Based on the ever popular leather and nylon Stealth 8 Inch boot the all leather Water Proof Ion-mask (WPI) version replaces its predecessors nylon panels with leather (no great suprises there) and ads Ion-mask liquid repellent technology.
Ion-mask is a pretty new technology to the market; it is totally different to previous water resistant membrane technologies like Gore-Tex or Sympatex which act like a lining "sock" barrier between the outside and inside of a boot, in that it coats the entire surface are of the boot both inside and out. Water will literally run off any surface of the boot like water off a ducks back, inside or out! This is pretty revolutionary stuff. Membrane technologies, whilst great at providing breath-ability and water proofing up to the height of the boot were hindered by the problem of being incredibly slow to dry once water reached over the top of the boot. Membranes were therefore a mixed blessing, whilst suitable for most police or security officers patrolling in the rain or through puddles, military personnel or dog handlers etc. would find their boots waterlogged for the rest of the week once they forded a river over 8" deep! With Ion-mask no part of the boots will absorb water....problem solved!
You can read all about magnums use of Ion-mask in their boots here: http://www.magnumboots.com/ion-mask/
Ion-mask claims not only to repel water, but also, oil, dirt, chemicals, blood and
blood bourne pathogens! And yet remaining light weight and breathable. Grand Claims indeed.
Now there is some wonder as to how well Ion-mask holds up as a waterproofing technology, will your socks get wet standing in shallow water or in heavy rainfall? I will risk my socks and my comfort to find out in my up coming cross country run test finished off with a quick paddle in the local lake!!! So Stay tuned.
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