HOUNDSBAY Boxer Professional Boot Stretcher for Men and Women Boot Expander Boot Shoe Stretchers For Wide Feet or

This product is a costs a little more than others out there but I am glad I got it after receiving it. Pros: • made in American (Texas) • when stretching boots, wood is the best choice as it did not flex and stayed exactly how I positioned it. • the bunion plugs are perfect and took off all the pressior points on had on my feet. • when you stretch boots, you'll be glad you chose wood as you need something sturdy that doesn't break when removing it. • the srews to tighten it are quality. Con: the leverage you get from the handle bar to crank it is a bit small. If that was long you would get a better turn on it. so the work around is to place boot inbetween your knees and crank it tight by grabbing with your palms. Over all: it's 5 stars. buy it. Read more

Worked well! Read more

The good: This boot/shoe width stretcher is a decent quality consumer grade tool and in less than 24 hours allowed me to adjust the fit of a pair of shoes that were probably two width steps too narrow for me to wear comfortably. These shoes have thick dense leather and comparatively thick lining leather, the adjustment required a significant amount of force against the inside of the toe-box and instep areas. I never felt that the tool was in danger of breaking or failing to apply enough leverage. Materials are quite decent, with actual beech wood forms and all-steel mechanical parts. The less good: This is certainly NOT "professional" grade, if you interpret that as meaning it would last for years of every-day use at a shoemaker or cobbler's shop. Also, as delivered the acme thread screw mechanism (!! acme thread is good !!) is literally DRY... not even a hint of lubrication is present. This leads to binding and requires application of much higher force to the screw handle than is actually required if the mechanism was correctly lubricated. I bet that 95% of the broken universal joint complaints are caused by this. The good news is that a few drops of light machine oil on the screw and at the forcing cam completely fixes this issue, making for smooth and low-effort actuation. Now for the washer... I just can't fathom why they chose to use a washer that's too thin and incorrectly sized for the actuator shaft to retain the spring that's between the forcing cam and the screw shaft. If it was an easy fix, then I'd gladly replace it with the correct washer, but it isn't (need to drill out a pin that's in a blind hole in the shaft to disassemble, then make a new pin out of precisely sized mild steel, or find a roll pin that fits). I'm going to see if I can find a "c" clip that will snap onto the shaft and prevent my washer from getting lodged on the threads, like others have experienced. **My local hardware store *did* have a hardened circlip that was sturdy enough and had acceptable inner and outer dimensions to more effectively capture the spring. If your hardware store has an area with assorted fasteners and miscellaneous hardware bits, they will likely have this part. Bring your stretcher and a pair of needlenose pliers, so you can test fit until you find the right one. It's worth the time and probably less than $1 for the part! One more minus column item, but this one's a bit nit-pickey: I'd also be happier if they included some spot adjustment plugs that have lower or less abrupt profiles, so that you could make more subtle adjustments for toe shaping in narrow footbeds. That said, the ones that are included give a nice range of adjustments and with careful use can be used to adjust fit in small increments. Read more

My boot stretcher arrived within 48 hours thanks to my PRIME membership. Opened the box and was pleasantly surprised by the quality. I had read multiple reviews prior to buying and saw a lot of comments about the poor quality primarily with the u-joint. Either the Manufacturer has improved the quality or I got lucky but either way it’s built good. It did not come with any paperwork/instructions. Although it’s not complicated to use it would be nice to initially know where the best position is for the 6 attachments. Anyways, here’s how I use them. Number 1- they are built for width stretching and not for the top of your foot. My boots were too narrow and too tight at the top. I don’t have any bunions or corns so I used all 6 attachments at the top of the wooden stretcher to get a little stretch at the top. I inserted the wood as far as I could and then tightened the laces pretty tight. After that I torqued the stretcher tight. Once the attachments started being noticeable through the leather I stopped. I stretched one boot overnight and the other throughout the day while at work. I tried them on after work and there was indeed a difference in the width. With a thin sock it was comfortable. With a wool sock it was tight. I should note that prior to stretching I couldn’t even lace the boots with the heavier sock. Number 2- I repeated the same procedure. After the second stretch I let the boots sit for 24 hrs. Then I did a third stretch. Each time placing all 6 attachments at the top. After all of that the boots reached a comfortable level. Now it’s as if I just bought the boots and my foot is naturally wearing them in for the custom, long term fit you get from a well made pair of boots. It is a labor of love. If you don’t have the time or patience you would be better off just buying a better fitting boot. For me it was worth it. When I’m not wearing the boots I have the stretcher in one of them and alternate as I go. My recommendation for how much torque to use is this, once the handle feels fairly tight give it 1/4 turn more and stop. I believe over torquing will either stretch the stitching of the boots too loose or the u-joint will get damaged. I’m satisfied and glad I bought it. I hope you all have similar results. Read more

In reading reviews for other wooden shoe stretchers with lower pricing, I recalled several noting they would have paid more for a better wood or sturdier product. This stretcher is the real deal. Solid hardwood body. Metal crank and expanders, as well as metal "plugs" for targeted stretching. While cheaper units will strip and crack, I've used this stretcher to really apply some stretch without failure. Also, it comes packaged in a storage box with a velvet lining, and a small satchel for storing the targeted stretch plugs. You will not be disappointed in the build quality, nor the packaging. Read more

Great product, well made... but be careful when you check open it, my shipment was missing the METAL PLUGS for spot stretching. These are essential to make the item work! I may have to order it as a "replacement part" for $20. from the manufacturer, since the seller wanted the whole thing returned. Read more