I use my boots at least twice weekly for hikes oin various hiking trails in Maine and have been relatively pleased with the fit & grip of the boot. I am very disappointed at a flaw in the boot's construction which becomes obvious the more you use them. The hard plastic piece at the rear of each boot has a square edge which rests against a grey-colored, soft leather material. The natural motion of walking causes these to rub against one another. In less that 3 years, one of my boots has developed a 3/4-inch, complete, tear in the grey leather. And this is a big tear, not a tiny one. Many years ago, I had a pair of Vasque Summit boots which lasted me about 8 years and they were still in good enough shape to hand them down to a friend. Judging from other reviews, Merrell doesn't seem likely to stand behind their product like Vasque or other coimpanies I've dealt with (North Face, Patagonia). Additionally, as someone else pointed out, the front, toe portion of each boot is becoming unglued from the sole. If these boots were to cost $100 or $120, perhaps they would be worth it, but when I spend $200+ on a pair of boots, I expect them to last much more than 2-3 years.

Customer Service

Their website does not allow for you to send them email. Their customer service rep that I spoke with on the phone was not very helpful at all simply telling me to send the boots in & they'll be looked at. Very lasck luster attitude & not helpful at all.

Similar Products Used:

Vasque Summit boots (not sure if these are still mfg'd) and Vasque Sundowner

Great boot except,HEEL BLISTERS.
Used mine for several hundred miles, no problems. Now I get blisters. A friend has the same boot and tossed his because of the same problem. Buy Merril brand again? No way.

Similar Products Used:

Vasque, Asolo

I really enjoy the bearings in the eyelets. I have lots of foot problems and these boots offer phenomenal support. I find the grip to fairly well suited for all conditions although I had a few problems in a surprise snowfall. They only quality issue is that the leather at the front and on the sides is starting to wear down due to some scrambles over the summer, although they have weathered it quite well and are giving me no problems at this point in time.

Customer Service

I bent an eyelet and returned it to the store who handled the customer service for me, they reported no problems however.

I have had these boots for about six fonths and like them a lot. The soles have outstanding grip on any kind of terrain, muddy, slops, whatever. I can hold my ground while everyone else is slipping. They seem to be fairly waterproof. I used the Nikwax in a tube, and havn't had any leaks yet. The only problem that I have had is that the toe bumper is coming unglued.

Similar Products Used:

Much better than my old Merrel Rainiers. They had a fabric tongue, and the laces really bit in. The GTs have a solid leather tongue.

I tried several brands and these were the best fitting out of the box. The other brands I tried were all very good and well constructed but because of my wide toe box, narrow heel and skinnier than avg. calf, I found it very difficult to find a pair of boots that fit properly. Brands that I tried were the Raichlee Spirits, Salomon Auth. 6 & 7, Asolo 535's, Zamberlan Civetta, Alico Ultrex, EMS Mountaineer. The Merrell's were the best fitting out of the box and didn't require as much break-in period as someof the others. The soft leather, additional padding and ball bearing eyelets gives this boot a glove like fit. The toe box was comfortably roomy and the heel was snug but not as snug as Merrell claims, better than the other co.'s though. It's not the best looking boot with a pair of jeans and a casual night out on the town, BUT, that's not what this boot was intended for. I think the key to the great fit of this boot is do to the ballbearing eyelets, it provides a snug fit without having to pull on the laces like your getting ready to ride a bull. If gortex is a must they are available for about another $30 smacks and it comes in brown for those out on the town types.

Customer Service

Other boots that were close to the type of fit I was looking for were the Raichle Spirits (had a eyelet that would dig into the top of my foot though), Zamberlan Civettas (a bit loose in the ankle, more my genetic fault than the boot co.'s), EMS Mountaineer if you don't mind the 2 month break in period (this is a no thrills & frills boot, well constructed with a good fit).

Similar Products Used:

None