I need a pair of wading boots that will not distract me from fishing by offering up the option of algae skating. I have been thinking about studded aquastealth (Bean’s and Simms). Any opinions? Also, Bean’s tells me that their River Tred boots are sized correctly so that I wouldn’ need a size larger. Any experience with this?
Alex,
Can’t speak of Beans or Simms,But if you’ll allow me a chance to feild test My new Chota STL Plus boots,I’ll get back to you on their proformance,They have the removable stud system,Speed lace system “Designed by Chota”
Which i hear alot of good things about…I’ll be testing them out for myself shortly after settleing in , In PA…a week or so tops…Fit seems perfect without going any larger than normal…this I can tell you…and very well made…Best Wading boots I’ve ever owned for sure…I’ll keep all posted.
“I’ve often wondered why it is that so many anglers spend so much money on,and pay so much attention to.the details on the wrong end of the fly line.If they took as much care in selecting or tying their flies as they did in the selection of the reel and rod,They might be able to gain the real extra edge that makes it possible to fool a fish that has,in fact,seen it all before” A.K.Best
Everyone wants to excel in this sport but at the same time we let traditionalists place restrictions on our tactics, methods, and ideas. Fly fishers often refer to Fox Statler as “out of the box.” The truth is that I never got in the proverbial “box.” I always assumed that fly fishing was a sport that allowed imagination, creation, adaptation, investigation, dedication, education, revelation? : Fox Statler, On Spinners (Not the dainty Dry Fly kind) “Spinner’d Minner Fly”
“Wish ya great fishing”
Bill
Alex Argyros:
??? !!!
You will get a lot of opinions on this.
I have wading shoes with Aqua Stealth, synthetic felt, synthetic felt with studs, and real wool felt soles. I don’t have the studded Aquastealth.
The best grip on slippery rocks for me comes from real wool felt followed by my Chota STL studded synthetic felt; straight synthetic felt then Aquastealth.
There is a real big difference between wool felt and synthetic. The problem is only Russell Moccasin makes a wading shoe with wool felt and they are expensive and require TLC to make them last. Not a problem for me but maybe for others.
Studs cut through the slime but if they protrude too much and the slime is thin it’s like ice skating on bowling balls. Aquastealth by itself can be great on some streams and horrible on others. I’ve never had this variation with either plain felt or my Chota’s
My recommendation would be to buy a pair of Chota STL studded shoes. If the studs prove to be an issue in certain streams you can easily take them out. They are fantastic shoes, well made, comfortable, and stay soft when they dry out. I can’t recommend them enough. The ONLY negative I have is that I’ve had the heel fall off which I remedied by screwing four stainless #12 3/4 flat head screws into the heel and through to the sole. It is a trick I learned from my Russell shoes.
I have a pair of the LLBean studded aquastealth. I think they are better than the felt soled boots I had previously but nothing is perfect.
As I understand it Aquastealth has microscopic holes in it. A friend had a pair that the holes filled with river slime or whatever and the sole became slick - no more aquastealth for him.
The Bean boots are the same size as my street shoes. Fit is good with neoprene booties and even fleese socks under that.
and I can tell you,That bam’s post was’nt here when I started typing mine…lol…me thinks we were both type’in and posting at exactly the same time…lol…glad to hear you think so highly of your chota’s Bamboozle, Gives me confidance that my researching prior to buying on this item paid off…and I did alot of searching and invesagateing this time around…as I am not wealthy…and needed to hit this right the first time…I’ve had bad experiences where wading boots are concerned…and not wanting to repeat em…
“I’ve often wondered why it is that so many anglers spend so much money on,and pay so much attention to.the details on the wrong end of the fly line.If they took as much care in selecting or tying their flies as they did in the selection of the reel and rod,They might be able to gain the real extra edge that makes it possible to fool a fish that has,in fact,seen it all before” A.K.Best
Everyone wants to excel in this sport but at the same time we let traditionalists place restrictions on our tactics, methods, and ideas. Fly fishers often refer to Fox Statler as “out of the box.” The truth is that I never got in the proverbial “box.” I always assumed that fly fishing was a sport that allowed imagination, creation, adaptation, investigation, dedication, education, revelation? : Fox Statler, On Spinners (Not the dainty Dry Fly kind) “Spinner’d Minner Fly”
“Wish ya great fishing”
Bill
Bill:
I’ll make you even happier. My well used but otherwise in perfect condition STL’s needed new soles so I resoled them and it’s like I have a brand new pair! You can buy a replacement sole/heel kit from Chota for the STL’s that you order by size.
I ripped off my old soles, glued on the new ones with Barge Cement and took them to my local shoemaker and he stitched them and ground the soles to make them pretty. I then glued on the new heels and that was that.
New soles - $14.00
Shoemaker charge - $9.00
Like new pair of Chota’s - Priceless!
I have the aqua stealth soles and I like them alot. I find them better then felts. I find studs slippery in some instances. I fish mostly on small to large rocks.
Ed
I’ve owned a pair of Bean’s River Treads with the studded aquastealth soles for 5 years. They are excellent. They use a hiking boot last. That combined with good solid construction ensures a steady feeling when wading rocky streams and hiking to the water. I bought the boots one whole size larger than my normal shoe size to accomodate my waders neoprene feet.
Last year I bought a pair of the multi-sole boots. BIG MISTAKE. No matter how tightly I lace them up they offer little support. The studded soles are of poor quality. The overall feel is uncomfortable to me.
I’ve tried the LL Bean Aquastealth with spikes - and wear out the spikes in 4 or 5 weeks… (they have replaced them twice!)
Have owned the Simms Guide Boots - Aquastealth with spikes for 2 seasons and they are still going strong !!
I like the Simms Guide Boots so much - I’ve bought 20 pair for our guests to use…
…
Owen River Lodge
Fly Fishing at its very best
Owen Valley East Road, Murchison
South Island, New Zealand
Tel:+ 64 3 523 9075
guys on the jettys, both fly and non fly swear by korkers
roger
princess anne, eastern shore of md.
I use felt. No one with a decent boat will let you in with studs, they destroy rafts and driftboats. The only reason I would consider rubber is when it is below freezing becaus felt freezes. It freezes and attracts so much water that after some fishing and walking it’s like walking with bowling balls of ice on your feet and that is not cool and pretty dangerous too. I like the cheaper synthetic simms.
[This message has been edited by Benjo (edited 10 October 2005).]
I find the Korkers studded aquastealth a great compromise for anywhere I do a lot of walking, but the Korkers studded felt are supreme for wading. Would never go without studs now.
Simms use Korkers as far as I know, and the leather Guide boot is the toughest boot going that I’m aware of.
As mentioned, the studs can act as ball bearings on certain rock surfaces.