Felt Soles vs Rubber, Again

[randyflycaster]

Here's the article:
http://www.midcurrent.com/flyfishing...ess_soles.aspx
Randy

[Big Bad Wulff]

Every time I put on a boot with rubber soles with or without studs I think..............."why did I do this again?"

Felt. Doesn't get much better than that.

I just came back from a stream that everyone complains about being real slippery(Spring River in Arkansas) and never once slipped....well except at the perfectly smooth boat ramp

[Panman]

Agree with BB Wulff. I have boots with felt and studs and now feel secure fishing several creeks that have super slippery rocks. However I think I will buy a set with rubber cleats to fish several reservoirs that have muddy bottoms as I still slip with the felt.

Tim

[Sully]

Anyone ever glued on felt soles to the bottoms of rubber hip boots?

[bazakwardz]

I've been wearing the new Simms Freestone boots with rubber soles and no studs for 6 months. I don't know if they are as sticky as felt, but they haven't slipped once. They actually work better than felt on muddy river banks. Many of the local streams have slime covered limestone beds with troughs and boulders.

[dudley]

Anyone ever glued on felt soles to the bottoms of rubber hip boots?

Sure
You have to grind off the tread first, then glue them as you would with felt replacement soles
(I used my father's bench grinder, as I remember that didn't go over too well )

I've glued indoor/outdoor carpet on sneakers a couple of times too.

[flyfshn76]

I fished using felt for 10 years, bought a set of the new simms freestones with the vibram soles. I am sold on them. Fish one of the slickest streams in my area after first getting them and love them.

[Jax]

Since the banning of Felt soles in New Zealand to prevent the spread of Dydimo. I have measured myself full length in a couple of streams wearing Rubber Soles. Sore bruised ribs bear testimony

I am a slow learner and forget that my surefootedness of the past was due to my Felts and not my exceptional balancing skills.

Am paying attention as to what are considered idiot proof rubber soles which would be right up my alley. Jax

[Hoochman]

I was told by a Simms rep at a fly fishing show in Asheville that the new Simms Vibram holds BETTER than felt. Everyone at the group laughed at him. I can't argue that the rubber soles hold decent. I bought a pair of Korkers with a felt sole and their Klingon rubber sole. The rubber sole holds as good in some waters, but not as well in others. Overall, felt holds much better except in mud and slick riverbanks, but I'm usually in the water when I'm wading. I had a pair of Simms Guide boots before with the Vibram and they were s-l-i-c-k in the tailwaters around here and on some of the freestone rivers. I hear they grip better on some Rocky Mountain rivers, but for me, I'm sticking with felt. I just clean all of my gear when I switch rivers.

B.

[Buddy Sanders]

Had an old pair of 'felt' wading boots...

Worked okay just about everywhere....Then a few years back I got invited to the San Juan in N/W New Mexico...I'd been there before..never had a problem.

Water was high...slippery snot like coating on the cap rock that the river flows over...could hardly stand up. Scary..could barely move without slipping...fell a couple of times... wasn't fun. My friend, who was guide there at the time, had a pair of studded felt soles on his boots..he could move around just fine.

Decided that , if I was going to continue to fish there, I'd need better boots....went to the fly shop...got the spiel about the 'new' rubber soles...guy was pretty confident...said if they didn't hold on the San Juan rock, I could bring them back.

Tried them..way worse than the simple felt..couldn't even fish...took the boots back and bought a pair of studded felt sole boots.

Those worked and I could fish without being in danger of injury.

They tell me that it's difficult to 'clean' felt soles, and thus hard to prevent transfering unwanted organisms from one place to the other. For that reason, they want me and other anglers to use different boots.

I tell them that the risk of injuring myself is unaceptable. If they don't want the stuff moved from one watershed to another, CLOSE the infected area to all use until they figure out a solution that doesn't put PEOPLE At risk.

They can 'ban' felt in those areas if they think it's the issue (I doubt that it's just felt, though). I just won't fish there.

If they really believe that it's just anglers and their boots causing the spread of whatever they are trying to limit, they are deluded anyway. Most of these banns and media pushes are just typical 'knee jerk' reactions to a problem way beyond the control of simple legislation.

Regardless of what we as anglers may do, the stuff will spread to every place it can survive. It won't spread to areas where conditions don't allow it to live. Humans are the only species that can do that.

Life finds a way. Regardless of our incredible hubris, this isn't a human 'problem'. It's the way ALL life works on this planet...we may be part of the medium used to 'spread' something, and thus may effect the timetable involved, but all life will keep expanding until something larger and more significant than us causes it to stop. Whatever it is, it will spread whether or not we are there, whether or not we 'want' it to, and regardless of any of our attempts to stop it.

In the meantime, I'll keep my felt boots, so that I can stay uninjured. THAT is more immediately important to 'me and mine' than whatever 'big bad thing' they are pratting about today.

Buddy