According to Kit Up!, the Army is testing three versions of a new mountain combat boot. The blog says that the new test boots are similar to the Danner Combat Hiker.

Pictured above is one of three versions of the boot, this one is Danner’s Mt. Combat Boot. The other two are from Wellco and Belleville. We don’t want to steal Christian’s thunder, so head over to Kit Up! for the full story.

The new crop of boots do indeed look like Danner’s Combat Hiker Military Boots. Those boots feature a tough full-grain leather and Cordura upper to guard against abrasions and tears and rubber rand for further protection. It also touts Vibram Fifida outsoles and Gore-Tex lining.

In other boot news, there was an interesting piece in The Sydney Morning Herald chronicling Australian soldiers’ struggle with ill-fitting military boots. Several hundred soldiers have logged official complaints about the Terra combat boot, the newspaper reports.

”Mark 3 combat boots never seem to fit,” one soldier wrote. ”I resize every time to show my size hasn’t changed, but every pair of the same size seems to be different. It takes a good deal of my blood to soak into the leather to make them more comfortable, then by that stage the sole has worn and broken away or eyelets fallen out, meaning I must change for a new set and start again.”

The Herald even revealed that the boot, which is said to have an unstable midsole, didn’t test any better than the boots it replaced in 1999.

Does anyone have experience with uncomfortable issued boots? What actions did you take to improve your footwear condition?

(Image via Kit Up!)