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11 Jan 04 - 02:51 PM (#1090456) Subject: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Mark Ross Just got a pair of Blundstone boots, made Down Under. I like them, but I'm curious as to their quality and reputation. Any words or suggestions from "Catters in OZ? Mark Ross |
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11 Jan 04 - 05:09 PM (#1090545) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: DougR I'm curious, Mark. What is unique about Blundstone Boots? DougR |
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11 Jan 04 - 05:28 PM (#1090561) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Joybell Someone like Bob Bolton will no doubt be along soon. Until then - Here is an image for you. We have a very laid-back folk festival here in Victoria, Australia at Nariel Creek. Some years ago my True-love , who was American born, lived in Asia for some time, and finally settled in Australia, was mentioned in the Nariel newsletter. Under the title, "Fashions of the Field", was the following: "Sighted in transit - Ten Gallon hat, Miller shirt, sarong, and Blundstones." And very smart he looked too. Joy |
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11 Jan 04 - 05:39 PM (#1090565) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Joybell Speaking of Aussie fashions. We were visiting in New Mexico some years back and we saw a big sign in a clothing shop that read: "Fair Dinkum Aussie Dry-as-a-bones" (type of brown waterproof cattleman's coat) A close look at the lable showed the small print, "Made in Brazil" On that same visit we had a hard time finding those striped hats worn by American farmers, in the old days, but now associated with Mountain-train drivers. When we did find them they were made in China - like a lot of the tourist stuff. On our return to Australia we found the hats - made in America - at a tourist train-station near Melbourne. Joy |
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11 Jan 04 - 05:49 PM (#1090578) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Helen For a look at some, go to Google.com and type "Blundstone Boots" [with double quotes] into the search field and hit the Images tab instead of search - you may have to do the initial search before the image tab comes up. You will then see lots of piccies of these Oz critters. Joybell, in late December 2002 my hubby and I got to Nariel after it was over (we were late because I was sick and didn't relish the thought of camping out without electrickery while crook). There were still a few campers there - about 30? and we had some nice campfire get-togethers before we moved on to our Tassie trip. Were you there after the festival finished? My hubby has been to Nariel Festival before, but not in the last few years. Helen |
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11 Jan 04 - 06:31 PM (#1090605) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Joybell Helen, No I can't get my Dear-one to travel the distance and would miss him if I went alone. I was at Nariel in the 60s and went there for about 15 years. It's a great little festival. A real step back in time, with the dances in the old rickety hall and the fairy lights strung up around it. I did manage to get True-love there a few times in the early 90s. Now we wait for the friends who cross past our place on their way home to South Australia, after Nariel. I have some wonderful memories of Nariel and some great old photos. Legend has it that Graham Dodsworth once stayed camped at Nariel until well past Easter one year, but the record was broken in the 90s by a Queenslander who stayed all year after his car broke down. Ah!! the nostalgia! Joy |
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11 Jan 04 - 06:50 PM (#1090617) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: alison we just got back from Nariel last week.... we were only there for 12 days.... but graham dodsworth left before us!! lovely relaxed little festival.... slainte alison |
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11 Jan 04 - 08:06 PM (#1090683) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Dave Swan I wear them everywhere. Just took them off as I got in the door. They'll take a shine if you like, wear forever, always comfortable. Got them on a recommendation from a Scottish friend who got his first pair when he lived in Oz. Good purchase. D |
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11 Jan 04 - 08:35 PM (#1090702) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: The Fooles Troupe You can get them in a steel toecap version - the steel is inside the leather. I think there is even a steel sole-plate insert version too - great for stepping on nails... They don't have laces - suitable for Americans and Scots! and if you treat them a few times with Dubbin or similar leather dressing while still newish, are almost indestructible, and if you keep up the dubbin - are mostly waterproof - except for the elasticed sides - which sufficent dubbin regularly applied will assist too. Robin |
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11 Jan 04 - 09:16 PM (#1090742) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Mark Ross What is Dubbin? Mark Ross |
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11 Jan 04 - 09:24 PM (#1090748) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: GUEST Waterproofing for boots;a horse; the capital of Eire |
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11 Jan 04 - 10:01 PM (#1090775) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: freda underhill blundstones - blunnys - are built like a rock. They take a couple of days to wear in, after that give fantastic support, are longwearing, very comfortable, and you don't have to pay through the nose for a pair of boots built for all weather, for outdoor work and long hikes. fred |
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11 Jan 04 - 10:09 PM (#1090784) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Bob Bolton G'day Mark Ross (and everyone else), There must be a few of us Aussie 'Catters who don't have to work for a living (or get a better run at the web during working hours. It was about 5.10 AM, Sydney time, when Mark posted ... and I just got around to dipping in the Mudcat's pond in my lunch ¾-hour! (However, I am sitting here in my comfortable Blundies ... for office work (and my 6 kilometre walk home) these are my fairly dressy pair, with squared off toes. In the bush I prefer the work styles, wide and round toed.) The Blundstone factory is down in the coolth of Tasmania, not far from the old Moonah Ice Rink, where a friend and I spent some time in the 1960s trying to develop grass cutting and sorting machinery for harvesting particularly nasty Tasmanian Native Bass Grass ... 6/7 metre leaves with two edges like hacksaw blades and a a surface like sandpaper - worth a fortune, back then, for street-sweeping machine brushes ... probably replaced by some cunning plastic confection nowadays! For a while I had a link to the Blunstone factory "Blunnie-cam" ... a view of Mt Wellington, behind Hobart ... on a really good day you could see the mountain. (The rest of the time you could see mist or rain.) I think it's the cold weather Tasmanian cowhides that make the boot leather so tough! BTW: Joybell "... we saw a big sign in a clothing shop that read: "Fair Dinkum Aussie Dry-as-a-bones" (type of brown waterproof cattleman's coat)..." As you would realise, the real product was called "Driza-Bone" but they've been bought by some Pommy outdoor clothing firm in the last few years, so Driza-Bones might well be made in Mexico these days! Also BTW: What years, in the '60s, were you at Nariel? I worked on Murray 2 Hydro dam in 1967 (before going back to Tasmania for 2 years) ... but never got to the festival (6-day working week on the dam site) - although I used to get down to Corryong for the Saturday night dances in the Memorial Hall with Con Klippel and the Nariel Creek Band. Regards, Bob Bolton |
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12 Jan 04 - 07:11 AM (#1090992) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Joybell Well What do you know! Bob. I was at those dances in the Corryong hall. Started going to Nariel about 1967 or there-abouts. Maybe we danced a progressive dance or two? I Manchester Galloped all around that little hall. My kids grew up as Nariel Festival kids. One was a good friend of Gillian Klippel, one of Con's grand-daughters. I stopped going to Nariel about 1975 and returned with my True-love in the late 1980s for about 7 years. Joy |
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12 Jan 04 - 01:42 PM (#1091274) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Helen Joybell, My hubby, before he was my hubby, would have been to Nariel in either late 80's or early to mid 90's. I'm not sure how many times he went, though. Helen |
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12 Jan 04 - 05:27 PM (#1091431) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Joybell We must have crossed paths too then, Helen. Your pre-Hubby that is. Is he a singer? A player? Joy |
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12 Jan 04 - 10:07 PM (#1091622) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Bob Bolton G'day Joybell, If I remember correctly, I came to Khancoban to work on Murray 2 Dam in early 1967 (well, I was ostensibly there as site clerk/paymaster for a specialised engineering contractor: Cementation Co. of UK - but I was also there to investigate a lot of missing scaffolding, &c). I got involved in photography, around about then, and used to knock off early enough on Saturdays to get in a bit of black & white printing in Albert (?) Mildren's darkroom behind Mildren & Coysh's Engineering works ... then I would get some take-away food ... and saunter off to the dance. I remember talking with box-player Ian Simpson, who now runs the Nariel Creek Band, and mentioning that I used to see the Nariel Creek Junior Band practicing on someone's verandah as I drove past ... half a dozen kids with one-row Hohner melodions - and one kid with a bass drum! Ian reckoned he must have been one of those ... until we worked out the years involved - and he discovered he would not have been playing yet ... he was a bit too young! BTW: Have you got a copy of their CD Tickets Please! - lots of classic old Nariel Band dance music. I haven't seen it on sale anywhere - and I had to order it directly from Ian (ringing up fairly late at night, so he wasn't too likely to be out fighting bushfires). If you like, I can PM the text of my review from Mulga Wire (~ December 2002 or February 2003) ... that included details and contact addresses. Regards, Bob |
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13 Jan 04 - 06:11 PM (#1092211) Subject: RE: BS: Blundstone Boots From: Joybell No Bob but I have an old record of the band with a great picture on the front. At the time I was at Nariel there was a little girl, in the Junior band, on piano, as well as the boy with the drums. I always loved that wonderful drum kit - the one used for the Senior band too, with the palm tree scene and the setting sun, all lit from behind! Joy |