My waterproof boots...aren't.

[Core]

Last year I spent $50 (?) or so on some waterproof hunting boots from gander. The nylon ones I guess, with eyelets and laces and all that. 600 gram I think, they are okay but my feet get a bit chilly when temps are down in the 40's. They were fully waterproof. This year I learned that they no longer are (in one case it's because a thorn somehow gashed one of them, but the other isn't, either and it's gash-free).

Is this common for waterproofed hunting boots to lose their waterproof-ness? Nylon is naturally not going to be waterproof when made into a boot, so they must soak the fabric with something. And apparently mine wore off.

I plan on buying some insulated rubber boots today because I don't see how those could ever lose their waterproofiness. Trying to choose between a field and stream brand boot or get mucks, which all the boys and girls seems to rave about.

[Fletch]

I wish I liked the rubber boots. They make more sense for odor reduction. I just don't like the no support or feel of them really. That said I have gone through a lot of boots lol. The cheaper hunting boots I usually get 1-2 years outa them. If it is a pair I like I treat them with sno-seal which works well unless you hike a ton in snow. that breaks down the waterproofing abitlity of that product faster.

I did go big finally on a pair of American made Danners a year ago and they are a fine pair of boots. They look almost as good as the day I bought them and get comfyer the more I wear them, they were a bit stiff at first.

It depends on your style of hunting too. If your feet tend to get cold or not, if you sit mostly or hike a lot.....

[Steve D]

Hard to beat Mucks!!!

[turkeyfeathers]

Another vote for Mucks. Rubber boots is all I wear. One pair of non insulated  Lacrosse  I've had forever for spring turkey and a pair of insulated Mucks  for deer hunting. 

[uberyan]

If was stand hunting and water proofing was the priority, I'd go with rubber boots. Probably wear something else walking back and forth from the stand, depending on distance.

Still hunting in rubber boots would probably suck after a while. For that it seems high quality hiking boots are recommended. Lowa, Vasque, Asolo, etc.

I've read that all leather is the best way to go for waterproofing even with all the newer tech fabrics available now. Fewer seams being better.

This will be my first season and I went with some relatively cheap Timberlands. Aside from price, it's mostly leather with a Gore Tex liner and very very light.

Hopefully durability isn't an issue. If it is, I'll start looking into the pricier offerings for the next season.

[NYBowhunter]

Rubber boots for me are a must as i need to cross a stream to get to a few of my stands. I climb mountains with them no problem,  you get use to them and the 2000 gram thinsulate helps out on those cold days. Helps to decrease odor as well.

[rachunter]

Muck boots

[Core]

Ok i went with knock-off muck boots. Field & Stream has 1000 g swamp tracker boots for $99 with 25% off online and I whined at the store and got them to give me the discount in person, plus a $10 store points was $67 out the door. The boots are very, very heavy. Hopefully 1000g is not too much insulation when walking, but probably it will be okay.

My kids are annihilating me right now and I felt sick at the thought of spending well over $100 at the moment on some other boots. If these don't stand up, next time I'll try and find some boots with a really great warranty for when they fail. 

I can tell walking in these won't be as nice as more hiking-like hunting boots but we'll see!

If my existing boots didn't have one with a gash I would have tried adding something to them to waterproof them again.

Edited November 17, 2016 by Core

[Hock3y24]

Muck artic pros are thenonly way to go, I got mine for $160 and I'm going into year 3 now.

[Core]

11 minutes ago, Hock3y24 said:

Muck artic pros are thenonly way to go, I got mine for $160 and I'm going into year 3 now.

I saw those. My problem is that they didn't have any way to tighten the top, so I'm really stuck with the elastic as it was. But maybe the boots are good enough they don't need an adjustable band?

[Culvercreek hunt club]

I swear by these. Most comfortable high "rubber" boot I have owned. I have a very wide foot and thick from the heel to the instep so this style boot have always been a wrestling match to get on and off. These aren't and they stay put on your foot well. are comfortable, warm and not very heavy. 

http://www.lacrossefootwear.com/men/hunt/boots/aerohead-sport-16-realtree-xtra-7-0mm.html

 

[Core]

18 minutes ago, Culvercreek hunt club said:

I swear by these. Most comfortable high "rubber" boot I have owned. I have a very wide foot and thick from the heel to the instep so this style boot have always been a wrestling match to get on and off. These aren't and they stay put on your foot well. are comfortable, warm and not very heavy. 

http://www.lacrossefootwear.com/men/hunt/boots/aerohead-sport-16-realtree-xtra-7-0mm.html

 

I saw these too. Don't know much about shoes but I could tell they were manufactured in a way the field and stream ones weren't. Like gobs of glue around any seams. They looked really good.

[airedale]

A good compromise high quality all around boot is the LL Bean Maine boots with the leather uppers and rubber bottoms. They are made in different heights with varying degrees of insulation to cover just about any temperature, they are waterproof and they last. LL Bean's guarantee is the best in the business and they are American made.

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/506697?page=footwear-llbean-boots&nav=gnro-hp

Al

Edited November 17, 2016 by airedale

[Core]

23 minutes ago, airedale said:

A good compromise high quality all around boot is the LL Bean Maine boots with the leather uppers and rubber bottoms. They are made in different heights with varying degrees of insulation to cover just about any temperature, they are waterproof and they last. LL Bean's guarantee is the best in the business and they are American made.

http://www.llbean.com/llb/shop/506697?page=footwear-llbean-boots&nav=gnro-hp

Al

Dang, I forgot about those. I am tempted to return and buy those only because I know LL Bean's warranty is totally ridiculous. I assume if those ever leak I can just return them even 15 years from now, if their warranty is like anything else.

But, they are not real tree. The deer will definitely see me! 

[Two Track]

My pair of LL Bean's Gorex/Thinsulate Maine Hunting boots wore out 2 years ago, leather is a bit beat up but the issue was no tread left and and a small hole on the bottom of the sole. Sent them back last month and they put on new rubber bottoms.

I have had them since the 1990's, and they took care of them.  Even included fresh laces.

My hand is temporarily water-proofed from re-applying a fresh coat of mink oil.to those and an unlined pair of them.

If it is really nasty and wet (and muddy), I have a pair of rubber boots that bought last year primarily for shoveling the snow.  Quicker to take off than undoing all laces.  But if doing a fair distance or more, it my LL Bean Maine Hunting boots (or a pair of hikers if just on dry clear trails).

[Hock3y24]

the mucks really hug my foot. i wear them all winter too. 

[stubby68]

Bought a pair of mucks once. Never again. I felt every twig I walked on and first patch of brush I walked through left them shredded .  For the price I would think they would have better soles and last more then one outing.

[Buckmaster7600]

If was stand hunting and water proofing was the priority, I'd go with rubber boots. Probably wear something else walking back and forth from the stand, depending on distance.
Still hunting in rubber boots would probably suck after a while. For that it seems high quality hiking boots are recommended. Lowa, Vasque, Asolo, etc.
I've read that all leather is the best way to go for waterproofing even with all the newer tech fabrics available now. Fewer seams being better.
This will be my first season and I went with some relatively cheap Timberlands. Aside from price, it's mostly leather with a Gore Tex liner and very very light.
Hopefully durability isn't an issue. If it is, I'll start looking into the pricier offerings for the next season.

About everyone I know that still hunts/tracks wears rubber boots and mostly lacrosse. They have a soft sole so you can feel twigs, are water proof, fit tight around the ankle and are comparatively light weight.


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[Jdubs]

On Thursday, November 17, 2016 at 11:29 AM, Steve D said:

Hard to beat Mucks!!!

This.  I got lucky and found a once worn pair in a Cabela's Bargain Cave for about $35 after all the discounts and such.  I forget the model, but they are basic non-insulated ones with camo uppers.  My Mucks are easily one of my favorite pieces of hunting gear.  They are lightweight and not like the blocky Herman Munster boots you get with most winter hunting footwear.  I'll wear two pairs of wool socks with toe warmers thrown in for the really cold days/nights and my feet stay plenty warm.

The only downside is that sometimes I have ended up on my backside trying to navigate some icy trails on a decline.   

[shawnhu]

Ok i went with knock-off muck boots. Field & Stream has 1000 g swamp tracker boots for $99 with 25% off online and I whined at the store and got them to give me the discount in person, plus a $10 store points was $67 out the door. The boots are very, very heavy. Hopefully 1000g is not too much insulation when walking, but probably it will be okay.
My kids are annihilating me right now and I felt sick at the thought of spending well over $100 at the moment on some other boots. If these don't stand up, next time I'll try and find some boots with a really great warranty for when they fail. 
I can tell walking in these won't be as nice as more hiking-like hunting boots but we'll see!

If my existing boots didn't have one with a gash I would have tried adding something to them to waterproof them again.

Picked up a pair of Bean boots $189 on discount for $56. Can't beat lifetime satisfaction guaranteed.


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[nyslowhand]

On 11/17/2016 at 9:53 AM, Core said:

... This year I learned that they no longer are (in one case it's because a thorn somehow gashed one of them, but the other isn't, either and it's gash-free)....

Still an issue with rubber boots! Those can be temporarily patched though with marine Goop. Rubber boots will fatigue or dry rot, so they're definitely not a lifetime investment.

[Cabin Fever]

I have 2 pairs of Mucks. One is the Artic Pro and I can't remember what the other one is, but it's like 400gr thinsulate. I would NEVER buy Mucks again, nor recommend them. The first year with the Artic Pro's, the uppers got torn up, big time! Chunks missing! Even the rubber sides had nicks/gashes in them! I used Marine Goop and even wrapped Gorilla tape around the uppers, but the Marine Goop just fell off after a couple of uses! Worthless!

Work purchased the next pair of Mucks. They're only a year old, but have gashes in the rubber sides and leak. Junk! 

I suppose if you only hunt open woods and fields they would be OK. But if you go into thickets or briars, forget it!

The next boots I buy will be Lacrosse and from LL Bean...

[Core]

After my last post I go to ll bean, see how their main hunting boot is prominently mentioned--their first product, etc. And we have a local store, so off I go at lunch. And guess what? The store has NO hunting boots. Just stupid shoes and yuppy stuff for subaru drivers (low cut boots for example--they had nothing with a tall upper plus insulated.

I ended up keeping the swamptrackers from field & stream. I really like them actually. They are totally warm and I've found myself now confidently going through stuff I couldn't go through in my other boots. Plus they ended up working in the snow in ways my old boots wouldn't have. I'll just keep those for fall hunting, but with the stuff I go through some seriously high-uppers are the way to go.

I'd still like those bean boots, but my wife found me surfing the net to their site and shut that down 

[Core]

Guys, please confirm!

Waterproof muck-type boots shoulid be able to withstand total submersion for long periods, correct? After some moisture yesterday I was hoping was because of snow coming over the top I just ran a test with my feet dunked for 30 minutes in a tub of water and I absolutely am getting water ingress in one boot. I plan on returning them. I suppose this was my fault for expecting more out of $100 boots.

[Steve D]

If you have looked at the price of boots lately you won't get much for $100. If you plan on standing in water for 30 minutes at a time I would suggest a solid rubber boot like Lacrosse.

 I have a pair of mucks I have had for 4 or 5 years that I mostly wore coon hunting  (it doesn't get much rougher than that)and they are just as good today as when I bought them. When I coon hunted or do any type of hunting in the brush I wear a pair of chaps over them to protect the boots and my legs.

Have not had wet or cold foot yet and they are as comfortable as hell

Edited November 24, 2016 by Steve D