My New NORTIV 8 Men’s Ankle High Hiking Boots

The NORTIV 8 Men’s Ankle High Waterproof Hiking Boots are a mid-cut type, incredibly affordable and with a true out-of-box comfort.  

Warning: I tested the boots for waterproofness after 6 months of use, and they failed. You can see more in my video.

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Key features & benefits

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What this is about

Here you have my new pair of boots which I have been testing recently. On the site of the brand they call them Armadillo Series Men’s Water-Resistant Hiking & Walking Boots. The name used in the title above is what they use for these boots on Amazon.

This may be good to know because they have several different series of boots and shoes on the market, and they are all incredibly popular, so do not get confused.

The boots are mid-cut type, and the general shape and style is very similar to my previous Lowa Renegade GTX Mid Hiking Boots and Salomon Men’s Quest Prime GTX Backpacking Boots. So after having those two famous pairs (in fact, I still use the Salomon boots) it is very easy to make a proper assessment of these Nortiv 8 boots.

They are indeed in the same group regarding the general shape and features, but you can have them for less than half the price of those mentioned boots. The picture shows the Nortiv 8 boot side by side with the Salomon boot which I used recently in the mountains and did not have time yet to clean them properly:

As the official name used in the title suggests, you have a very good ankle support here, with generous padding on the collar and the gusseted tongue shown in the picture below.

I am a mountaineer, I would never consider going into mountains with anything lower. I find ankle support essential, but I do know that some people do not think the same way. But this brand has shoes of the same shape, just to know if you are one of them. I have these shoes as well, and there will be a review about them here in the site soon.

The height of the front gusseted point is almost the same as the height of the lowest point on the shaft. I find this good for general waterproofing because you know how deep in the water you can go.

Observe that the lacing system includes two hooks on the top, and this is similar to my Salomon boots, but there is no locking feature in the Nortiv 8 boots. With these two hooks you can choose where to make the knot with the lace.

I did not measure the weight but they feel slightly lighter than the Salomon boots. One detail here which I like more than in my Salomon boots is the collar width. From the picture below you can realize this, the Nortiv 8 boot is on the right. It is much easier to have them on and off than the Salomon boots, and this is something I like. 

I mention this collar feature because this is the only thing that I dislike in my Salomon boots. With sweaty socks it may be difficult to put them on when the collar is so narrow.

So far I have not noticed any negative effect of this collar width. If there is any, I shall add a word or two here later. The collar padding is soft and pleasant, and the same holds for its removable inner soles that are truly cushiony. 

Though, I have seen some users complaining about the collar comfort. I am pretty sure they did not have appropriate socks. I have even see some talking about apparent testing that included running. Well, this sounds ridiculous, these boots are not built for trail running, so let’s be reasonable. 

The outer soles are moderately flexible and with just the right stiffness, but I shall see later how this feels on a rough rocky terrain. The rubber looks to be a good quality and you have a bit of heels here, with sharp grooves on the sides, more than in the Salomon boots for sure.

My testing

I performed my usual procedure with these NORTIV 8 Men’s Ankle High Waterproof Hiking Boots. I started with a submerge test, so I simply put them into water and kept for several minutes submerged.

Of course, they passed this test, and this is not surprising because of its water-repellent surface. From my experience, this is always so with such boots. The time will show what happens much later when this surface stuff is washed out and warn out. I shall add a few lines much later, so stay tuned and bookmark this text.

I do not really know what they use inside and if there is any sort of membrane, I have not seen it noticed anywhere, so it is possible that this waterproofing is only on the surface. But I have learned from my bad experience with three times more expensive boots that such membranes do not really work or they work for a very short period of time.

Anyway, after that I walked in the boots in a mixed environment, urban and forested. In the mountains, when I use such boots I always have two pairs of socks, one thin and one thick. This saves me from blisters.

So I did the same here, and after some 30 kilometers of walk within one week, I can say that I did not experience any pressure point whatsoever, no issues in the creasing area or anywhere else. So I am pretty confident in saying that these boots offer an out-of-box comfort and basically do not need any break-in-time.

But this does not mean you should take my words blindly and use them for long walks instantly. Never do this with any boots regardless of how comfortable they initially may feel and regardless of what anybody say. Boots of this type must be tested properly in controlled conditions.    

Testing in the mountains 

I have just returned from the mountains where I have used these Nortiv 8 ankle high boots. In particular, I used them on my tour to Pizzo Tambo 3279 m (10757 ft). As you realize, this is a high mountain in the Italian Alps, and the terrain is as harsh as it can possibly be. 

On the route I first had grass areas, then dry rock, wet rock, snow passages, water streams, etc. The boots performed great in all these situations. No blisters or pressure spots.

I was particularly satisfied with their performance on rock. At some point I took a rest and removed them to vent my feet, so here you can see this moment, this is at around 3000 meters of elevation:

As expected, at the end of the long day, the surface fabric was becoming wet, so the repellent materials used on it was washed out. I even stepped in a water stream on purpose as you can see in the picture below. But I did not feel leaks inside.

See more in my video here:

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Who is this Armadillo Series Nortiv8 Boot for

Regarding the best use, these are hiking boots suitable for a variety of terrains, with a very comfortable ankle support. I am sure they can be used by hunters and bird watchers, and for many other activities.

If you plan to use these boots for the work, the front is reinforced with a rubber cap, good for hiking on a rocky terrain as well, but the top front is softer.

Regarding the size, they build them in half-size difference for the smaller boots, and full size in the larger range, so you can find them in the total US range of 6-15, more you can see on their site.

Note that they also have wide options as well. My boots are normal width, and I would say they run wide enough already.

Regarding the weight, I mentioned they are more or less in the same group as Lowa Renegade and Salomon boots. So they are not the lightest option on the market, but if you want a decent and reliable foot support and strong enough soles, this is what you need. I would not go for anything ultralight on a rough terrain.

Regarding the price, these boots are simply incredible. So it is not surprising that, as of the moment of writing this text, they are number 1 bestselling hiking boots on Amazon, with more than 12000 reviews by customers. 

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Addition: NORTIV 8 Armadillo II Boots 

You might want to know that they now have a modified version on the market under the name Armadillo II. There are several changes that they mention in the description of these boots, and some are about the inner structure so not really visible.

But you can see in the picture below that the outer material is now completely different, although the overall shape and features are the same.

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Final thoughts & rating

Below you can see how I rate the boots against my usual rating criteria so that you can easily compare them with other items of this type:

 

BEST PLACEs TO BUY

Nortiv8

Amazon

Walmart

For more options, please check under the category Men’s Footwear. You might want to check their NORTIV 8 Men’s Low Top Waterproof Hiking Shoes built in the same style. But have a look also at my Mammut Sapuen High GTX Boots that are very technical and waterproof.

Bookmark this site and come again, this will keep you informed because I add texts here regularly. Let me know if you have questions or comments, there is a comment box below. Have a nice day.