GS-Riders International

Mesh material on the outside and Goretex XCR - I bought the TCX Air Tech XCR thinking they would be a good idea for hot Singapore. In the end I did not like them.

History: TCX was previously known under the name Oxtar. Oxter made excellent boot, may be among the best in the industry. BMW as well got their boots manufactured by them. I am using the Oxtar Stealth since a couple of years. Before I had the Oxtar Matrix. My Stealth are going into the 4. year. They fit well, they are solid, they are still watertight. The sole shows only minor wear. Overall they certainly do look used, but I can not see the four years on them.

Details:

The liner fabric is a Goretex XCR laminate, which is reasonably well sewn and glued into the boot:



Made in Romania:



I do not know what other boot makers use. Here the protective padding looks like some sort of styrofoam:



The rubber-like design elements also do not exactly appeal, kind of cheap looking:




Comfort: To start with the fit is poor for my feet. When walking they move around on my foot. The next size smaller I tried was too tight. Also, walking they throw wrinkles on the forefoot. A seam on the upper shaft close to the zipper leaves scratching marks on my wade. After 15 minutes of walking I have a red spot which causes a burning pain. Watertight they are, and even some air flow can be felt through the XCR membrane, if the boots are exposed to the direct wind stream. If only the boxer engine would not block the air flow.

Summary: To my opinion this is a simple made shoe using mainly cheaper materials, with the exception of the XCR membrane. The Air Tech boots seem are like a new, different generation from what I knew about Oxtar. They cost over US$ 200 / S$ 320.

That was it. Curiosity satisfied - BMW Airflow boots bought. A totally different quality level.