In need of Wading Shoes AGAIN

[bigjohn58]

Ok I'm in for a new pair of boots for my waders again. I've had several pairs of Orvis boots that Fisherman's Paradise treats me great with but I always end up having to return them for a new pair after the boots fall apart. I usually get a year or year and a half out of them and then the boots tear apart at the seems somewhere. Quite honestly I am just getting tired of them falling apart due to manufacturing errors it seems. I was possibly looking into Simms this time even though they are very pricy. Do they have the same type of warranty? Last thing I would want to have happen is that I drop between $100 and $200 on a boot just to have it fall apart in a year and not have it replaced free of charge. I am hard on my boots!

 

[BrookieChaser]

Simms' warranty is lifetime on workmanship and material. What they deem normal wear, or abuse, is not covered.

I have the Simms Freestone boots now, and though I've ground down a set of carbide studs in the past month, the boots show little signs of wear in the 6 months I've used them. That said, I'll be buying Vapor boots soon just because I want a pair.

If you do decide to get Simms boots, take your waders along to the store and try on the boots with your waders due to sizing. Simms says to order a size larger than your normal shoe size. I wear size 12 cowboy boots and Simms' size 13 wading boots fit well.

 

[RLeep2]

I've had trouble with every pair of Orvis shoes I ever owned. They make it right, but life is too short to spend all that time UPSing shoes back and forth to Roanoke.

I'm on my 3rd season on a pair of the low end Cabelas shoes (the Ultralights). They look like a mad Jack Russell terrier got ahold of them and they are about 30% Goop, Aquaseal and Marine Epoxy by weight, but they are still doing what they are supposed to do. Not bad for a $70 shoe. And right now, both the rubber and felt versions are on sale for like $49.95 (I think it is...). At that price, you could get 3 pair of them for the cost of one pair of the low end Simms.

Just a thought...

 

[KeithS]

The Cabela's Ultralights are pretty hearty. I also have a pair of Bean West Branch. They're holding up well. No signs of wear.

 

[krayfish2]

Simms and Chota have several models in the $149 to $199 range. I'll second the suggestion to try them on before heading to the register. Nothing will ruin your day like a pair of wading shoes that are too small.

Had the Cabelas ultralights and they blew out in 12 months. Current Simms guide boots are at least 5 yrs old. They are unrecognizable but still in use.

 

[AkDan76]

another notch for simms. I'm on my first pair after many years of the same experiences you have with other brands. These things are Dan proof LOL!

I'm in the vapors.

If they ever go to all wire laces I'll swap back to boot footwaders. They have to be the most hideous thing I've seen yet.

 

[Sylvaneous]

LL Bean Gray Ghost wading boots with Studded Aqua-stealth sole with Boa laces. I'm 2 years into mine and I've never been happier with a wading boot. The laces make a BIG difference in how the boot works. There is no rubber sole as good as Aqua-Stealth. If there was, I'd have them. I've worn aqua Stealths for, gee, 15 years? No, more. I had them when I lived in the Lehigh Valley and I left there in 2001. (Can it be that long? And I've only been back twice! Only once to fish.)

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/81498?feat=3937-GN3&page=gray-ghost-wading-boot-with-boa-closure-studded&attrValue_0=Gray&productId=1363991

Nobody else uses Aqua Stealth, and there's nothing like it.
Unbeatable Bean's guarantee.

Sylvaneous.

 

[pcray1231]

Cabelas ultralights - comfortable as heck. But they didn't even last me 6 months before the sides blew out. Not well made.

I have a pair of Simms Guide boots. It's been about 2 years, but 2 years of VERY LIGHT fishing, by my standards. Just don't get out as much as I used to (kids). They seem very well built and the uppers look to hold up for a long time. That said, the streamtred sole is wearing flat and I'm losing grip. Those rubber spikes just don't last, even with studs in it. That's gonna be my failure mechanism, I can already tell.

All in all, my favorite boots I've ever had are Chota's. Back when I fished more, the STL's with studded felt would reliably last me 2-3 seasons and among the most comfortable boots I've owned as well. The uppers end up falling apart, but they do it "gracefully" and slowly, not a sudden unexpected uh-oh.

I've got no experience with the Beans.

 

[troutpoop]

I'm a LL Bean Gray Ghost fan. I have a few pairs.

 

[RLeep2]

Well, OK, sure the Cabelas ultralight shoes are like the toaster of wading shoes. They wear out and you chuck them and get another pair of whatevers. Unless you're like me and you enjoy seeing how far you can extend their useable lifespan with all sorts of gunks and goops.

The point was that they are currently on sale and at a price that makes it easy to treat them like a toaster.

I currently rotate 4 pairs of wading shoes and they're all about in the same condition; near moribund. It's one of the ways I have fun...

For felt/studded shoes, I have the Cabela's U-lights and a pair of the final generation of Weinbrenners. These latter shoes are on their 3rd set of felts, but the soles are starting to separate from the uppers. I'm gonna take an awl and some Kevlar thread to them and see how that does.

Then in cleated/studded shoes, I have an old pair of Orvis that so far as I know was their sole attempt to market a cleated shoe built on the old green Clearwater cordura or whatever uppers. I think they were only on the market for a few months or a year at most and pretty much every pair they sold was coming apart way prematurely. Orvis was replacing them free. But when they tracked me down, I opted for a refund and kept the shoes and I've really had a lot of fun with them. The entire Cordura bootie regularly detaches itself from the rubber soles. So, I squirt a half a bottle of Gorilla Glue into the gap and stuff the shoes with newspaper and then set them out back where I can watch them foam. This usually fixes them for about 100 hours of fishing, then I have to do it again. I really enjoy these shoes.

My other pair of cleated/studded shoes are Beans Gray Ghosts. They aren't all that much fun. Too well made. But, I've got them just about to the point where they are all but completely shot and I'm looking forward to the next phase of our partnership when I get to begin gooping them up.

Just as a final note, I had a pair of Simms Freestones not long after they first came out. After about 100 hours of wear, they both experienced sole/upper separation. No more of those for me. I can respect a shoe that wears out like it should, from use. I have zero use for a shoe that whimps out before its time.

 

[WildTigerTrout]

Three words- SIMMS "Guide" Boots.

 

[bigjohn58]

My experience with LL Bean is that everything runs way too narrow. I tried a pair of Bean neoprene waders back in the day and I couldn't even pull them over my calfs in the leg area. I have a pair of their boots with the aquastealth soles when I believe they first kinda came out with them and they are way way way too narrow. I was able to return the waders but got stuck with the boots. I am just afraid that if I get Simms they are going to just say its normal wear and tear and $200 is a ton of money for boots! Considering it but man thats rough!

 

[Maurice]

John, the simms guide boots are worth it...but keep in mind that after you throw on a compliment of studs it approaches $300...but I am happy with mine. After a year they show no wear at all.

 

[allan_s]

Simms guide boots. I have them for two years the boots are indestructible but I did water out the vibram tread but I can't really tell dude to the carbide cleats.

Will buy again when they do actually fall apart which may be a few a more years.

 

[krayfish2]

I don't know what Steve stocks at FFP but I'm sure TCO has a full compliment of Simms boots. Remember that the Rivershed, guide and others aren't all cut from the same last. You'll get different fits so try b4 you buy.

If you get down this way, Cabelas has chotas which I think you'll find to be cut much differently. It also appears that some of Cabelas newer models are actually chotas. The bar part is they run almost the same price so I'd opt for the real McCoy. $150-$180 for chotas and $180-$200 for Simms. Just get a good fit and you can't go wrong.

 

[Biggie]

Speaking of boots, just today I drove 45 min. to fish and when I put my waders on, I discovered I left the boots at home. So I drove over to Wal Mart in Carlisle and bought a pair of work books with a rubber sole. They were $20. I had the screws and a socket to install them in my car. Well they worked great and felt good too. I am going to wear them every time I go out to see how long they last. If I get a year out of them.............no more high dollar wader boots for me. If the YB Outfitters would have been open, Roland would have made a couple bucks..........can't wait for TCO to open next year.

 

[SBecker]

I have used Simms. Meh

I have used Cabelas. Meh

I have used cheap Chotas. Meh

I have used some RedBalls? Meh

I have used Chotas STL's. Money!

They are comfortable and made to last. The uppers look brand new and I have wore them for a year. I can honestly say these are the best boots I have ever worn. Unless something changes with the company and the product I will never purchase a different pair of boots the rest of my life.

 

[fly_flinger]

I've been thru 5 pairs of Chota STLs since my 1st pair of Simms, which I still use on drift boats due to them not having studs. They are an awesome boot and without a doubt the most comfortable I've worn. There is no "break-in" time and the fit is great, even for someone with a wide foot. My problem with the Chotas is that every one of the 5 pairs I owned failed at the exact same spot. They have a sown on leather toe cap and every pair that I owned started to come apart at the inside seam where the toe cap meets the fabric. Every pair did this. They will still work but they start to let little stones and grit into the boot which I swear caused at least one pair of waders to leak in the foot from rubbing.

Since I had so many pairs of Chotas I knew what to expect from them- 2-1/2 seasons before the seam split. I didn't even look at another company when they were $50+ less than the Simms Guide boot but Chota upped the price a few years ago and I think they are about $170 now with studs. The Simms are $30 more plus a few dollars for the studs(Maurice- use Kold Kutters Studs- much cheaper).

I bought the Simms Guide boots last November. So far they are fantastic and show very little sign of wear. They did take a little time to "break-in" but I expected that. IMO, I can't give a full review of the Simms since I've had them less than 1 year. So far great but time will tell. I really wanted to let you know my issue with the Chota boots.

 

[poopdeck]

Cabelas ultra lights, 59 bucks, going on my 3rd season I see no problems that make me believe I won't take them into a 4th year. The uppers are wearing but structurally they are close to 100%.

Couple things I do that I think helps their life. I never ever leave them in the car, I dry them quickly after wearing, I wear a dress sock over the stocking foot which helps them slide on and off, I buy them one size larger, and most importantly I use a shoe horn to put them on. It helps not tugging and pulling on them.

They are what they are but with a little care they last. For 59 bucks I will never buy another brand.

 

[bigjohn58]

I probably will not get a pair of Chotas. They get horrible reviews for their non felt boots. I guess where the studs go into them the whole area breaks off. I don't think I'll get felts anymore. My last pair of Orvis boots were not felt and I had little issues with grip until the bottoms got to worn down and the studs were nearly gone.