Be Lenka Ranger 2.0 Review/Best Barefoot Hiking Boot/Best Minimal Hiking Boot

[@MobiuSphere]

Just stumbled across this on my feed, but the look of the brown soul grabbed my attention. Definitely going to check these out, and keep checking back on this channel. I think a production quality is way above what your subscribers number would indicate, and I hope for your success.

[@jimmyseans4457]

Ive been waiting for someone to review these. Let me tell you that we had opposite experiences. The first time I wore them, I hiked up a logging road that had some patches of high grass that was wet from the dew in the morning. my fucking feet got completely saturated like no other boot. I have worn in my life and Im 50 and had lots of boots. I squeezed out literal puddles of water From the boot when I got home I put it all on video so I could send it to be lenka. After watching my videos. It basically took around 22 mins to be completely waterlogged. At first they said I could get replacements then when I tried to reorder they told me no replacements only refund because according to their techs, that’s how these boots are supposed to perform. They’re not supposed to be waterproof at all only water resistant. Then they told me that I wasn’t using the boots for their intended purpose and that this was a one time courtesy. So I said what the hell,if I was walking on the street in the rain I would’ve got just as wet. So I took the money, kept the boots and they suck. I’ve melted about a half jar of sno seal into them and they still leak. Not only that but the sole has delaminated on one boot and I’ve been keeping it together with shoe goo. that started happening at around mile 50🙄. It’s weird because every review on their site tells how these are so great and so waterproof just like you guys said. besides me theres already one other person in these comments that had non water resistant boots. BUYER BEWARE. The sole is awesome grip wise and they are comfortable even for a barefoot shoe noob like me. I wanted to love these and they have a few other models that look nice but these were so trashy Id be scared to buy another pair

[@sonsofsever]

@@jimmyseans4457 to be fair, as Eric mentioned in the video, they do say water resistant on the website and they don’t say anywhere that they are waterproof. We have found with other boots that are completely waterproof when walking through rivers and streams like this one, that tall wet foliage is a whole other animal and I think that’s because the water gets over the ankle and into the boot. I’m wondering if that has anything to do with your experience. Maybe not. I know that’s happened to me before. It could also be a quality control issue, but I have a hard time believing that based on our experience with some of their other shoes. Sucks that you had a bad experience though! Never a good time

[@jimmyseans4457]

It seems it was just bad luck for me I guess. Also I knew that they technically were not wp but all the reviews on their site said what you guys did, dunked em in water and had no leaks. Since I’m not really doing much stream hopping The only waterproof I need is for wet grass in the morning and they couldn’t handle that. It wasn’t an issue coming through the top of the boots. most of it came up through the sole. I almost feel like the sole was defective and had micro holes in it or something, but at the same time you could see as soon as I started walking that day no water beaded off, the leather sucked it right up. Also i should mention the metal be lenka logo is coming off, the fleece lining in one boot separated as well. What was crazy to me was that they said I wasnt using them as intended. They’re apparently for urban hiking. Logging roads were too tough so the terrain yall were on was definitely a no no 😂 I would lke to see if you guys could get your hands on some ahinsa hikers. Theres a barefoot and comfort model. Their description sounds real good.

[@jimmyseans4457]

Oh and ive only had these since August 17th

[@sonsofsever]

@@jimmyseans4457 yeah idk, that's a huge bummer how badly they've failed on you. After your comment I went out the next morning to walk through some wet grass with mine, had no problems keeping my feet dry and I was out in the grass for almost an hour. You're not the only person who's said they've had issues though, makes me wonder if there's some quality control issues going on. Luckily for us ours have been holding up so far, we'll definitely keep using them and give an update if anything similar happens to ours.

[@pimvalk4877]

Same here: took them yesterday on a first hike on a, at sections, slightly muddy trail and the top inner front/toe area wettet out. So I'l clean these and treat them with a Nikwax clean and impregnate for leather. I don't mind the nubuck getting a shiny leather appearance. I hope this eliminates the problem. My first choice was The Be Lenka Nevada, but I found these to be sqeecking loud.

[@mrfrm1975]

I own a pair of Bareberics Rebels in Army Green. It’s a great shoe. The wide toe box is great. These seem pretty cool.

[@Smattyy]

Trying to decide between these and the boulder boot grip.

[@sonsofsever]

@@Smattyy that's a tough one! The Ranger 2.0 has a wider toe box and more ground feel, but I think the Grip has more versatility and a better leather. In my mind those are the stand out differences to consider

[@Smattyy]

@sonsofsever Thanks! Perhaps I will have to get both🤔😁

[@Younghoon15]

Not a hiking boot or shoe, but you should try out the birchbury shoes. For a casual shoe, they are great

[@sonsofsever]

We just got the Carnforth! Super impressed with it so far, excited to get the review of it out

[@stratocaster1134]

How do you think these would go be in a hot climate? Such as Australia

[@sonsofsever]

@@stratocaster1134 the lining is felt, it's not super insulated but it does provide a little warmth, it's definitely gonna be more uncomfortable in the heat than an unlined boot, but I wouldn't think too much

[@stratocaster1134]

@@sonsofsever Thanks for the reply! I have been tossing up between these and the waterproof Bolder boot grips. I am heading to Europe for winter so it will be very cold with lots of Snow. But also still want to use them in hot climates like Australia. Based your reviews i'm learning more towards the Bolder boot grips

[@sonsofsever]

@@stratocaster1134 yeah for sure! Just keep in mind the Grip doesn't have as wide of a toe box! For some people it's wide enough, for others it's not and the Ranger 2.0 is definitely wider

[@lukefromowitz4514]

This vs. Lems outlander and boulder summit?

[@sonsofsever]

@@lukefromowitz4514 oh yes, that exact video coming this winter for sure

[@lukefromowitz4514]

@ excellent! Maybe through the bahe boots in there too!

[@hood4thought699]

Great review. I’ve been looking forward to this one! How would you compare this to the RF Trekker? Last Be Lenka I wore did not allow enough pinky splay for me so they may not be wide enough for me 😢

[@sonsofsever]

@@hood4thought699 you must have extra wide feet. These definitely aren’t as wide as anything from real foot. The toebox that they use is consistent across all of their shoes. So if one was too narrow for you, this one will be as well.

[@jimmyseans4457]

@@sonsofseverIf you look at the size chart for each model some are different. I know offhand the trekkers are wider than rangers.

[@sonsofsever]

@ the trekker is by far the widest boot we’ve ever tried haha the Realfoot toebox is on another level

[@jimmyseans4457]

@@sonsofseveri meant the be lenka trekkers. I guess those are technically barbareics

[@martinzendejas8423]

Try the Belleville mini mil. It’s one of the very few options for service members in the minimalist boot community. I wear them and I love them but be warned that there’s a piece at the heel that rubs on your ankle. Lots of reviews say the same thing and you just need to break them in and it’ll soften up.

[@ollewernersson3837]

These are the shoes that I have

[@majamidzor3801]

How did you size them? I find they lack a bit of width for the widest part of my feet but when I size up they fit a bit too loose and I don’t want heel sliding around..also, do you feel they have enough space over the toes?

[@sonsofsever]

We went with our normal sizes on this one, worked for us, but individual foot shape is always a factor! And yeah, we think they have good volume over the toes.

[@Mike-nq7fn]

This or the Boulder Summit?

[@sonsofsever]

@@Mike-nq7fn gonna be a toe to toe video we do for sure. Just a few things to consider, the Summit will have less ground feel and less room in the toe box, but if I was gonna go for a really long or hard hike, I'd pick the Summit.

[@HokanaMatata]

These boots failed me completely. The metal eyelets got rusty, they got soaking wet inside from walking in wet snow and even after drying them completely the insoles got moldy. That has never happened with any shoe before so there must have been mold spores inside already from the beginning.

[@sonsofsever]

@@HokanaMatata interesting. We’ll do a long term round up of all the boots by the end of February. We’ll keep an eye on that stuff

[@krzysztofk6367]

First 😂

[@ImJustStandingHere]

Ordered a pair of Be Lenka's new ArcticEdge boots for work. They were too tight because of the lining despite ordering two sizes larger than I normally do. Their support refused to exchange for a larger size. They also refused to honor the sale price I bought at if I return and repurchase. Very disappointing and antiquated policy, especially for a barefoot brand. I won't be buying from them again despite the quality of the product. If support fails, the quality of the product and their inability to stand by it is a failure.

[@sonsofsever]

That policy sucks. I know this is a crappy option but I'd probably just go for the refund. If you went 2 sizes bigger and they're still too tight for you I don't think another size up is going to fix it. We went 1 size up, and can definitely confirm they're tighter feeling with all the insulation than their other shoes. I think the only thing you could do for that is let the laces out as much as possible though.