Best wading boots

[Troutman]

Im looking for a really GREAT pair of wading boots. Looking for felt bottoms with option to stud. I had 3 pairs of Patagonia's, 2 pairs of Simms. Im pretty hard on on them as I do alot of river walking. I must wear a pair down to the soles in about 2 seasons. Ive heard a few good things about korkers. But seen to many of those bottoms float down the rivers I fish Whats everyone's experience & suggestions ?

[lightenup]

Your boots look fine, Whaddya' need new ones for. I wear Korker redsides. The front of the boot, where the rubber meets the material separates from the upper quickly....after a year or less, I shoot gorilla glue in there and get a few years out of them before they disintegrate. The soles seem to stay on better than they did a few years back, but in mud I could see them getting sucked off the boot...

[Drossi]

I've had a pair of Korkers for about 5 years now. Love the spiked soles or the studded felt ones. I don't like the BOA lace system, I just can't get the damned things tight enough to feel comfortable. My feet slide inside them too much too, I'm a 8 1/2 so I bought a 9 (as they recommend). I wouldn't not recommend them but they are just OK. I got a pair of Cabelas boots with studded felts that I'm going to give a try. It might just be that I'm a shitty wader in my advancing age.

[Fishybig]

Korkers all the way!!I have the whitehorse model, i believe discontinued....boa system , which just needed its first
replacement after 4 seasons....there heavily used so i go through a new pair of bottoms every yr ,which recently went up in price....I mostly use the studded felt bottoms but occasionally use plain felt in more technical areas or studded rubber when theres snow on the ground....Absolutely love them, cant say enough good things about em....Go laceless, you'll love it!!

[BiggerThomas]

I think you guys just like saying "Korkers"...

[cowboyfan]

Ive had 2 pairs of Simms over the last 9 years. They are built very well and give great support. I have the rubber bottoms and put Rock Treads on them. A couple of the Rock Treads came off after 1 season. Many years ago I had a pair of Dan Bailey's wading cleats. They were like rubber booties with aluminum bars on them and they slipped over your wading boots. I think they stopped making them. They were the best!

[Troutman]

https://www.patagonia.com/product/foot- ... ons-danner
has anyone owned these ?

[Bubba Zinetti]

https://www.patagonia.com/product/foot- ... ons-danner
has anyone owned these ?

Yes.
I bought a pair for my wife. She got the River Salt boots. She loves that they are pretty lightweight, and they are very comfortable. We both love that they can be resoled, by anyone (they recommend Danner, but anyone with a little skill and experience can do it. After 2 seasons they have stood up very well. She tried the foot tractor(the heavier model) and while they were sturdier, and stiffer, they were not suited to her. We tend to hike quite a bit to the river, so something more suited to that seemed appropriate. I love my Simms boots, they have stood the test of time, 6 years and they still are in pretty good shape.

Edited to add:
The foot tractor has a stiffer heel counter, more leather on the toe and rand, and more padding in the ankle

[Rusty Spinner]

Anyone who wears waders and boots 5 or more times a week can only really expect a couple of seasons in a pair of boots. Equipment does wear out, after all. The problem with forums like this is that 10 guys will give you 10 different answers based on their own experiences. One or two may fish but a couple of hours each year, while a couple of others fish 5-7X/week and all day. That always has to be taken into consideration. There is a reason virtually every guide I know gets a brand new pair each winter for the new season....

[Troutman]

Anyone who wears waders and boots 5 or more times a week can only really expect a couple of seasons in a pair of boots. Equipment does wear out, after all. The problem with forums like this is that 10 guys will give you 10 different answers based on their own experiences. One or two may fish but a couple of hours each year, while a couple of others fish 5-7X/week and all day. That always has to be taken into consideration. There is a reason virtually every guide I know gets a brand new pair each winter for the new season....

I appreciate your opinion. I fish @ least 4-5 a week. spending about 6 hours on the average per day in the water. I do hike into alot of places. So the re-soles are very valuable to me. I had the just plain Patagonia tractor boots with the aluminum bar before. But I exchanged them for the plain felts & studded them. I found the tractor style was very uncomfortable as your wife did also. I think Im going to go with the Danners. I liked The Simms boots but found them rather heavy after long getting to some of the water I fish

[Troutman]

Ive had 2 pairs of Simms over the last 9 years. They are built very well and give great support. I have the rubber bottoms and put Rock Treads on them. A couple of the Rock Treads came off after 1 season. Many years ago I had a pair of Dan Bailey's wading cleats. They were like rubber booties with aluminum bars on them and they slipped over your wading boots. I think they stopped making them. They were the best!

thank you for the experience

[Troutman]

I've had a pair of Korkers for about 5 years now. Love the spiked soles or the studded felt ones. I don't like the BOA lace system, I just can't get the damned things tight enough to feel comfortable. My feet slide inside them too much too, I'm a 8 1/2 so I bought a 9 (as they recommend). I wouldn't not recommend them but they are just OK. I got a pair of Cabelas boots with studded felts that I'm going to give a try. It might just be that I'm a shitty wader in my advancing age.

Thank you for the experience sir....

[Troutman]

Korkers all the way!!I have the whitehorse model, i believe discontinued....boa system , which just needed its first
replacement after 4 seasons....there heavily used so i go through a new pair of bottoms every yr ,which recently went up in price....I mostly use the studded felt bottoms but occasionally use plain felt in more technical areas or studded rubber when theres snow on the ground....Absolutely love them, cant say enough good things about em....Go laceless, you'll love it!!

Thank you for the experience ....

[Troutman]

Your boots look fine, Whaddya' need new ones for. I wear Korker redsides. The front of the boot, where the rubber meets the material separates from the upper quickly....after a year or less, I shoot gorilla glue in there and get a few years out of them before they disintegrate. The soles seem to stay on better than they did a few years back, but in mud I could see them getting sucked off the boot...

thank you for your feed back sir ........

[Jaybird]

I guess personal preference does play a part , but I fish weekly and the ultra light simms paired with rock treads have been pretty good so far . Two seasons they have been pretty good.

[Bubba Zinetti]

Anyone who wears waders and boots 5 or more times a week can only really expect a couple of seasons in a pair of boots. Equipment does wear out, after all. The problem with forums like this is that 10 guys will give you 10 different answers based on their own experiences. One or two may fish but a couple of hours each year, while a couple of others fish 5-7X/week and all day. That always has to be taken into consideration. There is a reason virtually every guide I know gets a brand new pair each winter for the new season....

Good point Rusty! I know a few guides and hardcore fly anglers who are lucky to get more than 2 seasons out of their boots. One friend switched to the Danner boots, and was pleased that he would be spending less to get them resoled, than he was spending on a pair every two years. His complaint about boots is that the soles wear out. The leather and other materials were fine, but the soles were shot. He felt that it was a ripoff to spend what he was spending on Simms boots to have them rendered useless because the soles were gone, not because the boot was worn out.

[Troutman]

Anyone who wears waders and boots 5 or more times a week can only really expect a couple of seasons in a pair of boots. Equipment does wear out, after all. The problem with forums like this is that 10 guys will give you 10 different answers based on their own experiences. One or two may fish but a couple of hours each year, while a couple of others fish 5-7X/week and all day. That always has to be taken into consideration. There is a reason virtually every guide I know gets a brand new pair each winter for the new season....

Good point Rusty! I know a few guides and hardcore fly anglers who are lucky to get more than 2 seasons out of their boots. One friend switched to the Danner boots, and was pleased that he would be spending less to get them resoled, than he was spending on a pair every two years. His complaint about boots is that the soles wear out. The leather and other materials were fine, but the soles were shot. He felt that it was a ripoff to spend what he was spending on Simms boots to have them rendered useless because the soles were gone, not because the boot was worn out.

Under water structure also has a contributing factor on the wear of materials. I sometimes fish in boulder & rock structures that I have to climb on top off & squeeze thru sometimes. This will take its toll on the materials. If I fished pure freestone river. My boots would like new except for the soles