Sunday, March 6, 2011

SIMMS FRESTONE WADERS

A year ago this past week end I was involved in a steel head trip to the Salmon River. After this trip it was decided that I needed to invest in a new pair of waders. I did some research and decided to order a pair of Simms freestone waders primarily for the fact that Simms claim to fame is that they are the only manufacturer of waders in the United States. The waders came in in a box labeled Boseman Montana, I tried them on and put them in a box. On a trip to spring creek the next week this tag was observed.
I contacted Simms and explained my disposition and they told me that the only way they could compete on the market was to go over seas with the freestone line and that they would exchange the waders for a different line made in the USA. However they did not say that it would be at the expense of the small fly shop where i ordered them. So I decided to leave the issue at that until now. After having the waders for less than one year they are leaking large quantities of water from the seams which is a lovely surprise when on a trip to the Salmon River in less than favorable temperatures.

4 comments:

stew said...

Fuck them.

Coach said...

Bear,
If I am understanding you correctly, you are displeased and do not feel that your wader needs nor your wader issues have been properly addressed by the Simms Company. I am curious as to how this may affect your future wader purchase decisions and also how it will impact your recommendations to other potential wader purchasers?

Bear said...

Well Sir,
Displeased would be one way of putting it. I do not believe I can compleately bash Simms because they still do have a good number of lines made in the US and many assosiates of mine do have good luck with theirs. However due to the circumstances of needing a pair in a short time frame I was turned onto Dan Bailey waders. They have a broader range of more customized sizes and many more features which the freestone line does not offer. They have an excelent guarantee and they are the most comfortable waders I have ever owned. However it is unfortunate they they are imported as well. As far as the representation and quality control of the Simms Companey it might as well be non existent and I hope for others they have better dealings than myself.

Coach said...

Well said sir.
I respect both you and your wader opinions.