New wading boots

[fishrich]

I am in the market for some new wading boots. I was wondering what is everone is wearing these days. i now where a pair of cabelas ultralite felt bottoms. I was wondering about the new rubber bottom boots , with or without cleats or should i stick with felt , with or without cleats (studs). The most important thing is comfort for all day fishing . any recomendations?

 

[Raven456]

I haven't seen these in person yet, but the new boot by LL Bean looks pretty sweet. Sierra Trading Post has some boots on sale as well.

http://www.llbean.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?categoryId=63709&storeId=1&catalogId=1&langId=-1&from=SR&feat=sr

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/d/349_Wading-Boots-and-Fishing-Shoes.html

 

[sundrunk]

Simms, but there are plenty of good choices these days..Beans look decent, and the price is right...I'd stay away from felt but that's just me..Pretty soon anglers are going to shoot you that "look" if you bring felt boots to they're favorite stream (didymo)

 

[Wildfish]

I just got a pair of the cabelas studded guidewear boots. Haven't had them on the water yet, but they seem decent enough. A bit bulky, not the lightest in the world, but hopefully they'll work for me.

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/links/link.jsp?id=0063944831163a&type=product&cmCat=SEARCH_all&returnPage=search-results1.jsp&Ntt=guidewear+wading+boot&Ntk=Products&sort=all&Go.y=0&_D%3AhasJS=+&N=0&_D%3Asort=+&Nty=1&hasJS=true&_dyncharset=ISO-8859-1&_DARGS=%2Fcabelas%2Fen%2Fcommon%2Fsearch%2Fsearch-box.jsp.form1&Go.x=0

 

[Fredrick]

I like thees boots can't go wrong with the price

http://www.cabelas.com/cabelas/en/templates/product/standard-item.jsp?_DARGS=/cabelas/en/common/catalog/item-link.jsp_A&_DAV=MainCatcat20564-cat601935-cat20616&id=0026700830825a&navCount=7&podId=0026700&parentId=cat20616&masterpathid=&navAction=push&catalogCode=9IS&rid=&parentType=index&indexId=cat20616&hasJS=true

 

[hendeylathe]

I've got a pair of Simms Guide Boots (felt & studded) and like them very much. If you only fish basically one watershed, I'd stick with felts & studs. However, if you plan to travel, we all should have a rubber soled set to use. Orvis' own Tom Rosenbauer has said on his podcast that felt isn't going anywhere. Even though I only fish Laurel Hill and the Yough, I still clean my gear just out of personal satisfaction.

 

[dryflyguy]

I wouldn't get aqua stealth treads without studs. And even those aren't quite as grippy as studded felts

 

[Raff]

I saw a pair of the prototype William Joseph ATV boots, and I can't wait until they come out in a couple of months. If you know the Asolo Fugitive GTX hiking boots, they are basically that with a felt sole. And since the Fugitive GTX boots are the best hiking boots I have ever owned, I can only image the wading boots are going to be tops. The ankle support alone is the best out there.

Check them out at http://www.riverbum.com/William-Joseph-ATV-Wading-Boot/

 

[pcray1231]

I have had terrible luck with wading boots. Most only last a season or so, a few have gone 2 years. Then again, my current $80 pair is the most I ever spent on a wading boot and I fish A LOT.

I had those ultralights once and they were extremely comfortable, grip was fine, but they lasted only 1 season. Sides blew out.

My best pair I had were Chota STL's, they are $135 retail but I somehow managed to get them 50% off on a closeout or something. They lasted just over 2 years.

After several more cheaper misses, I wanted to go back to Chota's. I found the Cabela's guidewear with studded felt for $80. I think they're nearly the same as the Chota STL, just a knock off, so I figured I'd give them a try. They've held up ok, will be 2 years in May. But they are showing wear and may not make it through summer. Despite it being my best experience, 2 years does not seem good to me and I think there has to be something more durable out there.

I'm thinking about getting a new pair now anyway, maybe some aqua stealth style rubber treads for longer brookie jaunts. Then I'd have both felt and rubber. I could choose based on stream conditions, get a good comparison of the rubber vs. felt, and perhaps allow my Cabela's pair a little less use and thus make them last longer.

 

[David]

Mine are still going strong...

http://www.paflyfish.com/modules/smartsection/item.php?itemid=56

 

[pcray1231]

David and others,

Do you treat your leather wading boots with oil and/or leather grease? I hadn't been doing this, and perhaps is why I've had such bad luck. But I started doing it on my hunting boots and the results are amazing. I did it to my wading boots for the first time this winter, and it really softened them up and gave me hope maybe I'll get more out of them than I thought.

FWIW, I used Obenauf's Heavy Duty LP. I wish I had done it earlier to my wading boots, it did soften and darken but the leather had already cracked some along the sides and at the toe pivot point.

 

[David]

pcray1231 wrote:
David and others,

Do you treat your leather wading boots with oil and/or leather grease?

I honestly have not...although its a pretty good idea. I have done it for my regular boots...I've always used bees wax.
The leather on my wading boots has always outlasted my felts and subsequent felt replacements. I am fortunate to be a 1/2 size in my shoe, so I always have that little extra space to account for shrinkage when the leather does dry.

 

[abbrod]

For quality I don't think you can beat Weinbrenner. Made in the USA too. Great support. Felt soles with or without studs. The best in gripping power. The only down side is the potential contamination between waterways. As was already mentioned previously, if you do a lot of traveling, rubber might be the way to go.

 

[troutslammer]

chota stl , studded felt ,hands down, they came out with a new carbon steel pointed stud too that i hear is totally awesome , i will stick with felt and studs just because i don't wanna fall and break a arm or leg , i have had the rubber soles and u couldn't give me another pair as a freakin gift.as far as them holding up i fish ALOT !

 

[fishrich]

I don't know gents! I am still looking for a little more info on the rubber bottoms w studs. I do fish a bunch of different streams in pa from Valley to the breaches to spring , so I do get around and i am concerned with carrying stuff from stream to stream. I have felt and think there great but am still looking for an upgrade. they have to be comfortable for all day fishing. any more info would help?

 

[osprey]

Like frederick says...........overall considering all the factors Cabelas gets my business when it comes to wading gear , price is the big hit but their stuff lasts and holds up to our conditions , the felt debate in my opinion is not a valid one , although if we take precautions i think we can slow things down , i don't think we can prevent the spread of stuff like didymo , because nature will spread it herself (birds , turtles , aquasquirrells etc.)

 

[sandfly]

contamination might be not as bad as the big companys are making out to be, think about the laces, creases on a pair of boots plus the inside itself. some reports have said that felt is ok as long as you clean them well and dry them well. what about the pontoon boats, drift boats animals etc. there are reports that spores can get under studs as well. could this be a way for the boot companys to sell more boots ? Oh yea I use Orvis Brogues for the ankle support and ease of on/off. felts with studs.

 

[PaulG]

I also have the Orvis Brogues, I have a bad back so I got them mostly for the easy on and off, they have very good support for the ankles. This will be my forth year with them, they are wearing well!

PaulG

 

[fly_flinger]

My last (2) pairs have been the Chota STL Plus. The first pair was studded felt and my current pair is studded rubber. Both pairs are so comfortable it's like wearing hiking boots. I tend to walk a lot while fishing and have never had even a small blister. They are great.
However, like Troutslammer said, the rubber soles are worthless. I have absolutley no confidence when wading a stream that has any flow or the slightest bit of slim on rocks. I've literally been pushed off rocks when in the Loyalsock while standing still. And I'm a svelt 250. I have been looking, whenever in a fly shop, for the studded felts even though I just got my other pair in April. I also don't think the studs remain in the boot as well with the rubber. I have lost 75% of the studs from my rubber boots in 9 months. My last pair I had for nearly 2 years and only lost a handful. So my vote is for felt.

 

[hendeylathe]

I think there will be some new and interesting wading gear coming alone in the next few seasons and that the current "rubber sole revolution" is just a stop gap measure for now. I think we're all for a replacement for felt, as long as what replaces it meets or exceeds the performance of felt. I'm an old timey machinist (no CNC machines in our shop) but i appreciate new technology. There is a new material called "d3o" that sounds very interesting if applied to wading shoes. I'm pretty sure Simms, Chota, Korkers etc. are looking at it. And I'm betting W.L. Gore, which introduced a new waterproof zipper to motorcycle riding gear (saw it in Cycle World magazine) is going to appear on high end Gore-Tex waders with the zippered fronts in the near future. Pretty neat stuff.