Boots with center boot zippers will have a sturdy fit and be easy to put on and take off. However, it takes time to lace the zipper onto the boot to get the fit right. But once the lacing and fit adjustment is finished, then you will not have to readjust at any time in the future. That is my experience anyway.

Repeat this for each side until you’ve laced up the entire boot zip. You’re almost done now—you just need to finish tying the knot and you’re ready to go. Step 5: Tie Off The Lace There are several ways to lace in boot zippers, but the method I described above is the easiest way in my opinion.

This is easiest if you lace your boot zip in one side at a time. Now that you have the bottom eyelet in, take your boot lace from under the boot zip, thread it into the second zip-eyelet, and into the second eyelet of the boot. It takes time to lace the zipper onto the boot to get it to fit correctly. Yes, it IS a pain in the ass to lace a zipper into a boot, but once done, you don’t have to do it again. The first few times you wear boots with a zipper, the laces will adjust themselves. When your boots are fully zipped up, you won’t see the extra dangling lace, nor will it affect how your boots fit or feel. Zip It Up Lace-in boot inserts or zippers have been around for a long time. The history seems as if they were introduced to the market soon after World War II as a way for men to continue to wear (for the few who wanted to) their combat boots but with a faster and easier way to pull them on, wear them comfortably, and take them off. These days, the only boots I have seen that regularly use boot zippers are station boots, of which I own several pair. While I have owned and worn many pairs of military boots, those with zippers have a built-in side-zip, not a laced-in zipper down the middle.

What is important to me is to get boot zippers that are made with a YKK zipper. These appear to be the most durable. They have metal teeth and a metal pull and a stop at the top. They are rather inexpensive and can be found from many vendors on the internet. They are much more durable than zippers made of nylon or plastic. A boot zipper can be adjusted to accommodate differences between feet. Once laced in, a boot zipper naturally adjusts in its lace “tightness” with walking. This is sort of like “break-in” for the laced-in zipper.

The internet is filled with complaints about tying boot laces. Most men don’t want to bother with tying boot laces, especially tying them in a decorative style. Most guys just want to pull on their boots and take off. Thank you for your message. I have boots with lace-in boot zippers (or laced-in inserts). They have 8 eyelets on each side. It’s important to note that it does require a fairly long lace. If you don’t have a long enough boot lace, you can also lace in a boot zip with two separate laces per boot. My favorite boot to wear when I ride my Harley are Chippewa Firefighter Boots. These boots fit well since the lacing with the zipper is adjustable for each of my feet which are a little different from each other in size, width, and bone structure.