i have had my neopreme waders for about 3 years and the area around the crotch seam is starting to leak. 90 percent of the seam is already leaking. my breathable waders are beginning to leak after 2 years around the seam where the neopreme meets the breathable fabric. what kind of glue or sealent wound you recomend for a permanent fix.

i had the same problem with my neoprene waders last year. i made a patch out of coated nylon and glued it on the inside with contact cement. then i went over all the exterior seams with a water based tent seam sealant. (comes in a 3-4oz bottle with applicator top) i think i got it at gi joe's or somewhere. anyway i took a syringe, sucked up some of the liquid and went over each of the stitched seams and let it dry for a few hours and went back over it a few times. seemed to work, hasn't leaked since. i could get the name of the stuff tonight, if you want.


willy

Not much worse than leaky waders in December!

landcruiserwilly, the brand of the glue will help me a lot. do you use the nylon patches that are made for breathable waders. mine ecame with a few small patches.

I have used Goop with good success. I have used other brands that worked pretty well too. The key is to get it dry before you start, use lots and lots of the stuff and let it completely cure before using it again. The brand I would not ever use again was Scientific Anglers. It gets very brittle and cracks off after a few mpnths of use.

To temporarily fix a samall tear or puncture use a rubber worm and lighter. Dry the best you can and melt the worm into the tear. It doesn't have to be completely dry, but it can't be soaking wet. This patch will help get you though the day until better repairs can be made.

Steve

AQUASEAL w/ cotol 240 Saved my ultralites this fall and just saved my heavy camo neoprenes tonight. I picked it up at Ted's in Lynnwood

the brand i use is the aquaseal as stated above. it gets a little stiff, but hasn't cracked anywhere that i can see. I put the waders on my peet dryer and just worked on all the leg seams from the outside. if you can actually see the tear or where the seam has separated, i'd glue it first with some of that neoprene patch glue and, when it dries, go over it with the sealant. the best part of the aquaseal is that it's water-based and you can do it in the warm house, as opposed to the cold confines of the garage.


willy

goop works great!

thanks for your input. i will patch the inside seam and apply the aquaseal to both sides. i might as well seal all the seams to prevent future leaks

Shoe goo!! Used it lots on waders and winter work boots (rubber). Flexible for you. Will also work to patch with piece of rubber intertube if you need it.

Steve

If you have the time, start with your first application of Shoe Goo or Aqua Seal or whatever extending in a light layer one/half inch or so beyond the edge of the hole/tear. Then do a second or third coat and extend each layer/coat beyond the previous one. Sometimes, a little hole in the outside of neoprenes equals a larger tear under the outer fabric. A hair dryer, set on low, can help speed the drying process if you are in a hurry.

Goop!

Barge All Purpose Cement. Shoe repair shops use it on all materials. I have never had it fail in a hunting or fishing repair.

Barge cement is excellent s___ you can buy it at R.E.I. if you can't find at your local shoe repair store. Also I remember a post using stuff called Plasti-Grip it is used to recoat plier handles and others tools. Probably the same stuff as Aqua seal and Shoe Goo hope it helps good luck with it.

A buddy of mine showed me how to locate the leaks in your waders.......put your shop vac in "blow" mode, stick the hose in the top and cinch your waders down tight to the hose.

Then have a buddy spray water on the outside of your waders, and mark with a felt pen where they're bubblin. A little Aqua Seal, and my waders haven't leaked since we did this 5 years ago!

NOFISH I could say something but this is G rated so I'll hold back.

Another method for finding leaks that works really well for breathables, is the one recommended by Simms. Turn the waders inside out and pour rubbing alcohol in any areas suspected of leaking. If there is a leak the area will turn dark grey. I just did this to mine and couldn't believe how many pinhole leaks I had. I don't think I would have found all of them with any other method.

Aquaseal works pretty well. But when my Neo's started leaking about 10 years ago I went to the local Scuba shop and bought some glue from them. This was the same glue used to put the waders and wetsuits together in the first place. It literally welds the rubber together behind the nylon. Using that stuff I never had a leak again. Unfortunately it got misplaced in the move a few years ago and now I need to go see if they still carry the stuff. I have no idea what it was but it looked and smelled just like the stuff you use for PVC Pipe. I have an old pair of waders that I want to put new soles on and this is the only thing I would trust them not to leak.

Sika-Flex (Sika-1a) works well for this. In fact there aren't many things it doesn't work for. It can be found at most construction supply stores.