Can't you put those sole sticky glue on the tread to improve traction?

athlete shoes have extra glue on the tread to help them sprint or play basket ball.

I've recently tried two different models of L.L. Bean boots:

Men's Gore-Tex Day Hikers, All Leather; TA49792; $109

Men's Gore-Tex Cresta Hikders, All Leather; TA20557; $179

I did a lot of reading of reviews from many different sources, and heard nothing but good about the Cresta Hikers. I bought the Cresta's first and REALLY like them - can't say anything bad about them. I bought the lower cost Day Hikers on kind of a whim - based upon a suggestion from someone - as a daily wear beat-em-up boot.

The Cresta Hikers felt much more comfortable right off - with hardly any break-in. The Day Hikers required more break-in, but are now very comfortable. I wish the Cresta Hikers had the same plastic top-cap found on the Day Hikers.

I'd highly recommend either. Both have Vibram soles - but different treads. The Cresta's is a bit more "classic".

Ken

The ones with the crampons on them!

Seriously, I bought a pair of boots from Cabela's with what I think were called 'Airbob' soles. Great traction outside, though I thought they didn't last very long. I have no idea how they'd work on wet steel.

- Dave

I hunt a lot, all over the United States. From the Mountains to the plains, I have found the "Air Bob sole" to have the best traction in the outdoors enviornment.

Muleskinner

"Air Bob sole's" are great on outdoor environments like you said, but suck on wet/frozen steel. I had a difficult day of it until I realized the issue. Mud/dirt, yep... ice/snow encrusted stuff, nope.

FiveTen stealth rubber is the grippiest rubber on earth, or so they claim. I have the soles on a couple of pairs of shoes and I would have to agree. It's unbelievable how well they grip, you almost feel like you're glued to the ground. Unfortunately on the shoes I've tried the quality isn't very good or very comfortable, but it's almost worth the discomfort for the grip they provide.

I've only found one lightweight hiking boot that uses stealth rubber in their regular hiking boot, the Vasque Catalyst Mid. It's the best of both worlds, a comfortable shoe with great sole. The rubber does wear out faster than a normal sole, but that's the price you pay for friction.

You can also look for approach shoes, most climbing shoe brands have one. They are basically rock climbing rubber soles on a light weight non-rockclimbing shoe (no boots). They're made to wear while hiking to a climbing spot, where you need a comfortable shoe to walk longer distances in, but also grippy soles to do scrambling. Doesn't sound like you're going to using these for hiking, so don't know if this'll work for you.

You might try a safety boot with a non-slip sole from these guys:

http://www.shoesforcrews.com/sfc3/index....partnumber=8280

They apparently are pretty confident in the technology, somewhere on the site it mentioned that they have a "slip and fall" warrantee where they'll reimburse up to $5000 for any workers comp claim because you slipped in their boot.