Waterproofing boots and stuff...

[Rich Z]

Take it easy as I am new here and a rookie elk hunter as well.

I have a pair of work/hiking boots (Keens)that are the most comfortable boots I've ever put on my feet but the waterproofing isn't the best. My question is, what is the best type of waterproofing for leather & synthetics to get these boots up to snuff to hopefully take on my diy hunting trip this fall?

Another question. Has anyone ever treated their hunting clothes with a DWR to help with the morning dew and light rain showers? If so, which of the many brands of DWR is the best?

Thanks

Rich

[GobbleFarmer]

Welcome to 'The ELK' forum!

As for waterproofing, I like: KIWI camp dry heavy duty water repellent spray, works great on my stuff, I'm thinking about using it on gloves pants and shirts too, because it worked nicely with my knee boots. If you are going to be wading through creeks and severely stress a high stress point(by nearly falling into the below freezing water, and doing everything to not get wet), than it may leak, of course I know this from experience. If I sprayed the stuff in the leaky spot I'm sure it would'v stopped the leak, but I need to get another can of this stuff first. I picked this stuff up at bass pro but I think I saw it at wally world too. Hope this helps!

[WapitiTalk1]

Hey Rich, X2 on Gobbles welcome to "the" elk forum. Glad to have you on board mister. Leather boots (assume we're talking about those) will eventually break down, crack, and leak....after all, it's cow hide "particularly" if not treated right. It's always a best practice to treat new boots and do a few applications each year to prolong their life, and, assist with water proofness. That said, the pastes/waxes seem to work better than most; don't sleep on the old standard Sno-Seal. It's been protecting leather for many, many years. I've also had good luck with the old Mink Oil brand. The spray coating Gobble mentioned also seems to work well; I have a container of Danner stuff that I've had good luck with. The bad news is that once a pair of boots has a tendency to leak, they will probably always leak.... just the way it is. I always carry a few contractor grade plastic sacks in my hunting pack. They help make a nice clean place to lay chunks of meat on during the de-boning process, keep my pack cleaner if I put my game bags with bloody meat inside them, and...... and the plastic bags work like a charm for stream crossing (just put em over your boots and tie em off around your knees). Not sure about the DWR, it looks interesting tho. Again, welcome bud!

[jmez]

Obenhauf's Leather Preservative for the boots. If they are already leaking then you won't get them waterproof again. Walking in wet grass you feet will be soaked. You should really look into a new pair of boots.

[Rich Z]

Thanks for the info guys. It sounds like you guy are suggesting treating boots even prior to the waterproofing wearing out? Is that a fair observation?

[GobbleFarmer]

I guess you could sat that. My boots were labeled "waterproof" which is one of the reasons I bought the boots, it turns out they weren't. So the silicone spray I mentioned, fixed that problem, until I stressed it too much so now I cant stand in water for longer than a minute. That said, my feet don't get wet when walking through wet grass.
This is the only boot waterproofer I have ever tried, so some of the old guys like phantom , probably have more experience in the sense of what does/doesn't work.

[Rich Z]

LOL - I won't touch the age thing...

[WapitiTalk1]

You guys are gonna have to type a bit louder... I can't hardly hear you

[GobbleFarmer]

Does that mean ALL CAPITAL LETTERS!