Asking here because c/vegan seems to be dead (what's up with that?).
Anyway, I'm looking to get some combat/hiking boots on the cheap, and I've been looking at military surplus stores. Problem is, most of the options available are made of leather. Now, I'm of the mind that it's fine to purchase/use leather products second-hand, however I'm not so sure that military surplus exactly counts as second-hand. Any vegans out there who have some insight/opinions on this sort of situation?
Dirty carnist bloodmouth here, so I can't be trusted to weigh in on the ethical side with respect to veganism, but I can say that if you decide these boots are ethical to buy, treat them properly. It's unquestionably more ethical to take good care of the dead animal stuff than to treat it like shit and have to replace it. A lot of boot care products have animal fats or beeswax, so tread carefully. If you need any help figuring out what to use and how to treat the shoes, feel free to DM me.
Depends on the vegan, secondhand / antique leather is somewhat of a split opinion
Ultimately comes down to what your personal definition of “least amount of harm possible” or whatever is :shrug-outta-hecks:
As a vegan I'm not too jazzed about buying used leather goods, but I still use the leather goods i bought before I went vegan. A couple pairs of boots that are like 9 years old at this point, a couple belts, a baseball glove. I can't really imagine a scenario where I would buy surplus/used but it's not a 100% no for me.
I don't know exactly how military surplus works, but I know I wouldn't buy any leather goods from like Ross or TJ Maxx and the ilk.
You said most of them are leather, so some aren't? If the only thing separating you from hiking is buying some surplus leather boots, at least be a sickos and properly take care of them.
