Felt Resoles

There is a current discussion going on about didymo and the fate of this invasive species getting into our waters and while this discussion is a good one - perhaps this is not the time to post this tute on resoleing wading boots with felt but what the heck - I'll do it anyway. Maybe someone is out there thinking of doing it. Personally, I'm not one to get rid of something that has perfectly good life left to it and when this whole thing with didymo came about a few years ago, I just made sure that my gear was cleaned before switching water. Really not that big of a deal. So when my felt wore out on my boots, I had a bit of a learning experience when I re-felted 'em. Never did it before and I waited to post this till I was sure the felts would take. They've been through an entire summer of fishing and also 2 trips to the tribs. Held up so far. No sign of coming apart at the edges. So if your into keeping things till they are totally wore out - here's how I put new felt on my boots. Interestingly - I had 3 shops tell me that it wouldn't last more than a few trips to the stream. Think I'll keep 'em.

1. Strip off the old felt along with any stitching that may be along the edges. Then take a grinder with a grinding wheel and use this to clean off any old material. The sole must be completely clean of any old material. Put two coats of waterproof contact cement on both the boots and the felt. The felt will soak it up pretty good. Let this dry to the touch before you put the felts to the boots.



2. Put the felt to the boots - realizing that once the contact is made you will not be able to move them around into place. Make sure that the felt pieces are close to where you want them - then make contact. Put duck tape around the boot and felt making sure the edges are pulled up tight. Take a hammer and beat on the bottom of the boot to make sure there are no air pockets. Let dry overnight. Then - take the grinder once again and trim off the excess by simply grinding it off. Pretty easy to do.

good step by step instructions!Mine are still holding up well, I plan on using them until they wear out completely or if the game rules are changed. I do plan on purchasing feltless and going with studded if new regs impose feltless soles only.