O.K., I know by the name it's supposed to be thin, but...

I recently bought a pair of Thinsulate insulated "L.L. Bean-type" rubber winter boots from Cabela's retail store in Pennsylvania. After getting them home, I inspected them closely. It appears that the foot area has a rubber shell and a thin layer of fabric inside. The thickness of the boot in the foot area is only about 1/61 - 1/32 of an inch. Can this be insulated, or did I get an uninsulated pair by mistake? The boot is advertised as "400 gram Thinsulate." I would have thought that there would be a layer of insulation that would be, say, 1/4 inch thick.

Any suggestions?

That's 1/16, not 1/61.

If Filson's slogan is "Might as well have the best" then Thinsulite should be "better than nothing." Thats my biased opinion.Take a look at any pre WW2 ski photo, such as the famous shot of Hemingway. They all looked like the tubular Michelen man with a BIG, WARM smile on their faces. Look at any contemporary shot. People are stylish and svelt, coloured like peacocks and uniformly grim faced and cold. The bean boot is a combination of 3 systems; the rubber boot for slush and rain above @ 20 degrees F, the leather boot of summer fall and the traditional mukluc of leather and canvas for cold winter. The full winter Sorel-Bean boots employ a felt booty, a thick rubber and felt sole insert and optional extra sheepskin insert. Into this you usually insert a foot clad in a wicking sock liner and 1 to 3 woolen socks. Return the Cabelas. Buy a Bean or Sorel. Smile like Hemingway.He was young and poor, but it was good with the PSK tin bought at the tobacconists on the left bank thinking of next winter's skiing.

I should add that these are to be worn commuting to work in Philadelphia. The Winter temperature in Philly averages about 35-40F, with a low of about 0-10 F, which is rare. Last year, I wore uninsulated LL Bean rubber boots with very little discomfort. My worst case would be a massive failure of infrastructure in which I would have to walk about 30 miles home.

On the downside, I'm not as tough as Pappa.

The one item no Soviet citizen would abandon in WW2 were their winter boots. Stick a few pair of extra wool socks in your coatpocket. If you do walk 30 miles another pair on your feet and one for emergency mittens should get you home.

They're in my backpack.

Return the Cabelas, take better half to dinner with funds.

Chris here is a pretty good guy but take into consideration that the temps in Southern Cali are not the same faced by some of the rest of us. I live in the mountains just south of Pitt so my temps here should be similar to what you are facing. I don’t find it necessary to use the heavy Sorel type boots during the average winter day. A lightly insulated boot over good socks is light enough to move in but warm enough to keep warm. I walk about 5 miles a day in all weather and have settled on a good leather boot (very water resistant) because it is a lot more comfortable to hike in than the Sorel type boots. I add Yaktraxs for walking on ice and frozen slush and will only switch to a light Sorel type Bean boot when we get really heavy new snow or temps below 0F°.

I've got the arctic and antarctic service medal and completion of arctic survival school on my discharge papers. When I drove through WV somebody gave me a lump of coal. <img src="/images/graemlins/mad.gif" alt="" /> People who think California is palm trees and Pam Anderson should hike some of our backcountry in winter. Niether Martha Stuart or The Frugal Gourmet will ever recreate the Donner Party's winter cuisine <img src="/images/graemlins/blush.gif" alt="" />

I was thinking Chris, thats a pretty good combination you have there. Palm trees, Pamela Anderson, and the back country

Dreaming of the Cali life
Dean

By those words Chris, I'm guessing you're a Hemingway fan.

I wore Sorels for two winters in the high artic, working in the oil patch back in 70 and 71. We spent a lot of time at the top end of Elsmere Island, 300 miles south of the pole. It was so cold up there the only time we ever shut down machinery or vehicles was for maintenance. The rest of the time everything was left running 24/7. Felt lined Sorels kept my feet toasty warm through the worst 70 below days. They were comfortable too. We worked 12 hour shifts, always on our feet, so a comfortable boot was a must.

Actually Ol Pam's second home is next door to the ranch I board at. I almost ran her down when she was jogging down the firetrail. I was paying to much attention with a much prettier tuscan italian girl on a equally fast horse racing me. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />

It's and induval thing. I bought a pair of Soral's about 1980 and am still useing them. The only grip that I have with them is the soles lack support, it's like waring slippers everwhere. It often bothers me that everyone thinks just because there is a new insulation materials, it's better that the old materials. If you stick to basics dress in layers, including your feet, keep dry and it's easier to stay warm than to get warm. One problem is the felt liner in a pac boot can be removed to dry out, this can be a major problem if you have to ware them for a long time. One advantage with the newer insulation materals boots can be made thinner and have the same insolation value. Like many things you will have to make up your own mind. The 1/16 inch thickness sounds about right for a boot with 400oz. insulation.
Have fun in Hamburg, PA.

And you also use to jump out of perfectly good aircraft in to cold water, which makes all of us keep an extra close eye on you for other ?strange? behavior. <img src="/images/graemlins/grin.gif" alt="" />
There are times to dress like the Michelin Man while in Eastern PA but not on an average winter day. The Sorel and Bean type boots do not give you the foot support you need for an every day active type of footwear which is why I think there are better choices for most people who live outside artic type conditions.