Multiple wading boots

[Paul6.5]

Having come to the conclusion that not one type of sole works good in all streams and the fact I seem to go through wading boots faster than I do waders. I decided to have multiple pairs of wading boots with different soles.

I have been using Simms G3s with rubber soles and studs. They are great for a lot of creeks and for the hike in. But streams with "greased bowling balls" not so much.

I decided to get a pair of felt bottom boots and found a lightly used pair of Weinbrenner felt soles:

They work great in the creek but are slick as snot in the mud. I literally couldn't climb up the bank and had to crawl out.

I ordered some Yaktrax to use out of the stream and store in my pack while fishing.

Does anyone have any other ideas? I don't think the mid sole has enough meat to hold studs.

 

[TimMurphy]

Dear Paul,

The Weinbrenner's were available with studded felt soles and they were my only wading boots for many years. I wore them 12 months out of the year, both with waders and for wet wading and really liked them. I wore out one set of studded soles and pulled the old soles off and glued new ones on with Barge cement and got another couple of years out of them. I'm still looking for a pair of size 13 studded felt Weinbrenner's but keep striking out. They are amazingly supportive for me as a clumsy wader.

But eventually I bought a pair of synthetic boots and was amazed at how much lighter they were. I have a pair of Chota's with the Vibram soles that I added Koldcutter ice racing screws to, and they will slog through anything. Since then, I have added a couple different pairs of wading shoes, but my summertime go to boots are pair of Hodgeman Lakestream canvas studded felts that I found brand NIB on Ebay for $ 30.00.

I just can't bring myself to spend $ 200.00 or more for wading shoes, and that is what many of the current models cost. I'll just keep buying old but NIB or decent old boots and be OK.

Regards,

Tim Murphy 🙂

 

[Swattie87]

Korkers with the studded soles. I did like you and ran multiple pairs with different sole types for a long time. I’ll wear Korkers with studs as long as I fish now. They’re that good, and boots are the one piece of gear I don’t cheap out on anymore. If Korkers were $500 a pair, I’d pay it.

Felts are only good if you’re in the water all day and doing very little hiking on land, as you’ve found out.

All rubber soles (with no studs) are a classic Jack of All Trades, master of none. They’re a varying degree of compromise at everything, but don’t absolutely suck at anything either.

The el cheapo metal screw type studs should be illegal. They’re that dangerous on big flat rocks.

The Korkers are great in the water, and I don’t notice the studs at all on small streams that involve a lot of hiking. The only time you notice them is walking on pavement…think like the sound metal golf spikes used to make on pavement before everything went “soft spikes” in the golf world.

 

[greywolf]

Having come to the conclusion that not one type of sole works good in all streams and the fact I seem to go through wading boots faster than I do waders. I decided to have multiple pairs of wading boots with different soles.

I have been using Simms G3s with rubber soles and studs. They are great for a lot of creeks and for the hike in. But streams with "greased bowling balls" not so much.

I decided to get a pair of felt bottom boots and found a lightly used pair of Weinbrenner felt soles:
View attachment 1641236576

They work great in the creek but are slick as snot in the mud. I literally couldn't climb up the bank and had to crawl out.

I ordered some Yaktrax to use out of the stream and store in my pack while fishing.

Does anyone have any other ideas? I don't think the mid sole has enough meat to hold studs.

I recommend Korkers where you easily change the soles depending on conditions. I often wear rubber soles walking long distances to the stream and then change to studded felt once ready to fish. Best system I have tried.

 

[tomgamber]

I inherited korkers and love them.

 

[Swattie87]

I recommend Korkers where you easily change the soles depending on conditions. I often wear rubber soles walking long distances to the stream and then change to studded felt once ready to fish. Best system I have tried.

I like the studded rubber so much it’s all I use. So much so that, duh, I forget that you can switch out soles with them.

And yes the soles are durable. I’ve personally never had one fail, but they do eventually wear out, as any sole will. Their lifespan is equal to or greater than any normal boot IMO. And the added bonus with Korkers is that the upper generally lasts a really long time too. So, it’s cheaper to buy replacement soles than replacement boots.

Edit: Also, if/when the uppers ever do give out, if you have good soles on them at the time, take them off and keep them as spares for your new pair.

 

[PennKev]

All rubber soles (with no studs) are a classic Jack of All Trades, master of none. They’re a varying degree of compromise at everything, but don’t absolutely suck at anything either.

I find that rubber soles function decreases proportionally as the quality of trout stream increases. They're fine for your local poop-hole stocked trout stream. If you use them on Penns, or LJR, you'll slip and break your hip on the first step.

 

[lars]

i only use weinbrenners and i glue on felts with studs. here's a post all about it.

Studs For Weinbrenner

After owning several pairs of wading boots over the last decade, I decided that I needed a pair of the old Weinbrenners. I got a good deal on a pair that's next-to-new. But they don't have the studs that enable the soles to last longer. The Weinbrenner studs don't resemble the screw-ins I see on...

www.paflyfish.com

 

[coyoterahn]

Korkers rubber with carbide studs.

 

[poopdeck]

Studded felt and a stout wading staff

 

[nymphingmaniac]

I find that rubber soles function decreases proportionally as the quality of trout stream increases. They're fine for your local poop-hole stocked trout stream. If you use them on Penns, or LJR, you'll slip and break your hip on the first step.

I don't mean to troll, but I respectfully disagree that fishing Penns or LJR is is dangerous of even very tough using rubber soles. Are there a few, limited places, maybe. But as a rule people should not fear rubber on these streams.

 

[greywolf]

I like the studded rubber so much it’s all I use. So much so that, duh, I forget that you can switch out soles with them.

And yes the soles are durable. I’ve personally never had one fail, but they do eventually wear out, as any sole will. Their lifespan is equal to or greater than any normal boot IMO. And the added bonus with Korkers is that the upper generally lasts a really long time too. So, it’s cheaper to buy replacement soles than replacement boots.

Edit: Also, if/when the uppers ever do give out, if you have good soles on them at the time, take them off and keep them as spares for your new pair.

I use the studded rubber ( aggressive tread) with studs anywhere where felt is not allowed or where I have to hike across hills or ridges to get there. For easy to access streams that allow felt use the studded felt soles. I have non studded felt soles but seldom use them.

 

[6xAdams(Jones)]

I started out with plain old pac-rubber boot soles on clunky rubber waders, which required very careful stepping in high flow conditions - regardless of the creek-bottom. I was in my late 20s so I was prone to take enough chances that I fell in sometimes. I replaced that set with another set of rubber waders, but the boots were felt-soled and were orders of magnitude better than the lugged-soled boots. When they started to spring unrepairable leaks, I bought breathable stockingfoot waders with a pair of felt-bottom boots... Much better than the rubber boot-foots for maneuverability and comfort. In the off-chance I ever fished where felt is forbidden, my next set of breathable waders was purchased with boots having knobby rubber soles and metal studs. I don't know if caution with advancing age or grippier boots, but I fall less often than I did before. Can't say I never fall but definitely less often.
I've shied away from Korkers because of the near-drowning horror stories about the soles partially coming off and getting caught between submerged. I'm sure this is quite rare and can certainly happen when "permanent" soles start to peel away, but I've decided to take fewer chances instead of switching to an interchangeable system.

 

[Bamboozle]

Having come to the conclusion that not one type of sole works good in all streams and the fact I seem to go through wading boots faster than I do waders. I decided to have multiple pairs of wading boots with different soles.

I have been using Simms G3s with rubber soles and studs. They are great for a lot of creeks and for the hike in. But streams with "greased bowling balls" not so much.

I decided to get a pair of felt bottom boots and found a lightly used pair of Weinbrenner felt soles:

They work great in the creek but are slick as snot in the mud. I literally couldn't climb up the bank and had to crawl out.

I ordered some Yaktrax to use out of the stream and store in my pack while fishing.

Does anyone have any other ideas? I don't think the mid sole has enough meat to hold studs.

Keep those Weinbrenner's and look at Grip Studs. You should be able to find a type that won't be too long and poke through the insole OR stick out too far from the sole.

The other thing that is overlooked, especially by folks that never wore a wading shoe with a stacked heel (like the Weinbrenner) is how much of a difference the raised heel makes if you are slipping on rocks. That raised edge will grab onto a rock while the flat bottomed shoes with a cheaper to produce wedge heel (like just about everything else) will keep on sliding...

BTW - IF you decide to go the Yaktrax route, take a look at the Korkers Ice Cleat options with the Boa laces instead. I've used numerous types of crampons on ice over the years and found that the kind with silicone need to fit snugly or they slip on your boot. If they fit snugly, they are a pain in the a$$ to pull over the shoe while it is on your foot. I also have torn the silicone part on every pair I've owned.

I have a pair of the Korkers Ice Walkers that I use when shoveling my driveway and they are super easy to get on & off WITH my boots on and they provide a decent amount of grip. The only knock I have is the studs are short so they don't last forever. The studs ARE replaceable, but they are not that easy TO replace.

That being said, I own multiple pairs of wading shoes with different soles because I discovered the "one size DOESN'T fit all" thing a LONG time ago. I also like to rotate shoes. I use felts with carbide tipped studs almost everywhere except on one particular stream where I either swap out the carbide studs for hardened steel or just go with plain felt.

I have a few shoes with rubber soles, with and without studs that I use in winter IF there is snow on the ground or at the Letort where I'm not wading because they are better suited for walking on the muddy bank versus felt. I'm not a fan of rubber soles so if I'm not walking through the snow or at the Letort, they never see the light of day...

While Korkers may be a one shoe option for some, I owned a pair but ditched them because I HATED the boot or any wading shoe/boot for that matter that is stiff with a lot of ankle support. I find them uncomfortable especially when kneeling or crouching...

The other thing I didn't like is the bottom of the shoe at the tip is plain rubber so it can accommodate the swappable sole. I still remember how difficult is was for me to adjust to not having "toe grip" on some slippery streams I fish when wearing my Korkers...

Finally I'll add that regardless of the stream, if I am IN the water I always carry and use a wading staff. It has saved my a$$ more times over the years than all of my different wading shoes or soles combined... 😉

 

[wgmiller]

Finally I'll add that regardless of the stream, if I am IN the water I always carry and use a wading staff. It has saved my a$$ more times over the years than all of my different wading shoes or soles combined... 😉

I wish I could learn this lesson. I have collapsible trekking pole that works well and is easy to deploy, but alas it usually keeps my wading soles company in the wader bin. After taking a few quick "dunks" in the past year or two, I have to face reality that swallowing my pride ain't such a bad thing!

 

[tomgamber]

One more thing to juggle. I would have to have a folding staff. And I only ever had one pair of rubber soled boots worth a darn and they were LLBean Aqua tread or something like that. All others, including the korkers I have were suicide. Always take all the with you.

 

[Bamboozle]

One more thing to juggle. I would have to have a folding staff. And I only ever had one pair of rubber soled boots worth a darn and they were LLBean Aqua tread or something like that. All others, including the korkers I have were suicide. Always take all the with you.

Bean's offered one of the earliest rubber soled wading boots on the market. It used a sole made by a company called FiveTen called AquaStealth. The tread pattern is just raised dime sized rubber disks on a flat rubber sole, however it is soft and very "sticky."

I had a need so bought a pair and still have them. I found the un-studded sole OK for some places, but a little dicey at others so I always had my Folstaf at my side. I also found the boot is way too stiff for me.

However I did like the AquaStealth for the snow and especially slogging around the super muddy Letort so I bought a sheet of AquaStealth from FiveTen and had it put on the bottom of a pair of Russell wading shoes just for the Letort.

 

[tomgamber]

Aqua Stealth. that was it. Better than any rubber sole i've used but nothing like good old felt. It was a stiff boot. Let my kid use them on Penns during a Jam many moons ago and he came back missing the entire bottom of the shoe. Not just the sole but the whole bottom fell off and he waded back on the bottom of his waders. got em used and cheap and got several year out of them so I was good but went back to felt.

 

[Bamboozle]

Felt is and always will be my first choice...

It worked just fine for everybody I knew at just about every place we fished until somebody told us otherwise...

 

[Sharknado5]

As a kid in the 60s sliding around in rubber hip boots my neighbor glued "soles" he cut from indoor/outdoor carpet to my boots with barge cement. Wow did they work well, until they eventually wore off. Probably not as well as real felt, but they were a cheap fix.