I wear waders in the spring for Steelhead fishing and for doing several jobs. I wear them in the fall a couple days per week for waterfowl hunting – yes, I still hunt the old fashioned way of getting in a duckboat and going out on the water – I have tried many many pairs of waders. Here is what I have found.
Rubber waders are pretty crappy, they are heavy and bulky and restrict movement – can be downright dangerous in fast moving water. If you only throw on a pair a couple times per year to put in and pull out your dock, maybe cost is most important to you, they are fairly inexpensive.
Neoprene waders are lighter than rubber, and they fit tighter to the body/legs so they give better mobility. The one downside to neoprene is that if you are working in them or are active, you will get wet inside from your own perspiration, after any activity, you may think the waders have begun to leak. And for fishing, the stocking foot waders are fine, especially with felt bottom footwear on slippery rocks they are superior to bootfoot waders, but duck hunting or working in soft bottom water, even the best fitting footwear will want to come off in the mud – it’s difficult to find a stockingfoot wader that properly fits both your foot, and the actual shoe/boot that you choose. Too tight is uncomfortable and can hinder circulation, too loose, and they can be clumsy and you risk loosing your shoe/boot and probably then ruining your waders.
What I have found to be the very best are breathable Gore-Tex waders, they are extremely lightweight and give very good mobility, and if you do work up a sweat, you won’t be soaked on the inside – at least from the knees up. I haven’t found a pair that are breathable from the knee down – that area is better to have durability over breathability if you want them to last.
The lightweight canvas waders may be improving now too. My BIL had a pair on this past weekend from amazon for $35 and he was very happy with them, although he said the boots were not especially comfortable, but he was 100% dry.
