William Joseph Boot/Wader Review
About a month ago we received a package in the mail that contained a pair of the “Drynamic Waders” and “W20 Wading Boots” from Paul over at William Joseph. His exact words were “use them and tell me what you don’t like about them”.
So I did just that, I took them on a trip chasing Trout to begin with, first impressions were pretty good. They were like a brand new pair of shoes and needed some time to break in. We had a photo shoot in one of the local rivers after that trip and I took the W.J. gear with me and after hiking around for a bit the boots startedto feel much better. Since receiving the gear, we have used them on several different fishing trips and 10 or so photo shoots and can proudly say that I would take them anywhere with me and feel completely comfortable that they will hold up to anything we put them through! That being said, some of the awesome features:
Drynamic Waders:
Oversized Booties:We get some cold weather here in the Northwest and not only are the booties made of 5 mil thick Neoprene, they are oversized to accommodate for bigger sock sizes. They also have traction built into the bottom to keep from sliding around in the boots. Big plus when you are hiking in to fish.
Fitment: William Joseph calls it “Fit-Zip technology”, I call it Awesomeness! The first couple of times that I wore the waders it was cold and rainy outside, having that zipper up there really helps when you are putting them on and taking them off. The zipper itself only extends about 10” down from the top but the backing is completely sealed which helps when you want to allow a little more breathing room but still stay protected from the elements.
Pockets: There are three pockets on the waders, two in the front and one in the back. I normally wear a wading jacket over my waders, but to give the waders a fair review, I haven’t worn anything over the pockets just to see how “waterproof” they actually are. Normally I keep my cell phone, keys and wallet down in my pants and then pull the waders over them, but it is always a pain in the butt when I want to get the keys out because I forgot something or to get my phone because it is ringing. So throughout the tests, I put my phone in the front right pocket, my keys in the front left pocket, and my license in the back pocket. Out of the 20 or times that I have used them, I only had one time when a very small amount leaked into the pocket and I really don’t think it was a flaw in the zipper itself but a mistake on my fault by not zipping it closed entirely.
W20 Wading Boots:
Weight: I have personally owned a dozen or so sets of wading boots over the years and the W20 boots are among the lightest. They have a full felt bottom and provide a ton of security when climbing over mossy and slick rocks. A couple of the trips were several hours long and never felt that the boots were too heavy.
Construction: William Joseph claims that they were designed from hiking boots, but from what we put them through I would assume that they were built from construction work boots. Kicking rocks, throwing them into the truck, stabbing them with hooks and everything else we put them through didn’t do a spot of damage to them. Cleaning them off after every use may have helped, but to this day they still look brand new.
Comfort: They are clean, cool and soft. They were a little tight fighting, but nothing a step up in size wont fix. The boots were extremely comfortable and after a bit I could hardly tell that I was wearing them. A lot of problems that I have personally had with wading boots is the amount of time they take to drain and how much water is left in the boot after a trip. With the W20 boots, that amount is minimal and having that extra convenience really helps in the drying time of the boots.
So would I recommend them to anyone? I would, and I do. Spending a lot of time on the river lets me see all the different types of gear that people use and I hardly ever see W.J. gear out there. I HAVE NO IDEA WHY! The features of the waders are similar to my pair of SIMMS G4’s, they even fit the same if not better. With the price of the Drynamics being several HUNDRED dollars less then the SIMMS, this one is a no-brainer! There are several companies that offer William Joseph gear here on the West Coast, but if for some reason you can’t find them, head over to www.williamjoseph.net and they will hook you up. Everyone over there has been great to work with, and if you think their gear is good then you need to check out their warranty too! Great Gear, Great Company!
