1942 dated UK ammo boots.

[kass]

Hi.
These were Lend- Lease aid to Red Army.
I have not seen them without broad arrow before.
Could these have been made specially for Red Army since they are missing the arrow?

Regards
K.

[peter monahan]

Hi.
These were Lend- Lease aid to Red Army.
I have not seen them without broad arrow before.
Could these have been made specially for Red Army since they are missing the arrow?

Regards
K.

I'm interested as to why you believe these were made for the Red Army. The rubber heels are, of course, not correct for WWII and most 'ammo boots' of that period were, I think, still made with pebbled rather than smooth leather. That was sometimes 'burned off' by British soldiers to make them easier to polish but I doubt a Soviet would do so, so the smooth uppers are also a bit odd.

I think the you markings are on a leather insert on the inside sole of the boot. Is tht right? I'm sorry I can't make out more clearly from your shot. More usual would be to stamp that information on the tongue.

So, these may be Lend-Lease or they may be a later construction & issue which someone has 'imporved' by adding war time markings.

Peter

[kass]

Dear Peter.

Thanks for the reply!
These were aid to RKKA for sure cause they were found in the eastern EU. Have not seen this type before here. Usually there have been John White made boots popping up.
I thought they might be made especially for the Red Army cause they lack the arrow mark. Like US made boots especially for the soviets, not just only giving them the types they were wearing themselves. The markings are pressed to the insoles and are not added later.
The smoothing of the toe comes from the manufacturing process. Pressing/pulling down the upper over the toe puff.

I did find a pair on the e-bay. These have arrow.
https://www.ebay.com/itm/WW2-1942-BR...vip=true&rt=nc

Regards
K.

[peter monahan]

Kass

I know a very little bit about British boots, and more about WWI than WWII, so it is quite possible that you're right about the Lend-Lease boots being unmarked. Thanks for clearing up the stamping inside too. As I say, my old eyes just couldn't clearly pick out the details.

If gthese are Red Army boots you have a nice, rare I think, piece of history there!

Peter

[Seigfried]

They are not 'ammo' boots either. There is no separate toecap, separate heel segment and the toes are too square.

The lack of studs may indicate use on a ship.

[kass]

Hi Peter.
The Lend-Lease production was just an idea.

Seigfried.
Thanks for clearing out the "Ammo boot" term.

k.

[peter monahan]

Siegfried: technically, you are correct - the first 'ammunition boots' did have a separate toe cap but even by the end of WWI some marks were made without them, to save leather. That said, 'ammo boot' is also commonly used as a verbal and written 'shorthand' for 'British Army boots from the 1914-1950s period'.

I hadn't considered that they might be naval issue, which would certainly explain the lack of hob nails and toe irons. Don't know enough about WWII boots to say whether or not British naval issue had rubber heels - which would be sensible.

However, I am still concerned with the insoles which bear the markings. I have been studying Kass' picture again and I just can't tell whether they are original to the boot or not. That would probably require first hand inspection and even then miught be inconclusive. As I suggested earlier, if they are then he has a rare item. If not...

To be clear, I am intrigued by the puzzle. I am NOT crying 'Fake!'. I have no dog in this fight and I hope that these are what Kass says and thinks they are.

[Rogerd]

IMO these are original Royal Navy deck boots. No problem with them. Seen these before with the same markings. Rubber on the heel could be replaced, but rubber heels were not uncommon on deck boots.

[JanC]

IMO these are original Royal Navy deck boots. No problem with them. Seen these before with the same markings. Rubber on the heel could be replaced, but rubber heels were not uncommon on deck boots.

I agree.
Rubber soles are also seen on Commando and tanker boots