Fishing with Rod Discussion Forum
Fishing in British Columbia => General Discussion => Topic started by: RiverBum101 on January 20, 2011, 07:39:53 AM
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Leave a comment of Your favorite wading boots compared to the others
i use felt but havint tried any others
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I have a question for you guys using the Vibrams.
If you have the cleats in do they hit the ground when your walking on pavement ? get stuck onto your cars footpedals when driving ? Im just curious about how they perform because im going to have to get Vibrams once my Simms guide boots with felt wear out............hopefully i have a few years before that happens LOL but i also wanna buy a backup pair for travelling and dont wanna chance being someone that transports micro-organisms
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encountered felt-snow-foot this morning...
need to look into a new pair of wadding boots with interchangeable soles :P
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I'm an aggressive wader. Only felt will do for me. Many of my friends wear Vibram soles, but all have had traction problems in some surface or another. Chota STLs are durable, have a convenient lacing system, comfortable and have a felt sole. If you fish hard and can afford $160 wading boots, this would be my recommendation. The STLs also come in a made-for-studs configuration, but the supplied studs are not grippy and wear fast.
I've never felt the consequences of snow+felt to be as much of a problem as slipping while wading a fast rivr.
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I'm an aggressive wader. Only felt will do for me. Many of my friends wear Vibram soles, but all have had traction problems in some surface or another.
Don't knock 'em till you try 'em. I use Vibrams with Cleats and haven't slipped once. The boots I am wearing now are probably the best pair I've owned. However, we'll see how long they last, as I tend to go through boots pretty regularly.
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http://www.backpackflyfishing.com/store/index.php/backpacking-fly-fishing-accessories/grip-studs-diy-studs-for-hiking-and-wading-boots.html (http://www.backpackflyfishing.com/store/index.php/backpacking-fly-fishing-accessories/grip-studs-diy-studs-for-hiking-and-wading-boots.html) Im gonna give these a try on the the ole runners this summer.
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One situation where cleats will slip in on a flat smoother rock surface. In that situation, there is nothing for the cleats to grab on to.
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I am breaking in my G4s and they are really comfortable and warm in cold water.
I bought the vibram as felts are no longer available from Simms and they do need the cleats to make them hold well in all terrrain.
Like most Simms products, very well made and high quality.
But the set of star cleats are very pricey at $39.95 + tax.
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its a kick in the nuts spending a couple hundred dollars on a boot that is worthless until you add 40 dollar cleats to it imo. ill buy 3-4 pairs of decent felt boots over 1 pair of 200 plus dollar simms
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its a kick in the nuts spending a couple hundred dollars on a boot that is worthless until you add 40 dollar cleats to it imo. ill buy 3-4 pairs of decent felt boots over 1 pair of 200 plus dollar simms
My buddy and I were in the same boat after we both destroyed our Korker Guide boots on the same day. He bought a $100 pair of Dan Bailey's I spent $300 on Simms. His Dan Baileys had the sole come off after 5 days of use. They were stitched and glued on. He had to buy another pair while he waits for a warranty pair of Dan Baileys to come back. Not worth the hassle in my opinion. I'll stick with the Simms.
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I love my Simms Freestone Vibrams. Never had a problem with them. Snow does not stick to them which is an advantage living in the north. As well, getting in and out of the drift boat, they hold less water, less sand sticks to the soles, thus not leaving large pools of water and sand in the boat.
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chota
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My buddy and I were in the same boat after we both destroyed our Korker Guide boots on the same day. He bought a $100 pair of Dan Bailey's I spent $300 on Simms. His Dan Baileys had the sole come off after 5 days of use. They were stitched and glued on. He had to buy another pair while he waits for a warranty pair of Dan Baileys to come back. Not worth the hassle in my opinion. I'll stick with the Simms.
Dion - did you have any problems with those korkers? I've got some of the cheaper ones and the soles always come off, am actually thinking of buying some soles swith cleats and glueing them on - do they do Vibram with cleats. I also have a pair of those felt Chotas which I loved but have destroyed them, have a pair of cheap Trophy XL that are actually pretty good for the $25 I paid at Gone Fishin in Nanaimo.
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I like felt for river crossing as it gives you the most grip but in snow they get a couple inches stuck to them and makes it awkward walking and in mud they can be slipprey. I have a pair of cleats that go over my boots that I put on in the snow or if im walking on a long muddy trail, but dont wear them on the rocks it wears them down really fast
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chota
Noooooooooooo
Unless you like your boots falling apart after 3 or 4 months.
I think the only thing holding them together at all is the whole tube of shoe glue I used on them.
Only reason I was buying them was they were 60 bucks, now they upped the price to like 90 or something so no thanks.
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I bought the high end Chodas and they are 2 seasons old and not a stitch has popped.
They get alot of use.
They are wearing very slowly on the felt soles,but wont put the studs in.
They will get alot of boat use also and don't want the risk of ruining my new floor.
They were almost $200 after taxes and love them.
So just another opinion.
No matter what you buy.
You buy cheap......you get cheap.
I know people who hate the simms.
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Chota is a brand. They sell several boots, two of which are felt. "Abrams Creek" boots are cheap at about $80 and looks cheaply made of cheap pleather as youd find on a 1980s car seat. At that price point, I'd suggest Springbok boots which seemed to hold up well for the price (but the conventional lacing sucks), or looking around as I wouldn't bother with the Abrams Crks. Chota STLs (~$160 iirc) are well made, good materials, double stitched etc. I have about 60 days/300km over river beds on them and they are holding up well. Some of the stitching is frayed in places, but as they are double stitched, they are holding up so far. I had one lace break, but it was my fault. I find the elastic lacing to be very convenient and works well. I wouldn't bother with the STL Plus model as I didn't like the grip of the studs on large rocks and the studs wore down fast (~10 days) to a point where they were noticeably less grippy. The felts are wearing well and the rubber pads for the studs dont seem to negatively impact traction now that the studs are in the bin. The pads wear with the felt so they don't protrude.