It's been a few months now since the fabulous team over at Argyle Performance Work wear sent me out a pair of their newly released Bison XTLZ-101unisex work boots, so I thought it was about time I let you guys know my thoughts on the newest work boots on the block.
First impressions, I LOVED the cut. They're not "low" but not extremely high at the same time. They have a nice chunky zip with the Velcro strap, ensuring the zip stays up. Lightweight. Laced with a pair of the incredible Bison Laces. Toe protection, and overall a really good looking boot.
Now after wearing them, I can tell you they are one heck of a comfy boot. The insole provides great arch support for those standing and moving around all day and makes every step kind of .... squishy (I'm sure when I say this you can imagine what I mean). I also love how these boots come in two fits, wide fit or extra wide fit, I have the extra wide fit and find that little bit extra room on either side of my toes has reduced rubbing and made a big difference to how my feet are feeling at the end of each day. Also just in the past week, we have been working on a first-floor deck so I've have been walking over plenty of joists at height (safely of course) but I couldn't help but notice these boots work really well to distribute your weight evenly across the bottom of the boot when walking across joists. Your foot doesn't bend around the joist, but more like the sole of the boot does this for you so you don't feel like your foot is bending in half with each step. They would be perfect to be worn when putting up roof trusses.
The cut of these boots are, I would say, a little bit lower than a regular work boot. They sit just above my ankle and ensure I have all the support I need, without being so overly high that you get left with ugly tan lines all summer long. The side zips provide the boot with easy access which is perfect when needing to go in and out of clients houses, but I do know a fair few people who have stayed away from purchasing zip boots because they always seem to fail. I can tell you this is my second pair of Bison branded boots which I have been sent to review and put through their paces. I've thrashed the zips and neither of the zips on both sets of boots has never let me down and have no sign of letting go any time soon (I've had the previous pair for almost a year).
That being said, I also LOVE the laces that have come in both pairs of my Bison boots. I don't know what it is but they seem indestructible! Even after a year and a half use on my previous pair, the laces have not stretched, they have not worn, the little plastic pieces on the ends are still intact and they could almost pull off looking brand new. I'm not sure if Argyle sells these laces separately, but if they don't already, they need to start, because if you are not in need of new boots, you 100% need these laces on your current pair!
That being said, I also LOVE the laces that have come in both pairs of my Bison boots. I don't know what it is but they seem indestructible! Even after a year and a half use on my previous pair, the laces have not stretched, they have not worn, the little plastic pieces on the ends are still intact and they could almost pull off looking brand new. I'm not sure if Argyle sells these laces separately, but if they don't already, they need to start, because if you are not in need of new boots, you 100% need these laces on your current pair!
I wasn't aware of how important toe protection was until I took a look at an old pair of work boots which didn't have it and saw just how cut up and ruined the toes were. This is now something I will always look for in a pair of boots. It helps them last longer and ensures your boots are always in a presentable manner.
A few more features of the Bison XTLZ -101:
- Water-resistant leather upper
- Ergonomics - rocker bottom sole design aids forward motion and reduces wearer fatigue
- Bison Grip nitrile rubber sole with multi-directional tread pattern helps reduces slips
- Extra Wide available in sizes 8W, 9W, 10W, 11W (W=Wide)
- Wheat Nu Buck upper leather
- EVA mid-sole, lighter than PU
- Anti-penetration insole complying with SBP standard
- Complies to AS/NZS 2210.3:2009 and EN ISO 20345:2011. Class 1 SBP, SRC. WRU, HRO, E.
All in all, I would rate these as my favorite pair of high ankle unisex fit pair of work boots. They cover every aspect of a great boot and they look great and feel comfortable too. These boots are on the expensive side compared to some other brands but at around $270.00 NZD (depending on where you purchase them from) it's a small price to pay for comfortable shoes which will be on your feet longer than they are off them.
To find your nearest Bison XTLZ-101 stockist or for more information click here
Check out my review on the Makita 36v Circular Saw, available now from your leading Makita power tool stockists!
https://www.makita.co.nz/products/model/DHS780
So i thought i would start a blog series on building our new home, the process and how we are going about building the whole things ourselves, ill start with our land purchasing experience.
One of the main reasons we moved to Queenstown was the opportunity of purchasing land and building for ourselves. This is something we could never afford to do if we continued to live in Auckland, it's just too overpriced. We had our eye on the new subdivision in Queenstown called Hanley's Farm long before we made the move, we signed up to a lonnnng list of hopefuls at the end of 2016 and paid our $2000 NZD deposit to be in the queue. After a few section releases we realised it wasn't really going to work until we actually committed to moving and were able to attend the sales days as you had to be present to purchase.
4 stages of Hanley's Farm had been released by the time we had finally made the move to Queenstown. In this time the realtor had decided to scrap the waiting list and return the deposits, the list had just gotten too long. We still kept up to date with all newsletters and social media following the progress and development of the new subdivision, just waiting for that email to say the next release was only moments away.
Tuesday August 14th 2018 i opened my inbox to find an email from the realtor about the stage 5A release, from this point, it was the craziest week of our lives to say the least. An open day was scheduled on Saturday 18th August, only 4 day after the first email was received with pricing set to be released on Wednesday 22nd (sales day), so much had to happen in this time, we had no clue where to even begin and so many questions, no much sleep was had that week.
Can we afford it? Will the bank even lend us enough to build? How do you find a lawyer? Are lawyers scary? Will i become broke if i just ask the lawyer a question?
We decided to go and see a mortgage broker to answer all these questions for us and to see if we were financially able to purchase in this release, or wait for the next. Friday the 17th we booked in to talk with Loan Market here in Queenstown, we spent an hour figuring out exactly what the banks would be willing to lend us, what our repayments would be on our mortgage and answering all the small questions keeping me awake at night. I can't recommend seeing a mortgage broker more, not only was the consultation free, but they were able to connect us to a lawyer who had vast experience dealing with first home buyers purchasing in Hanley's Farm.
Saturday came around in a blink of an eye, the realtor had set out the next stage (5A) with pegs for each section so we could visually see where they were placed in relation to the sun etc. They pinged a bit of a surprise on us as we were greeted by an agent when we arrived, not only were they releasing Stage 5A, but they had a sneaky 5B stage in there too, meaning only the perspective buyers who attended the open day had knowledge of these sections (promising!) Because there is SUCH a high demand for these sections, we were asked to choose our top 5 sections ready for when the pricing is released as you are not guaranteed to get your first pick, or let alone score a section at all.
After getting in touch with the lawyers which were recommended on Monday 20th we found ourselves filling in paperwork to ensure on the day we had every single legality covered. It was great to go in and see our lawyer too as she was able to give us a run down on how previous releases had worked in the past.
Wednesday 22nd was here, we were freaking out. 8am on the dot an email was expected from the realtor with a list of pricing for all the sections. Normally work starts at 8am so we went in a little later that morning. We pre-wrote our email listing all our section options so when the clock ticked 8, we could hit send. The email with pricing came through at 7.59am, it was a mad rush to check the pricing of the sections we had picked out, as soon as we saw the number and agreed it was totally fine , we hit send..... and not the nervous waiting began. 10 minutes went by, 15 minutes went by.. i started freaking out as the lawyer has said they wouldn't accept any emails prior to 8am, and we replied to the pricing email which came through at 7.59am.. not 8!! I had a wee melt down and re-sent our section options again, just in case, only 15 minutes later.
by 8.25am we had a reply, we had scored ourselves our second choice (only over the back fence of our first choice, our neighbours will love us)
We finally scored our own 748sqm slice of Queenstown!!
So now you can understand why it was the craziest week.. but the stress was worth the outcome for sure. We then had the lawyers look over the paperwork which we signed and had 3 days to have a 10% deposit paid to the realtor to secure the section as our own.
After scraping together all our savings, some help from both of our parents (if we were able to use our Kiwisaver we wouldn't have needed the help, but there was no way we could withdraw our funds within 3 days, so this will be used at settlement) we had our names signed on that pre-purchase sales agreement.
The adventure has just begun!
