u/Complete-Pipe-2301

Hi all,

I'm building a pair of bounty hunters through the bakers website and am down to choosing which leather. Since it's basically a white's boot I figured this is a good sub to ask.

I'm looking for a neutral medium to dark brown leather that doesn't have a lot of warm tones and isn't too red or orange. I don't go easy on my boots so preferably something that won't develop warm hues as it patinas.

Currently considering these: brown roughout, brown smooth, natural cxl, brown cxl. So far, brown roughout seems like the closest fit followed by smooth but sometimes natural cxl looks like it gets there after it patinas. But I've also seen that the cxl leathers can vary from neutral to a warmer hue so I'm hesitant to go with those because it depends on the particular batch of leather.

Brown roughout seems the most consistent neutral brown but varies from lighter to darker. Brown smooth seems ok but a little boring.

What do you all think? Or is there another leather I should look at?

I'm deciding between the FE6 and the 5lb splitter from Counsil. For those who've used both, which is better for splitting rounds?

I debated posting this because I know Russell has an excellent reputation among many people here. That's one of the reasons I was willing to spend nearly $900 and wait over six months for a pair of Backcountrys.

Unfortunately, my experience has been pretty disappointing.

I ordered the boots on October 7, 2025 and received them on March 23rd, after a little over six months (which was expected and I was fine with waiting). Right out of the box, I noticed the stitching along the rear heel seam looked a little loose, but assumed I was just overthinking it.

After only a few weeks of light use, the seam failed completely and the leather started separating.

To Russell's credit, they accepted the boots back for repair without any argument. From there, though, communication became the most frustrating part of the entire experience.

May 11th – I was told the boots were being re-stitched and should ship within the week. That week came and went with no tracking number or update.

May 20th – I reached out asking if they had shipped. I was told they would check and get back to me, but I never heard back.

May 27th – I followed up again and was told the boots had just been finished and would ship “in the next couple of days.” Again, no tracking number or update.

June 3rd / 4th – I reached out again for a status update. I received a reply the next day saying they were out of the office but would check on the boots when they returned Monday.

June 8th through present – Monday came and went without any update, so I emailed again the following morning asking if they had been able to check. Still no response.

At this point the boots have spent significantly more time in Russell’s possession for evaluation and repair than they ever spent on my feet.

The hunt I originally bought these boots for has already come and gone. I ended up wearing trail shoes I already owned because I didn’t want to spend even more money on another pair of boots.

The original stitching issue was disappointing, but honestly that’s not what left the worst impression. Things happen. What has been far more frustrating is the repeated cycle of estimated timelines that never materialize, updates that only happen when I reach out first, and commitments to “check and get back to me” that never happen.

I genuinely wanted these to be the last hunting boots I ever bought, and I still hope that ends up being the case. But at nearly $900 and after waiting over six months for delivery, I expected them to arrive right and stay right. I also expected communication that matched the reputation of the company.

As of today, with still no response, I’ve reached the point where I’ve asked for a clear update or, if that can’t be provided, to discuss a refund instead.

I’m not posting this to bash Russell. I just think anyone considering spending this kind of money should know that my experience with quality control and, especially, customer communication has fallen well short of what I expected.

Hopefully I’m just an outlier.

Edit: Shortly after posting this, I received a reply acknowledging my emails and saying they would be looked into (tomorrow, 6/11). I still do not have a clear status update or shipping confirmation.

Edit: June 11th – Russell got back to me with an update. They apologized for the delay and explained that the repair was not actually finished when they believed it was. They stated the boots will ship out today, and I also received a shipping notification showing that a label has been created. Given the number of missed timelines, I'm going to reserve judgment until the boots are actually in hand, but I wanted to provide an update and acknowledge that they did respond. They're also including some Obenaufs and new laces which is a nice gesture.