Waders Any Ideas?

[perchjerker]

I went out and purchased new boots for my chest waders to comply with the no felt bottoms. I also have a $140.00 hip waders that I stripped the felt off but our shoe repair place says he can't get them in the shoe press to put a treaded sole on them. Has anybody tried anything out there that has worked, or should I just give in and buy a new set of hip waders. Thanks for any help in advance.

[wildfowl1]

I fixed a pair of my wife's boot-foot waders, by using the rubber soles from an old pair of sandals. I had to cut the sole into three pieces (because of the heel on the boot), and trim the arch support to make the sole flat so that it could be glued to the boot. I used some of that black marine adhesive because it was waterproof and matched the color of the sole. I am sure there are some other water proof adhesives that would work as well. I first removed the felt soles from the waders, as you have already done. I applied the new sole to one section of the boot at a time, because they had to be clamped tightly while the epoxy cured/dried.

I ended up cutting some better tread into the soles with a dremel tool, since they were worn from use. She tried them for a day at a trout park, and reported they worked well. If they were too slick, I was going to have her try some of those cleated ice traction deals that you can strap to your boots.

I imagine a pair of flip-flop soles would work well since they are typically flat, as long as they are not porous. I am not sure if it was worth all the trouble, but it does allow you to keep using an existing pair of waders/boots with much less chance of transferring invasive species.

[perchjerker]

Thanks Wildfowl. The black marine adhesive sounds like the trick. I'll give it a try.

[Bill Anderson]

Barge Cement has been the standard glue for soles in the shoe/boot industry for many year. I Used it for years on felts and it will work fine for rubber.