Breathable wader suggestions, please!

[dmbfanweeee]

My hodgemans are in pretty rough shape, I can tell by the amount of water I ring out of my socks. I'm looking for waders that are best suited for alot of movement. I'm pretty active when I fish, lots of walking and hiking, trying to hit as many holes as possible. Your suggestions are appreciated.

dmbfanweeee;
Can I ride along? I'm considering breathable's too and would like to get as much info as possible. I've got several month's before I'll need them.

[clarkman23]

I broke down and finally purchased a pair of breathables last year. I ended up forking over the $200 for some Dan Baileys and I love 'em...I've probably used them around 30+ times so far and I do quite a bit of hiking through brush, etc. and so far, they haven't leaked on me...plus, they have a wading belt built into them...

I can't say enough good things about those waders...

[IPflyfish]

Get a pair of Beans. LIFETIME WARRANTY. I will say it again, LIFETIME WARRANTY. I just brought a pair back that I had absolutely destroyed in every unreasonable way possible, barbed wire, burns, the works, aqauseal wouldn't work anymore. They gave me a new pair and as a reason for it marked something on the order of did not perform as wanted. I got a full refund and used that to upgrade to a better pair. Once I wear these out, another pair coming my way no questions asked, LIFETIME WARRANTY.

[PaulM]

If you research many of the forums, you will find a number of people always singing the praise of Simms waders. I do own a pair, the G3's, and can say they are alright. I would seriously consider the Patagonia or Dan Bailey waders. Both are quality products and have a very good warranty. Whatever you decide, pick a company with a good warranty.

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[url=http://www.rockymtnfly.com:b2a0e]Rocky Mountain Fly[/url:b2a0e]

[MarkKillam]

Also in the market for some new breathables.... I personally dont recommend Bailey's....(but it may have been the model) I'm on my fourth pair in 4 years, I hade two pairs which showed major wear around the knees from rubbing against them while walking. Actually had holes wear through in both knees (on the sides) on both pairs. The first pair lasted three months the second pair didnt even make it a month before they started to leak. Was able to return them to the shop I bought them at and get them exchanged, after the second time the shop upgraded me to the guide weight at no charge. Had a buckle snap after about a month so returned them also for some new ones and have the ones I use now for about two years but these are showing signs of wear and its about time for new ones. If I were to buy Baileys again...it would be guide weight and I must also confess that I love the fleece hand pocket on them.

I am thinking of Simms but am going to wait until March or so to start looking. I will confess that I am very hard on any kind of fishing gear I buy.

I am not knocking Bailey's as a whole...just dont really care for their waders. I like the shop and have no problems with their hooks (Dai-Riki). This is just my personal opinion so I hope I didnt really offend anyone.

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Take care everyone and cya around. Mark


edit: I agree with PaulM about the warranty on the Baileys also...because of that I have been able to replace the ones with problems at no cost to myself.

[This message has been edited by MarkKillam (edited 12 January 2006).]

[nemoblack]

LL Bean - can't beat their customer service.

Given that they sell Simms, too, one is effectively getting a "better" warranty by going with Bean than you get from Simms itself.

I'll definitely consider this on my next set of waders.

On the other hand, there's an element of interpretation involved here. If you get many, many hard seasons out of a piece of gear, and it just plain "wears out" - I'm sure Bean will still replace it for you, but at what point does that become unreasonable? To Bean's credit, they leave that decision up to the consumer. I suspect that this level of service results in loyalty that offsets losses from those that might abuse this policy.

Simms..... And get the best you can afford.

If you can't drop the bucks for the Simms, get a pair of Hodgmans. I use the Hodgmans for a backup and they are great for the money.

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Ken

"The memory of a fisherman is more like fiction than journalism, that is, it doesn't ignore the facts, but it is not entirely bound by them, either."

John Gierach

LL Bean. Have a pair of their bullet-proof waders. No leaks for 4 years and I use them hard.

[Pisces by Birth]

I am going to give you a different spin on this. Over the past 20 years or so, I have used Gillies (now defunct), Ronny's (Defunct?), Dan Baileys, Simms (the one's currently not leaking), Redingtons, and I also had the Bare Blackwaters. All but the new ones have leaked, some sooner than others, but they have all started to leak. Thinking back, I followed the "buy the best I could afford," if I had to do it again, (and I am sure that I will)I would buy a reasonably priced pair of waders with good company backing. With that in mind, I would look very strongly at Dan Baileys, but not the 'Barebones' model.