Replacing felt on waders

[Grn Mt Man]

After a few near dives of less than 1.0 difficulty on the slippery rocks of my local stream something was trying to tell me that my felt bottomed waders are no longer viable. Was wondering how many folks have tried replacing the felt by gluing new stuff on as opposed to just trashing the waders and getting new ones? Do they hold up for a decent period of time? Waders haven't sprung any leaks and I like the chest high pair; so, would really rather keep them. But, don't need a repeat of a few years ago in hip huggers when I fell and destroyed what was left of an old football knee. That cost me the best part of the season and a long rehab. Thanks for any suggestions.

[sperzonkers2]

Grn Mt , I have tried to replace the felt on boot foot waders once. The new felt did not seem to adhere to the boot. Maybe I didnot do the job correctly. I have this same problem now, except I have the stocking foot waders. I am just going to buy new boots.

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Bill

[RickB]

I went with an alternative, instead of dealing with replacing the felt I got the cleats that you can put on over your boots. I am very happy with my decision, the stability is far surperior to felt.

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Fish more, work less!

[Dpollipo]

I have replaced many sets of worn out felts. I've got a tough shoe size to fit and so don't replace boots unless necessary. I purchase replacement felt kits; probably you could buy the felt and Barge Cement adhesive separately and save a few bucks.

The kits come with instructions. Follow them. I add a couple of steps - see below - I've never had replacement felts come loose.

First step, tear off the old felt. Sand down any areas that didn't come free. Next, I like to stiffen the boot by stuffing it with news paper.

Replacement felts come either one or two (heel and toe)piece. If the sole of your boot is relatively flat, you may be able to use the one piece as is. If not, you'll have to cut separate pieces.

Put the boots on the felts and outline the shape, trim the felt roughly to shape with a sharp knife. The instructions often don't suggest this but if find it easier to work with trimmed felts. Don't trim too close because you'll nee a little leeway when you attach the felt. It will adhere on contact so leave a quarter inch or so for mistakes.

The glue is usually Barge Cement or something like it. Follow the instructions. Usually, apply thinly to all surfaces, let dry - really, don't be in a hurry, let it dry. Reapply to both surfaces; let dry until barely tacky and then position. You've got to get it right the first time.

Pound the soles with a rubber mallet or the like to get out all the 'missed' spots. I then wrap the boots tightly with duct tape and leave them alone for 24 hours. Remove the duct tape, finish the trimming and that's it.

[Bob Williams]

I have replaced mine many times over the years on many pairs of waders. Mostly I replace the felt with pieces of indoor/outdoor carpet without the foam backing. Much cheaper than buying the felt kits. Generally you can find scraps of carpet on garbage day in your area and the contact cement is a couple bucks for half a lifetime's supply.

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Cheers
Bob

[Grn Mt Man]

Thanks for the advice one and all. Will persue replacement ASAP as don't need any more falls. Really don't want to give up on the waders as they've served me well. Off to the river this morn with hippers on in the meantime...

[MarkKillam]

I replaced the felt soles on my first pair of boots a couple of times (chota's). The above suggestions especially Dpollipo's are good. I didnt worry too much about getting a perfect trim, so the felt kind stuck out a little around the edges, but as long as you keep it fairly close, then you wont have any problems. And as mentioned, duct tape works well......as well as using large rubberbands also.By the time I was done, wrapping it the boots up to set, you couldnt tell there that there were any boots there LOL.

The first time I replaced the soles, it turned out better than the second time. I didnt get new soles from Chota and and found the ones I got from my local werent as good as the original (which I guess was to be expected). They didnt grip as well and wore out a bit a faster. But it was cheaper than buying new boots. I finally wore out the rest of the boot so I got new boots.

I am going to need to replace the soles on my Simm's here very soon. I think I will get in touch with Simm's to see if they have their brand of replacement soles this time around.

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Take care everyone and cya around. Mark