Salomon Quest 4D Review: The Boot of The Elite

TacticalGear4Life is supported by its wonderful audience. When you make a purchase through our links below, we may earn an affiliate commission.

Now and again in life, you come upon something truly special. Something that stands out from the crowd. A diamond in the rough so to say, even though the rough in this case are other extremely solid, tested, and qualified tactical boots. In the paraphrased words of J.R.R. Tolkien, “There is one boot to rule them all”. That boot is the Salomon Quest 4D.

In this case the Salomon Quest 4D Gore-Tex Forces 2. Solomon’s rich history dates back to 1947 with the Quest line of boots first being developed in 2011. Today Salomon supplies the militaries and their soldiers from over 20 countries on all 6 continents with their line of forces boots. These are not your daddy’s issued boots!

I first learned of Salomon’s from our resident door kickers, the infantry. The Salomon Quest 4D’s are the favoured boot of the grunt and they’re on their feet all day, so they have a pretty good idea of what works. They love these boots and even have a monopoly of selling them from their regiment on base. That alone speaks volumes for their quality and value.

Not every military can wear the Quest 4D’s however as they have a six-inch upper (Poor poor you). For those soldiers whose dress regs require the more standard eight-inch upper however, Salomon has you covered with The Guardian, The Urban Jungle Ultra, and The XA Forces 8 tactical boots.

All are extremely solid in their own right and you can’t by any means go wrong with any of them! I’m not kidding or just talking hype, I’m not an affiliate of theirs, you won’t ever regret going with a pair of Salomon’s!

The Salomon Guardians are even in my “Toughest Tactical Boots of 2022: Conquer Every Challenge” article, and they’re in my top three boots!

Whether you’re a soldier or first responder wearing them at work or just a regular individual who’s into hiking, trekking and the like; Salomons will get you there, back again, and wishing there was more.

SPECS

Weight: 1.5lb / 665g / 23oz
Height: 6″
Colour: Coyote
Upper: Nubuck Leather (Full-Grain) / 1000D Cordura Nylon
Insole: OrthoLite® insole
Midsole: Duel Density Foam 
Outsole: Contagrip® Rubber
Lining: Anti-Debris Mesh and Textile
Toe Box: Plain
Branch Compliance: CANFORGEN 135/20

PRICE

CHECK LATEST PRICE ON AMAZON
CHECK LATEST PRICE ON WEBSITE

Currently, on Amazon, the Quest 4D Forces are going for between $240.00 – $260.00 depending on the size you’re looking for. This is a fantastic price as when I bought my Salomon’s at my local tactical store, taxes in, I paid $296.00.

On Salomon’s website, they have them priced at $310.00. This is average to slightly above average for high-end tactical boots. They’re worth every penny as you truly get what you pay for!

FIRST IMPRESSIONS

The first thing that stood out to me when I unboxed the Salomons was the overall design. I honestly just took it out of the box and turned it around in my hands for a solid few minutes. There’s no other way to describe the Quest 4D Forces boot than just straight-up cool!

The rubber chassis around the heel! The rubber guard on the instep of the boot, and the complete rubber guard around the toe look like some kind of Spartan (HALO) armour. This boot is built ready for combat!

The amount and style of webbing on the Quest 4D’s is incredible! The webbing is an interesting combination of rubber, nylon, and synthetic material.

The nylon gives the boot a bit of flexibility and breathability while the layer of Nubuck leather protects the nylon and adds some solid foot protection. The rubber almost exoskeleton-like foot guard protects from mud and harsh abrasions!

The boot itself feels quite firm to the touch with the whole upper and sole just feeling outright tough. The Nubuck leather used by Salomon is full-grain leather, which means it’s thicker and inherently stronger and tougher than say suede.

The toes complete rubber mudguard also stood out to me as it is quite a unique feature among tactical boots and continues to feed the absolute rugged feeling of the boot.

I liked that they used 1000 Cordura nylon not just for the boot, but also for the gusseted tongue. I knew this would be a great feature while hunting or training during the rainy season, as no water would be able to seep in around the tongue.

It took a few minutes, but eventually, I got past the initial design and tried them on. Three things stood out to me almost immediately upon putting them on, timing them up, and walking around.

First, the soles were extremely comfortable! They hugged my feet and formed perfectly to them, like a gel insole or memory foam. I let out a verbal “Oh, WOW, these feel nice”.

Second, was the firmness of the Nubuck leather used by Salomon. It’s full-grain leather so it’s thicker, tougher, and quite a bit more rigid. I felt this as I was sliding my feet into the boot. I could noticeably feel how stiff it was around my foot as my foot past through the upper.

However, once my foot was in and the upper was around my ankle, the initial thought of “Oh my that’s stiff’ changed to “ok that feels nice now around my ankle”.

The third and final thing that stood out to me was, again, the firmness of the Nubuck, but this time on that top bone in my foot. It took me a couple of times to adjust my laces to get it to a proper tightness where it didn’t apply too much pressure to that bone and cause me discomfort.

This was just another issue however that came with the stiffness of the leather.

FIELD FIRSTS

The first few times I wore my Quest 4D’s I was in the bush hunting spring black bear. I put some solid miles on my boots those weeks and came away with some great insight after truly using them in the field for the first time.

Just as in the store, the soles were extremely comfortable! Even after long hours and full days of humping my gear through rocks, thick brush, and marsh the soles were comfortable and felt great on my feet. My feet never felt sore or tender after wearing my boots for long periods over hard terrain.

The top bone in my feet would get sore, so once in a while, I would have to stop, loosen my boots for a minute and then tie them back up. This is a problem you hope to never have regardless of the leather used in your boot, but is more common among companies that use thicker and stiffer leather.

It is a bit frustrating at first as it slows you down and adds a bit of time to whatever you’re doing, but after a couple of weeks the leather stretched a bit and I no longer had this issue.

Lastly, I like the rubber contragrip soles with added puncture resistance. I was moving over some pretty firm ground with lots of sharp rocks and I never had a moment where I thought I would lose my grip. I also never felt the jagged edges on my feet inside my shoes like you would if you were wearing lighter tactical boots.

QUALITY DESIGN

UPPER

MATERIAL

The upper of the Quest 4D Forces is made of the finest material. It’s tough, it’s rugged, and it can take whatever you can throw at it. The base layer is 1000D Cordura Nylon. This is the toughest level of nylon you can find, therefore also very wear resistant. With how tight the nylon is woven it is also extremely water resistant!

The next layer is Nubuck leather. Nubuck leather is full-grain leather, which means it uses the full thickness of the hide. This makes it extremely strong and durable. Although tough, the Nubuck leather has been smoothed out to a nice soft outer finish. This gives it a nice aesthetic appeal.

The third layer on the 4D Forces is rubber. Rubber gives it that real true solid abrasion resistance needed for the harshest climates imaginable.

Around the ankle and under the laces is finally a layer of synthetic material added in for comfort as it helps the boot conform around your foot when you tie the laces.

LACE SYSTEM

The Quest 4D laces are divided up into two tie zones the lower zone below the lace locker and the upper zone above the lace locker. Both zones utilize a closed-loop style of lace loop. These are ideally what you want in a tactical boot as they greatly cut down on your laces getting snagged on the environment and possibly tearing as you’re out in the field.

The lower zone loops are made from the Nubuck leather on the boot. This would be one of my few complaints about the boot. I’ve stated in other reviews that the metal loops (as seen on the top zone of the Quest 4Ds) are generally much tougher and you don’t deal with the same possibility of them tearing over time through general use.

I like my boots tight so my feet don’t slip around, it’s this strong tightening that can wear them down. However, I can say as of yet these loops are holding up quite well. I’ll update the article in the future if things change.

The top zone is your standard nylon-coated brass loop speed lace system. These are ideally what you want for the whole boot. Salomon did a great job of giving these top loops a very low profile. This is a great feature as it minimizes snags and tearing while out in the field.

While not initially excited about the combined material for the lace loops, they’re holding up great as of yet. So I can’t truly complain.

LACE LOCKER

The lace locker system on the Quest 4D Forces I can honestly say was one of the aspects of the boot I was most excited to talk about!!!! Out of all the boots I have had and looked at, the lace locking system on the Quest 4D is by far my absolute favourite!!!

The system is just so smart. You pull tight the lower laces and when you get up to the lace locker, you simply pull up tightening the laces and then pull the laces forward. This locks the laces in and keeps your lower boot completely tight and snug.

It’s easy and extremely effective! I’ve never had a problem with my laces coming undone below the lace locker!

Another huge advantage of Salomon’s lace-locking system is that it does not tear apart your laces! This is huge, as I have had lace locking systems on other boots, where although effective at keeping my laces locked in and my boots tight, tear the heck out of my laces.

One of the other pairs of boots I have at home now I always have to make sure I have at least one set of spare laces at home because the lace lockers tear my laces apart so much.

Again, Salomons lace lockers are on the next level of quality. They are excellent, so functionally easy to use and cost-effective as they save your laces. They are truly an asset in the field as they keep your boots snug at all times

WEBBING

Salomon has put a lot of effort into the webbing on the Quest 4D Forces, as the webbing extends across the whole upper. Unlike most boots where you’ll find the webbing purely around the ankle and heel.

Webbing is where multiple pieces or strips, multiple layers, and usually multiple different materials are intermingled together to create the upper. This intermingling is meant to give strength, add toughness, and increase flexibility and movement of the boot.

Another advantage is that it allows for greater airflow into and out of the boot as materials such as nylon provide much more breathability than if the boot was made purely from leather.

Webbing properly done can also allow water to move more easily in and out of the boot. This allows the boot and your feet to dry off much quicker when you get them wet. Although this quality is usually found in your lighter tactical boots which generally use lighter forms of nylon.

Salomon has combined four different materials into their webbing synthetic material, nylon, leather, and rubber, to create in their opinion the perfect combination.

The webbing puts the strongest materials in all the places that take the most abuse to protect your foot. Likewise, the lighter materials are around the ankle and top of the foot where you desire flexibility and comfort.

It’s the perfect almost exoskeleton-like combination of comfort and armour for your feet.

GORE-TEX

The Quest 4D Forces come in both Gore-Tex (wet weather) and non-Gore-Tex (hot weather). The Gore-Tex lining is pretty standard. It greatly helps to keep your feet warm and dry by keeping the water out of your boots!

Whereas the non-Gore-Tex will naturally be more breathable for arid conditions, the Gore-Tex version (which is the more popular version among the infantry) isn’t bad.

I’ve worn them all through spring and summer and honestly never had issues with my feet overheating and getting swampy.

I would advise choosing the Gore-Tex because of the added warmth they will offer come fall and winter and the added water protection which benefits you year-round.

SOLE

INSOLE

Salomon’s patented Ortholite insoles are known for the amazing comfort they add to the boot. They also help to provide a secure and snug fit for your foot.

I did upon my initial purchase of my boots try these out and enjoyed the feeling of them, they truly were very comfortable! I think anyone who tries a pair on will immediately notice this aspect about the Quest 4D’s.

Unfortunately, I have to wear special orthotics in all my shoes, so even though I would have thoroughly enjoyed keeping these in my boots I could not.

One of the greatest aspects of the Quest 4D Forces is the underfoot comfort. These special insoles are one aspect that adds to that world-renowned comfort that Salomon is known for.

OUTSOLE

Salomon’s patented CONTAGRIP outsole is very good at its job. It’s very unique in the shape and style of lugs that it has on the bottom of the boot.

Almost like crampons, which are the spikes you put onto the bottom of your boots for ice climbing. The rear-facing spike-like lugs offer incredible grip on any loose or hard surface.

The entire outsole was created to be puncture-resistant, giving you amazing protection as you step on jagged rocks and other hard objects.

As well as the protection the outsole offers, it’s also part of the comfort the Quest 4D provides. The rubber outsole protects and cushions your foot with every step you take.

I spend a lot of time outside both at work and personally and I have loved my ability to go anywhere with these boots. They do truly give a peace of mind knowing that your footing is almost always sure.

MUDGUARD

There is another stand-out feature that Salomon has added to the Quest 4Ds and one that I think is awesome, is the full-toe mudguard.

This rubber mudguard adds a very strong layer of protection for the boot and your foot. With every step you take, your toes lead the way and very few boots offer the protection that the Quest 4D’s do.

This full rubber mudguard with the added bit of rubber coming up from the outsole provides an abnormally thick bit of armour to the front of the boot, making sure that no matter what you may kick as your trekking through the field won’t end your mission with a possible foot injury.

This personally is one of my favourite features of the Salomon Quest 4D Forces boots.

FUNCTIONALITY

The Salomon Quest 4D Forces are boots that can be used by anyone, anywhere. Being initially created for your regular but avid outdoorsman and then adapted for the military these boots can take anyone where they want to go.

They’re tough, they’re rugged, and they make sure each step you take is anchored to the ground on any surface.

They come in multiple colours, so if you’re in a uniform and are required to have a certain colour to match, the Quest 4D’s have you covered. They come in black, coyote, dark brown, and several more.

They tie easy, they go on easy and they’re comfortable whether wet or dry. You can wear them as everyday shoes or keep them for your toughest adventures.

CONCERNS AND CRITICISMS

The Salomon Quest 4D’s are one of the most popular boots in the Canadian military, so there are a lot of them around and I have never heard of this happening to a pair of these boots before.

After about 6 months though, the metal closed loops for the laces on the top of the boots all started pulling out. They just started popping off when I would tie my boots.

I have lost so many my boots are all most untieable.

That being said Salomon came through in a huge way and through their warranty gave me a whole new pair of boots.

CONCLUSION

The Salomon Quest 4D Forces 2 truly are the boot of our elite. Whether it’s our elite soldiers, our elite first responders, or our elite adventurers.

Although the boot can start off stiff and possibly cause some soreness for some individuals, it does break in very well. Once broken in they feel like a big warm hug from a friend, a friend that will protect you at all costs.

They offer some truly unique features such as the mudguard, lace locker, and puncture-resistant sole. These are invaluable features that will give you an advantage in any terrain. The Quest 4D’s are one of the toughest boots not just of 2022, but of all time.

TacticalGear4Life is reader-supported. Clicking on provided links and making a purchase may earn me a small commission at NO extra cost to you.