannot have the boots securely fitted using the zippers alone. You WILL HAVE TO TIE THE LACES each time, rendering what is a much needed boot function useless. If you need the quick on/off like many of us do, this is not the boot for you. That being said, they are sturdy, break in quickly, and despite an aggressive tread, allow quiet movement. The factory insoles are surprisingly comfortable, supportive, and don't slide all over the inside of the boot. If the zipper and laces are fixed in design, this would be a top tier assault boot.UPDATE. I maintain my gear. The photos show that. Had these about a year, and the tops have already separated, as you can see. These boots are crap, and I'm disgusted with Rocky for turning out something that didn't last any time at all. I didn't even put these through the wringer and they're falling apart! BUY ANOTHER BRAND!!!

The boot fits uncomfortably tight at the heel for the first 6-7 days of wearing it. Once it loses up it becomes a very comfortable boot. The zipper is high quality, but I did have to change the laces after about 3 months of use.As of now they have last 7 months and foresee them lasting another years easily.

Super comfortable. Excellent workmanship. Shipped quickly. I will order Rocky boots again no question.

I loved the boots, they fit well, protect the toes, are functional, non slip (even pretty good on MN ice), and look nice.My only complaint is with the quality and the breathe-ablity; these boots do no breathe at all. Your feet are going to sweat, but with the side zipper it's manageable.I wear my boots about 12 hours a day 6 days a week; about half the day is sitting at a desk the other half is construction or technician type work, they don't slip to bad on oil spills and I've been able to use them as a hammer when needed (or at least kick some 2by4s into place). The outside of the boots have held up reasonably well, the front where I used the toe as a drywall jack are a bit torn but haven't gotten through to the composite toe, just slight cosmetic.The problem is the left boot's zipper and ankle. The zipper seemed stiff when I first got it and over time has degraded, the only way I can get it to zip is used two hands, one to pull back the inner rubber of the boot lining and other to pull up the zipper, it looks like the rubber was mis-cut and is getting ripped and shredded by the zipper. I can live with this, but it is annoying to spend 5 minutes getting the zipper up on my boot.The biggest issues which is new (and the reason for this review) is the back ankle. The back of my heal rubs against the back and in just a few months it's ripped away the padding. It's still attached above the heel so I can lift it up and out, and back in, but now my heel rubs and is bleeding by the end of the week. This is only on the left boot however, which makes me think maybe it's a quality control issue as my right boot (which I am admittedly harder on) is fine.Other minor problems is the back of both boots have a slight foam type coating around them which is starting to peel off, mostly from me kicking my boots off instead of totally unlacing them and pulling them off with my hands, hard to fault them to heavily for that.The shoe laces also suck. First one snapped after 3 months, next one lasted about 6 total; I replaced with some Kevlar shoe laces which have held up on the right perfectly, but again on the left is fraying, I found the left eyelet had a sharp edge that was cutting it, I filed it down with a drill bit and hammer chisel and I haven't seen the fraying continue since.For perspective, I expect my boots to last at LEAST 2+ years, I wore desert storm combat boots (the original, not the new zipper ones) for 7 years before finally retiring them for these when they literally fell apart on me (back ankle broke through, bottom of the right boot came off multiple times, and my heels had worn through to the plastic bottom of the boot, no padding left at all, as well as 2 pairs of para cord shoe laces). I am not particularly gentle on my boots, but I expected about 2 years from these, probably have to replace yearly if you use them regularly, which the price is a bit steep for that.My recommendation after reading other reviews would be if there is anything wrong with either boot, return it immediately and get a new pair, seems the zipper problem is somewhat common of a quality control issue, had I known I would have returned them the day I got them for a pair that didn't have any issues to start with, then maybe I'd get 18 months out of them.

There were 3 pairs in my size (13D) that were going for $59....I should've bought all 3!!!! Right after I bought a pair, the price more than doubled!

Little narrow but after a week they stretched out.

I ordered a 1/2 size larger than I usually wear and the fit was great. The soles conform to my feet making for a comfortable walking boot. Great traction in the recent snow and ice here and very warm for my feet but my feet do not sweat in the boots. I like the side zipper for easy on and off!

I originally bought these boots on a whim, at a much lower price about 2 years ago. They offered features I needed for my line of work, such as the composite safety toe, aggressive sole tread and the excellent side zipper. At their price, I did not expect much from them.For the past 25 years I have worn Chippewa super loggers, which are very high quality, very expensive boots. The loggers are also very heavy, and as I get older, they become fatiguing toward the end of the day.When I first tried these boots on in comparison to my Chipewas, they felt as light as sneakers. On the other hand, they provide just enough of that chunky sole to remain decidedly boot-like in appearance, unlike many other tactical style boots, which veer off into black-sneaker-style territory. I have never, in my working career been able to get more than 6 months of use from a boot in this price range. My first pair lasted me 2 years and I was so impressed that I just replaced them with a second pair. This time the price has gone up about 40% but I still feel they are worth it. This new pair have a Velcro strap over the zipper, which is a welcome change compared to the older button snap style, which could be stubborn at times. The waterproof properties are an added bonus, but whereas they are not GoreTex, they don't seem to breathe quite as well as higher priced boots.Overall, I recommend them highly.Take it from an old abuser of boots who uses these pretty far beyond their intended purpose. They hold up well and fit comfortably.