# Repairing waders?



## jfink (Nov 19, 2002)

I have a pair of cabelas waders and there is a hole. I was wondering the best way to fix it was. I still have the patch and also a thin piece of fabric that is black which i don't know what it is for. Any help would be great and does it go on the outside of the waders? That was a dumb question but oh well. thanks justin


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## SALMONATOR (Jan 7, 2003)

I don't really like to use the patches myselfe. They never seem to last long for me. I've gotten good results using silicone gell all by it selfe (especially with neoprenes). Some of the adhesives that come with the patch kits work great alone if they are the gell type adhesives. Hope it helps.

Al


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## flyrod4steelhead (Mar 14, 2002)

I have never used the patches that you get with your wader's. I just use the jell that is provided with your wader's. I would put some on the outside and the inside of your wader's. You should go about 1/8"-1/4" over the edge of the hole/tear. This should do the trick.

Good luck


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## jfink (Nov 19, 2002)

I didn't get any gel with my waders but is aqualseal pretty close to the same thing. By the way these are the breathable. Thanks for your help justin


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## flyrod4steelhead (Mar 14, 2002)

Aquaseal work's great. I have a pair of breathable's that received a little hole on the knee from a big king last fall. Put some aquaseal on it, no water coming through. Fix that hole and get back fishing


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## fishguts (May 17, 2002)

I agree with Flyrod4steelhead... I use Aquaseal and have never had any leaks. I have also used it successfully on neoprene waders.


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## Burksee (Jan 15, 2003)

Have never used "Aquaseal" but have used "Shoegoo", it was originally made for fixing the rubber bottoms of t-shoes/sneekers. Its cheap, waterproof, flexable and adhears to rubber/neopreme quite well. I also use a piece of cotton/denim over the hole/sealer. Put it on when patching the hole and rub it into the matieral as well. It provides protection from further damage and adds strength to the area around the hole/patch. Cotton/Denim is very flexible and absorbs the glue quite well.


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## subocto (Feb 21, 2003)

Aquaseal is the key. Turn your waders inside out and lay them on a table. Put some weight around the area to hold it down flat, (soup cans work ok) . Put a piece of wax paper under the hole or cut, so you dont glue the damaged part to the other side of the leg on the waders. CLEAN the damaged material with alcohol. put a small amount of aquaseal over the damaged area, if the hole is large you will need to use a patch if it is small or just a straight line cut then you wont need the patch. Aquaseal takes 24 hours to dry if youre not using Cotol with it, so leave it out over night. Your waders should be leak free in the morning.


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## binkley (May 1, 2001)

How old are the waders? Cabela's has a pretty flawless return/exchange policy. I've had them replace a couple pairs of neoprenes no questions asked.

Bink


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## Pinefarm (Sep 19, 2000)

All are correct. Aqua seal is very good, along with goop. Goop takes longer to dry and doesn't usually look as nice. Plus there's lots of warnings on goop, like if you suffer vertigo while using goop, run out of the building, etc. Worse comes to worse, box 'em up and send them back.


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## Jackster1 (Aug 17, 2001)

In thinking about this I agree with the folks recommending Aqua Seal or Shoe Goo type stuff for simple holes and leaks. If the hole is large or on a place that see's a lot of stress though it seems a patch on the outside secured with whatever the manufacturer shipped with your waders would be a safe bet. The stress of stretching the wader fabric or the water pressure on a large hole seems like it would need all the help it could get.
My 15 year old Red Ball boot foots survived all this years with an amazing amount of Aqua Seal all around the boot/wader fabric junction.


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## gunrod (Jan 16, 2001)

Return them. Cabela's takes everything back. They fix the leak, put them in the bargain cave and make money twice on them. There's no returns on items in the bargain cave. I returned a pair after a year.


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## jfink (Nov 19, 2002)

I have had them for about a year and half. Do I need to have a recepiet and do I take them right to the store. They are pretty beat up and they are also the ones around $100. Thanks for all the help a tube of aquaseal is on the way.
justin


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## gunrod (Jan 16, 2001)

My waders were pretty beat up too. Just take them into the store and if they say Cabela's they'll take them. All their waders have a tag when purchased saying they will replace them if they leak at any time.


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## Mike (Nov 26, 2000)

Take 'em back jfink. I just returned two pairs. The first I bought in 2001. Had them covered in AquaSeal before I gave up on them this spring and ordered a new pair. Knockoff64 told me to send them back. My new pair started leaking, so I sent both pairs back and ordered another. They gave me a credit on my account for the new pair, and sent me a check for the old pair. 

Mike


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## jfink (Nov 19, 2002)

Thanks for the info I was wondering if they took them back even with aquaseal on them. Didn't have time to make it there so I patched them. Hopefully there all good heading up north to the platte to try them out. Thanks for all the info guys.
Justin


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