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Well, I guess you'd have to say I'm hard on waders. [:/] Don't know how I'm so tough on em other than I use em a lot throughout the year, Don't go through heavy brush and stuff??? Because of this I decided I'd be trouble and money ahead by not buying cheap neoprene and going to Simms Gore Tex. My neoprens would only last a couple of years.
Well,---------------, now I'm not so sure. [:/] 4 years ago I broke down and spent the extra nickels on some Simms Lt. Wt. stocking foot guys. It wasn't long before I started getting pin hole and seam leaks, (1-2 yrs.) and started in on the isopropyl alcohol and aqua seal regime. Am still doing it. I can more or less stop the serious leaks but in the butt and knee bending area I stilll come out damp after 6-8 hrs of tubing. [mad]
My question is, is gore tex really that much better or are there some other breathable products out there that are just as good and hopefully tougher and maybeless expensive??? Do I need to step up to some really tough guide or heavier models with a lot more nickels to get the durability and maintenance free performance??? [frown] Help please, I don't have many nickels.[frown]
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[#008000]Hey Leaky33,[/#008000]
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[#008000]I guess that name seems appropriate given the nature of this thread. LOL ![/#008000]
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[#008000]Anyway, here's my take on it. You probably won't find any better wader than Simms. Maybe you got one of the rare ones that are less than the average. Usually folks that have the Simms Guide waders can get a good 5-6 years of regular usage before have the issues that you have described. I have had a pair of Simms for almost 8 years that I really like.[/#008000]
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[#008000]I don't know if my solution would work for you in light of the "coin" shortage you mentioned. But here is what I have done - since a lot of years ago that I needed to solve a similar problem. I have several pairs of waders (five I think off hand) each one serves a different purpose - although there is always overlap in my using them. Neoprenes are, in my book, the only way to go for winter or very cold water. Mine were not the most expensive, but I only use them in the coldest of water. I've had them for years and they are still going strong.[/#008000]
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[#008000]I have separate chest waders for tubing that are expensive heavy duty gore-tex that have lasted for over 6 years without any leaks. I use these for cool water and wading in deeper rivers.[/#008000]
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[#008000]I have cheapo pant waders that I use in summer time - don't care if they leak too much, and, I have an identical pair for beating in the brush in summer - they do leak but I don't care.[/#008000]
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[#008000]What I am getting at is this; maybe you should keep your nice ones for a specific function and get a couple of not so expensive ones instead of another pair of Simms. For example: Neoprenes for cold water, and cheaper breathables for summer. [/#008000]
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[#008000]Just an idea. [/#008000]
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[#008000]BTW - maybe Sparkey is harder on your waders than you have thought - My hounds have definitely had an effect on equipment - even though I may not have noticed it at the time of the encounter.[/#008000]
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Spend the money for the guide series. I'd say I'm very hard on my waders and I'm still waiting for my first leak after 6-7 years. Neoprene is great for cold weather but nothing a few layers can't fix.
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PM Sent. I was going to buy Sims, but went with Patagonia instead. Would do it again!
Jake
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You obviously don't have a grand or more to try out FH solution so go with a cheaper pair. I have used gore tex products since the early 1980's and they're great. However as fair as waders it's all hype as far as I'm concerned. Sure they breath well and repell rain. However it doesn't function as intended when completely soaked/emerged in water or dirty. I'm very hard on waders. Yesterday hiked 5 miles in a pair, half of it was bushwacking over a thousand foot ridge and back down. I also got about 2 more miles in on a rugged stream constantly hitting rocks and branches. I've tried tons of waders from $75 to 500+. I gave up on the expensive ones and settled on Cabelas Dry Plus G2. They last about 2 years which for me is a hundred times out, several hundred miles both on stream and hiking in them. I wear them both summer and winter. Just change from shorts to some sort of pants or sweats depending on the weather. The ones I get run about $130.
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You bring up an interesting point. I'm sitting in water for 6-10 hrs in a float tube and when I get out my seat and legs on the bottom knee bend area of my sweats/light wt. pants are a little damp, not wet. Is the answer that I may not have a leak as such and that they just aren't water proof and they just soak thru a bit and that's normal??? If so, do all light weight breathables do that?
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The dampness is probable sweat or condensation because gore tex doesn't breath when submerged. They should still be as waterproof even if submerged. Frequently waders have an extra layer over the gore tex for durability but that also causes poorer breathing even when not submerged. Cheaper breathables are going to perform about the same in that situation so I don't know if I'd rush out and buy a pair now.
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[cool][#0000ff]Take your waders out on the lawn and put a hose in one leg and fill it most of the way up. Shut off the hose and look carefull all around the areas you are getting damp. No water coming through...no leak.[/#0000ff]
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[#0000ff]Shift the water over to the other leg and do the same thing. If you find no leaks, you are not leaky. If you do find a leak, repair it. If you keep getting new leaks, you have bad waders.[/#0000ff]
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check out the rivendell waders on Ebay right now. They are as inexpensive as they come and are great quality. The Z-tech ones with the water proof zipper can't be beat. I have these as as well as the high end simms and these can't be beat for the $.
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Something else to think about is "Breathable" does not work if your in a tube all day. Waders can not breathe if they are in the water 100% of the time like you are in the tube. Waders that are "Breathable" only work when wearing then in streams and rivers where you are moving from the bank to water and back many times through out the day. If you were to stay out in a river all day in 3'-4' of water, the same thing would happen. Waders can not pull the oxygen from the water to dry things out or wick moisture from the inside out since the outside water pressure is higher. I would most likely say you are getting wet from perspiration and condensation since there is zero air movement in your waders due to being compressed from the water pressure and body weight all day. Your skin will put out perspiration all day. You usually don't notice it because it evaperates as fast as it is produced unless you start to work harder, then you will see sweat forming because you are producing more than can evaporate. Putting your body into a sealed enviroment will always make this more noticable due to the lack of evaporation. The other thing that could be happening is the waders are squeezed at the back of the knee from the bending action. It would be like squeezing a sponge to wring it out and could be forcing water through the wader material. The butt area is where the greatest pressure is and the least breatheable area since you are sitting all day. Now if you could build a ventilation system for your waders, then the problem would be solved as far as condensation and perspiration goes.You will always find some place that is damp fishing as long as you do. You could buy the most expensive pair of waders available, but in the end, you will still be damp. Also, seams will always eventually start to leak. The constant bending and rubbing will cause any wader to fail eventually. Best thing to do would be to take a break every so often. Hit the shore and take a leak, take a walk for a few mins, eat some lunch and stretch your muscles why your at it. Even taking off your waders for 5-10 mins will dry out just about any area that is damp.
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Thanks Bud,
This makes sense since these areas are only a little damp and not wet!!!! I think I'll just do as you say and keep using what I have until I'm sure they are leaking and can't be repaired by identifying pin holes with an isopropyl alcohol spray and aqua seal repair.
Thanks everyone for the input. When the time comes, I'm still not sure what the next pair will be. I guess it kind of depends how much longer these will last. Maybe by that time I'll have some extra nickels and go with the guide series of Simms. Not sure though, will have to re-look at all the others that you folks suggested on this forum and the tubing forum.
Thanks again guys,
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yes, they've answered your question it seems. I'm just gonna add an amendment. Breatheable waders are not really breatheable underwater, very true. My breathables are ALWAYS damp. Finally they wore out to a slow leak at certain points. There is a big difference in an actual leak and just dampness. Your pants will have a wet spot conspicuously underneath the waders. Save your money, buy a "cheap" pair of hodgeman's breatheables for summer. Get a 4mm neoprene for winter......that thing is like a solid wall against the cold. Every time I went out ......and yes it was more than I can count.........my waders froze, yes, FROZE solid before I could get back to the car and i was still warm enough inside. Of course i was layered up to the point of obesity too lol. Had to utilize the tailpipe to defrost my wader boot laces and pliers to undo the knot that tied my shoes. What a blast! One time i pulled hard with the pliers without defrosting and the laces just snapped.
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What you are experiencing is the plight of a die hard fisherman and until we learn to make force field generator waders with ventilated heated and cooling you will be plagued with your own perspiration condensing on the inside of your water cooled chest highs. Man, we need Darth Vader waders. Oh well, a little wetness is better than alot and it's a minor inconvenience. Admit it Leaky, you'd tube in your fruit of the looms rather then stay at home. However, I think I speak for all of us when I say that we prefer the "Leaky" waders.[:p]
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