For flying the mukluks made in Ely Minnesota by Steger are the best thing going for winter. I think the address is Mukluks.com. Bunny boots and Mickey boots are great but with big feet like mine I would never dream of trying to work rudder pedals in a taildragger in them - I can't even drive my car or truck easily in my bunny boots.

If the Stegers are too rich for your blood there are surplus air force mukluks which are very warm and which give a light touch on the rudder pedals. The N-1b, you can find them on eBay all the time.

"Bunny Boots", or officially the Bata Vapor Barrier Boots were for decades issued by the military. They will indeed keep your feet from freezing in extreme conditions, and I've used them for decades when flying in winter.

That said, they are NOT warm. In fact, your feet pretty much stay cool and clammy all the time you wear them, because they're rubber--inside and out. They don't "breathe", and thus your feet stay damp.

Now, that said, this bothers some folks more than others. My feet have always been happy in those boots, but they aren't for everyone.

IF you are going ski flying, and may land on lakes/rivers where the odds are good of stepping into overflow conditions--WEAR BUNNY BOOTS. But, if most of what you're doing is airport to airport in winter at least, and the temps aren't extreme, your feet will be more comfortable in some sort of pack type boot. Lots of options there, so go to somewhere like Cabelas or ???and see what they have.

As to big boots causing problems operating the aircraft, if they're BIG enough, they can indeed hinder your operation. Mostly, though, it's just a matter of re-training yourself to operate with larger "feet".

MTV

"Bunny Boots", or officially the Bata Vapor Barrier Boots were for decades issued by the military. They will indeed keep your feet from freezing in extreme conditions, and I've used them for decades when flying in winter.

That said, they are NOT warm. In fact, your feet pretty much stay cool and clammy all the time you wear them, because they're rubber--inside and out. They don't "breathe", and thus your feet stay damp.

Now, that said, this bothers some folks more than others. My feet have always been happy in those boots, but they aren't for everyone.

IF you are going ski flying, and may land on lakes/rivers where the odds are good of stepping into overflow conditions--WEAR BUNNY BOOTS. But, if most of what you're doing is airport to airport in winter at least, and the temps aren't extreme, your feet will be more comfortable in some sort of pack type boot. Lots of options there, so go to somewhere like Cabelas or ???and see what they have.

As to big boots causing problems operating the aircraft, if they're BIG enough, they can indeed hinder your operation. Mostly, though, it's just a matter of re-training yourself to operate with larger "feet".

MTV

patrol guy wrote:Mongo, do you ever go to Urbana (I74)? We should meet for lunch there sometime. I would like to see your cub!

I have never been there but I could sometime.
May be easier to meet you at your place sometime when in back in Ohio, around Easter.

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Mongo wrote:It was 8 degrees today and I could only fly for 1-1/2 hours until I could no longer feel my toes, and I had two pairs of wool socks on.
I guess it is time to work on some door seals and learn to fly with boots on. With a size 14 boot its hard to fit in a Supercub.

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Costco has those chemical toe warmer packs for a good price. They really work well.

Gb

I flew yesterday in my new boots from Sportmans Guide (I'm a big fan of them now since getting my 30 buck flightsuit, I also have some 48" long snowshoes coming). 1400 grams of Thinsulate and not huge gunboats, just a bit bigger then non-insulated boots. Now I have to keep my feet AWAY from the heater duct, they are super warm! Waterproof totally also, while also seeming to "breath", they are always going to be in the plane, as will the insulated flightsuit, even if I'm not wearing them, just in case I have to hike out

For some reason I don't have a problem adjusting to different footwear in the plane, I do when running my boomtruck, it has a foot control for boom/up/down and I have to re-adjust everytime I get different boots, the plane it's automatic.

Thanks for the tip on the boots. I have to do something before spring. I need to warm my feet too but then they sweat terrible. Last weekend I got

Two Feet Of Snow.




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This is not foot-specific but I did find a way to increase the available cabin heat in my airplane. The inlet to the heat muff is a 2" or 2-1/2" scat. I blocked off about 1/3 of the scat opening at the front baffle with aluminum tape. This reduced the amount of air going through the heat muff, which resulted in a higher "delta t" (temperature differential). In other words, there's less air available but it's warmer. Made a noticable improvement. I also made a diverter that mounts on the cabin heat valve on the inside of the firewall, so the air blows where it does some good -- on my legs, not on a heat sink (cold fire extinguisher).