spaddock said:
I'm not really sure how to look at boots for arch support.
I think there are at least 3 issues that need to be sorted out. Most of them are due to a lack of clarity about what is meant by "arch support".
1) Some folks need to have something under their foot to create a functionaly arch in their foot. A podiatrist is in the best position to really diagnosis this, especially one who deals with sports issues. A lot of folks do well with off the shelf products like SuperFeet. As with all orthodics, start with a small amount of time and increase as you get used to them. The use of orthodics (custom or off the shelf) is rather independant on boot chooice.
2) Boots vary with the amount of shank support in the sole. This relates to how stiff the sole is and where it will bend. In the old days of Norwegian welted boots, boots had no shank, 1/2 shanks, 3/4 shanks or full shanks. Today's nylon shanks blur these distinctions. Full shank boots give you enough support that you can hook the edge of your sole on the nub of a rock and have enough support that you can stand on it. In short, you trade increasing amounts of support for less flexibility. This has a direct bearing on boot choice. If this is what you mean by support, you need more than your old Montrails.
3) The uppers of the boot will dictate the amount of ankle and foot support, which imo is somewhat related to boot sole/shank stiffness. Typically, if you increase the sole's stiffness, you also increase the tendancy of the boot to want to roll. Imagine having a super stiff sole balanced on a tiny rock. You get a balance board effect. To compensate, you typically want a higher, more supportive upper to help you control a stiffer sole. This is not always the case, btw. Limmers, for instance, are fairly low cut given how stiff their soles are. Also need to consider how prone you are to ankle injuries. Higher boots provide more support.
None of this answers which type of boot will give you nirvana. My suggestion would be to more completely describe the range of conditions you hike in and ask people to describe what models of boots they like
for those conditions. From that, you might be able to determine the class/weight/height/stiffness of boot that most people find the best. Once you know the class of boot you are looking for, you can then try on every pair of that type you can find (and refuse to try on pairs that don't fit into that category).
To take a crude cut at it for you and not really understandig what you are looking for, you might look at boots in one of these categories:
1) Injection Welted (Glued) 1/2 Shank Boots: Scarpa SL, Vasque Sundowner
2) Norwegian Welted 1/2 Shank Boots: Limmer, Merrell Wilderness, Scarpa Rio (are they still made?)
These boots may be too stiff or heavy for you.