Boot polish kit?

[Atomic Donut]

Hello, I was just hired and start the law enforcement academy in 2 weeks. I was wondering if anybody has a specific brand or kit of Polish for their boots or if the standard Kiwi Polish is good to go?

[ncortez11]

Make sure first what type of brand of boots your getting. Some leather is harder to polish than others. Bates boots are prime example, they are super hard to polish.

[Atomic Donut]

[P5Ret]

Kiwi always worked fine for me.

[Atomic Donut]

Ended up going with Lincoln . Thanks guys

[fal_762x51]

If you have good leather, all you really need is some Kiwi and cotton balls.

[hey_scooter]

Kiwi, brush, cottonballs, icewater, lighter.

And a beer and 30 minutes.

[jdubs71]

I had thoroughgoods and used lincoln it worked great. My advice would be to find a shoeshiner at the local car wash and put a good base on it.

[Garand1911]

wet cotton mop chucked in your drill
parade gloss
you can hand buff the scuffs daily and dont need to add polish as often

[bobboberson]

Some of the best advice I was given before the academy was to get my boots professionally polished. I use Lincoln wax and wet cotton balls.

[NuGunner]

as mentioned Kiwi Parade Gloss

[Thesource161]

I have the same advice as a few above. Have a shoe shiner put the first coat on for you. It will make it easier and quicker for you to shine your boots and get a good polish after.

[arod7615]

Angelus works great also. Taking your boots to a boot shine guy is not a good idea your DI's will know as soon as you set foot at the academy.

[code_blue]

Those particular Thorogoods hold an excellent shine. I just used standard Kiwi, but parade polish is excellent for the finishing coats. First and foremost, break the boots in first before polishing. Get the natural creases to show by walking around your house in them for a while.

Base coat, base coat, base coat. Make sure you have a good, solid base coat. You need to remove the factory protective coating from the boots before applying your base coats. Use mineral spirits or diluted alcohol and cotton balls. The finish will look dull when you're done.

Don't use a lighter. Use a blow dryer or heat gun instead. It gives you the same melting ability of the lighter, but without concentrated heat to potentially burn your boots.

During the polish phase, use hot (not scalding) water to additionally help even the polish. When done, walk around the house in them again. You'll see the polish around the creases start to crack (normal). Take pantyhose or some other soft towel and buff until smooth.

I used 5.11 boots which were notoriously known for not holding a good shine, but because the techniques and time put in, I have always been complimented on the mirror reflection of my boots.

[Virus55]

HATE shining boots! I just use kiwi