Best non felt Wading boots

[oncorhynchusmykiss]

What are everybody's favorite non felt wading boots? I need a new pair and i've been using felts for a long time. I had a pair of korkers but they didn't get traction at all and they got shredded pretty quick. I've been using a pair of hodgeman felts with velcro and I hate to say it but they have lasted longer. Does anybody have any suggestions for non felt boots that get anywhere near as much stick? I need something that will get enough traction for wading tailraces at generation levels on a regular basis.
thanks

tight lines!

 

[PennKev]

My Simms with studs added are just as good as my old felts and do a better job on dry land too. Have used them everywher including high flows on Penns and iced-over shale banks in Erie.

Kev

 

[Ramcatt]

korkers metalheads with klingon or studded klingon soles

 

[Maurice]

I like my Greys Platinum studded rubber soles.

I found the rims to the Korker soles to be decievingly dangerous. (with felts) step on a sideways rock with the rubber edge and off you go into the drink.

 

[Ramcatt]

all the new models (starting last year) have full sole coverage... night and day difference

 

[McSneek]

I had a pair of Chota STL + (studded felt) that finally wore out after a lot of use. They were great but I decided to make the move to non-felt with all the focus on invasives. I bought the Simms Headwaters and a set of the star cleats this year. Haven't used them a lot but so far so good. I feel like I've had really good traction in them. Probably the best field test on them so far was on the Little J back in June up in the gorge when the water was realtively high. No slippage what so ever. I have no idea how they would be without the cleats though. I felt that overall, the construction and weight of the boot was similar to the Chotas I had. Tried some other Simms boots that I just thought were to bulky and stiff for my preference.

 

[Wetfly01]

Bought a pair of Simms Headwaters 2 years ago great boot, but I did'nt get the studs bad mistake. Fishing on Penns and the Little J was just down right bad. After taking a couple of spills I finally bought the studs WOW what a big difference. I think any rubber sole wadeing boot with out the studs in them are junk. The weight and the construction of the boots are pretty good. And not a bad price either.

 

[Machocheese]

My Simms Freestone boots with the Vibram soles were a death trap when I first got them.

I bought two packs of 3/8" #8 sheet metal screws (

 

[bikerfish]

I've got a pair of llbean boots, rubber soles with studs, simply awesome, actually better than my old felts everywhere. just don't walk across anyone's hardwood floors! :-o
best advice, try on as many as you can and pick the ones that fit YOU the best that are in your price range.

 

[just_jon]

I have the Orvis River Guard Easy-On Brogue.. Chose them because they were on sale ($99) and already owned a pair in felt. My experience has been great. Comfortable as any I've tried and I work every bit as well as my studded felts.

 

[tig]

Have a pair of Chota's, They fit good as they should for a 150 bucks.
Soles are total junk. The screw in studs, which screw into the little green plugs on the bottom of the soles come out after the second outing.When you fish slimmy bottoms I would like to chock Mr. Chota. Went and got a set of Grip Stud kit 3000 for 35 bucks , tried them out today seem to work o.k. Give better report tomorrow.
As far as Chotas stay away from them. IMO

 

[WildTigerTrout]

I have had my Simms rubber sole "Guide" boots for 3 three years. I fished the first year without studs and they worked fine. I added the studs the following year. They are even better. I would recommend these wading boots to anyone. They fit GREAT and are VERY comfortable. :-D

 

[RichK]

I've owned a pair of Simms Rivershed boots with felt for nearly 3 years. They have a LOT of miles on them, and I bought a pair of Riversheds with the Vibram sole not too long ago. I used them today for the first time, and was amazed at the grip. There are some things that should be pointed out however. The felt soled Riversheds were stiff as a plank when new, and scared the h$ll
out of me. Size 13 boots that do not flex at all are worse than wearing the box! They loosened up after a few weeks, and served me well on some tough rivers and streams. The Vibram soled Riversheds were equally stiff, but I knew what to expect. I took them to the local stream, and to a spot that is covered in thick hairy brown moss over green algae. The stream bed is one large sheet of rock, with rocks and and boulders strewn everywhere. The current was swift, and the ideal place to test the Vibram. After
a couple of hours of trying to find a reason to hate the new boots, I determined that they were just as good as felt, and grinned. I then turned to head for the bank. What followed next was a series of pirouettes, and cork cleansing fist clenches (when the grip gets
wet, and your hand opens and closes frantically leaving the cork shiny clean...LOL!). I managed to stay upright in the waist deep water, but slammed my knee HARD on one of the cooler-sized
rocks that litter the stream. I immediately blamed the Vibram, but then flashbacks of the same type of slip while using the felt Riversheds poured through my mind. After determining that I hadn't broken my patella, I resumed fishing and enjoying the new boots. I did make certain to bring my wading staff along, as I was certain the Vibram would not perform well. I only used the staff to cross a treacherous section of the stream: waist deep, uneven bowling ball sized rocks, and a current swift enough to put a deep bend in my 3/4" Folstaff! I had tried to cross this section yesterday afternoon, but decided it was too crazy. It was still crazy today, but I was product testing. No problems beyond being nearly swept away! I won't be ordering cleats for now. The Vibram gripped WAY beyond my expectations.

 

[McSneek]

Rich - did you get the star cleats? All the Simms soles are the same. The cleats are pricey but considering what you paid for the boots, what the heck. I think cleats may have prevented what sounds like a real close call for you.

 

[RichK]

No Star cleats yet. I wanted to see how they'd perform with Vibram alone, and it was pretty good. I should have mentioned that my wading has been limited by leaks: about 16 months ago, the crotch in my waders began to take on water like a screen door, and the right leg has been shipping water above the ankle since this past June. I delayed buying new waders all summer, for whatever reason. I don't recall slipping today. I just lost my footing somehow, and tripping over small rock is a possibility. The
whole episode seemed to last forever, and the knee banging came at the end of the pirouette routine. Man that hurt!

It's really amazing how streams that I thought needed to be waded in could be fished from along the bank, or at least in shallow water. Today was the first time I've waded above my knees in over a year, and I was going at it in waist deep water. Once I became confident in the Vibram, I carelessly spun around and walked toward the bank. Before my last waders leaked, I wouldn't have thought twice about wading in chest high water, and often became bouyant while wading the Delaware. CRAZY!

Back to the Vibram. I've read so many different opinions on the entire non-felt issue, that I didn't know which way to go. Some people said that Vibram alone was like a "pig on ice", and others said it was as good as felt. Some said that adding cleats made walking on dry rocks dangerous, and others stated they bought cleats for dry rocks (and likewise with wet rock). I took some pics of the slimy bottom I was wading on today, and that's about as bad as anything I intend to wade on. It's actually a section of Neshaminy Creek that is all rock: either one sloping sheet, a sheet with various size rocks on top, or 200 pound rocks piled next to one another. Not easy to wade regardless of traction, but excellent for smallmouth and testing boots.

 

[RichK]

Simms Rivershed Boots: Day Two

Back to the same stream this afternoon, and the boots performed great. I had my wading staff just in case, but everything was going fine. In my last post I mentioned that after two hours of great performance on day one, I suddenly slipped. After reaching that same spot today, I felt the same slippery sensations again. This time I stayed upright without any effort, and spend a few minutes trying to find out what was so different about this spot. The rock are much smaller and flatter than the rest of the stream
(mostly larger rocks and sheets of rock covering the bottom). I was in water about two feet deep, and noticed that there wasn't any apparent algae on the slippery rocks. There was also a large drain pipe directly across from these slippery rocks, and there was a good flow coming into the stream. After spending some time testing the rocks in the area of the drain pipe, I discovered that the rocks 20-25 upstream and downstream of the pipe were slippery, but the Simms' Vibram soles handled everything else just fine. The drain pipe could be carrying oils from the roads (and who knows what else), and this could be giving those rocks a slippery coating. I went to the bank, and splashed water on some similar sized rocks, and they weren't slipery at all. I wish I had takemn my underwater camera so that I could show the big nasty algae covered rocks that the Simms handled without incident, so maybe next time. I've never waded through the area
around the drain pipe until two days ago, so I'm going to say this was possibly something coating those rocks from the drain pipe, and felt might not have done any better. It is certain that the Vibram provided excellent traction on rocks that I'm extremely familiar with, and is probably better than felt on some of the sloping flat rocks in the stream.

I should mention again that Simms Rivershed boots in felt and Vibram are stiff as a plank when new, and could give you quite a scare. The bottom does not conform to the surface you are standing on for at least several outings, and I remember my first experience with felt Riversheds like it was yesterday: SCARY!
Overall a great boot with lots of support, but give them a few hours to loosen up.