Chicago Fly Fishing

fly fishing waders reviews

Simms Fly Fishing Gear: Taking Fishing Gears At Its Best

Simms fly fishing gears are some of the most respected fishing gears in the world today. Most fishing enthusiasts around the world would attest to the fact that Simms fly fishing gears are some of the best in the industry. Most fly fishing gear reviews hail the Simms fly fishing gear for its good quality and durability. No wonder that the company has been known as one of the industry leaders since its inception in the early part of 1980.

How the Company Started

Like most well known companies, the makings of Simms fly fishing gears started from humble beginnings. It first started business in the Eastern Sierra on California. John Simms, the founder of the company was a respected fishing guide and outfitter before he ventured into manufacturing fishing gears.

The decisions to create a company to manufacture fishing gears came when John realized that most of his clients are in need of good quality gears. As a fisherman who understands the needs of his clients, John knows that good fishermen should have the best fishing gears if they want to enjoy fishing expeditions. With this in mind, he started to create fishing gears that suits the needs of his clients.

The first Simms fly fishing gears were met with a lot of enthusiasm by many of John’s clients that he thought of creating a new company, expanding his product line and create distribution channels to sell his products. Unfortunately, he did not have enough capital to get his project off the ground so it took a couple more years before the Simms fly fishing gears become readily available in the market.

Like most new products in the market, the Simms fly fishing gears did not become an overnight success. The company did not take shape until the mid 1980’s when it came up with neoprene waders which because a market success. Following the success of the neoprene wader, the Simms fly fishing gear brand became popular. This prompted the company to come up with more products under its brand.

By the early part of the 90’s, the company has created a long line of Simms fly fishing products which attracted investors to the company. In 1993, K.C. Walsh acquires Simms and transferred its business office to Bozeman, MT. From its humble beginnings, the company had grown into a multi-million dollar conglomerate. It has extended its business operations to many parts of the world and is now known as one of the leaders in the fly fishing gear industry.

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Should I buy chest waders or waist waders for fly fishing?

I am in the market for a new pair of waders and stuck between the chest or waist option. I’ve always used chest waders but can see a real advantage to waist waders for flexibility and body temp. The only draw back that I can think of would be the few times you really do need chest height protection.

Definitely get chest waders. Unless you are one of these guys with a set of waders for every occasion, you should have chest waders — once you commit to a pair of wading pants, that’s when you’ll need the extra depth. Me, I usually have my main waders and a back-up set. I don’t have a set of hip waders for this stream and a pair of guide pants for that river and a set of chest waders for that lake. If I don’t need chest-depth, or if I start overheating, I just pull down the top part.

Most chest waders can simply be pulled down to the waist and worn like pants. Many waders are designed to be “convertible” in this way (even to the extent of having zip-off chest components), but I would avoid any waders that are more expensive because of this option. In the days before convertible waders, you just pulled the waders down to your waist and cinched your wading belt around them. That’s what I still do. You can either tuck the chest portion of the waders inside the waders or just let them hang outside the waders. In other words, all chest waders are convertible to one extent or another, whether they claim to be or not.

I’ve heard nothing but good about Frogg Toggs waders, and their prices seem fair. They’re one of the new-ish “Simms-killers” and I think they probably make waders as good as any of the smaller brands (Hodgman, Caddis, Dan Bailey). I think I would classify the set you’re looking at as “entry level.” My rule of thumb is that if you fish often (once a week or more), your waders will last 1 – 1.5 years for every $100 you spend. After that period, you’ll start developing leaks, seepage, etc. If you fish less (once a month) then you can stretch out the life of the waders. If you fish more often, then you really should be looking for a better set.

Don’t forget — it really is best to try on waders before buying. If you’re buying online, this can be tough. See if you can’t find a place where you can try them on, even if you don’t buy them from that store. Barring that, at least try on similarly sized waders to make sure you get the best fit.

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