Steel Toe Capped Boots and Motorcycle crashes.

This is an interesting topic - on the basis of relevancy and it needs to be known and shared.

First off - not a lot of people have ever gutted a steel toe capped boot.

This is what a steel cap - minus boot - looks like.

They are no miracle mega alloy steel - but they are very strong in both the steel that they are made from and the design that makes them resist flattening out.

These are excellent when using chain saws, heavy steel parts etc., etc., etc....

They are a great idea and they work really well - in a work boot - at work.

But they are not suitable for wearing on a motorbike.


Why is this so? OK to confine the issue to a general set of conditions, instead pointlessly diluting the relevancy under the broader context of all issues under all circumstances.

We will confine it too a collision consisting of a person travelling at speed, on a motorcycle, wearing steel capped boots, having their foot, impact a vehicle coming towards them, at a similar speed - in a square on fashion.

A steel capped work boot on a motorcycle - beyond helpfully reshaping a door skin or quarter panel, in a high-er speed collision such as that named above, it is a bad thing.

You see "Steel Caps" are designed to protect the toes and the front of the feet, from crushing loads, when heavy things land on them - which a work boot, without the steel cap, would not protect against. They are also essential when using chain saws etc.

On a motorbike however, when wearing a set of heavy leather work boots (good) and when one's foot travelling in one direction at a fair rate of knots, hits another hard object coming from the opposite direction, also at a fair rate of knots, the steel cap is protecting the foot, against an action and from a direction, it was not designed to do.

What happens is that the steel cap becomes a big old blunt knife and it comes back into the boot and cuts the toes and the front part of the foot off.

Much like laying the blunt side of a butter knife, across ones hand and then belting the knife with a big hammer - which results in your hand being cut in two.


There are now composite caps - made from some combination of materials that meet or exceed the minimum standards to protect the toes and front of the feet from crushing loads - they are non conductive and somewhat effective in slowing the chainsaw as it comes into your boot, and they are warmer in a cool room.

They are also a little bit lighter and they don't set metal detectors off.


But in a motorcycle crash, if they are designed to resist crushing loads and to be as strong as steel toe caps, these would act more or less, in a similar way as a steel cap.

Since most people try to minimise clothing changes, and the work boots are used at work and on the motorcycle, the REAL solution is to use either plain heavy leather work boots without a reinforced toe, or heavy leather work boots, that have a NYLON or similar reinforced toe cap.

These are the toe caps that are HARDER and STRONGER than plain leather toed boots, but they can be squeezed a bit, with pressure from the hands.

 The nylon cap reinforced toe, adds a lot more protection to the toes and front of the feet in a motorcycle crash, but they don't cut your toes off....

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Courtesy Tony with a little updating from me:


Periodically people ask about Medal boots and want to know where and when... so here it is.

Currently operating Monday, Thursday and Friday:

Medal Shoes
Rear 160 Gertrude St
Fitzroy VIC 3065
(03) 9419-4374
Rear means down the lane behind the shop he used to be in.