Does anyone else have neoprene booties on their drysuit? I got a lightly used kokatat GFER suit recently, and it has like 3mm neoprene socks instead of latex or goretex.
They’re a little bulky, but fit in my over-booties. And I’d guess they’re more durable than latex or goretex. I’d just never seen this before. Is it unusual?
an option
A few years back, neoprene socks were offered as an option.
Suz
I don’t think they ever made booties…
…out of latex, but they did, and still do, make them out of Gore-tex. I’m pretty sure that latex is only used to make gaskets at the neck and wrists, and also at the ankles if there are no sewn-in booties.
I would expect neoprene to perform just fine. My winter paddling boots have neoprene uppers, and they have never leaked. Only thing is, for a given thickness, neoprene does not insulate nearly as well as good socks, so when worn inside boots, neoprene booties would likely not be as warm as if the booties were a thinner material and the extra space in your overboot was filled with socks.
warmth
Yesterday I had the underbooties, overbooties (both neoprene) and a smartwool sock on in 30-something degree water, and had to wade in the water for probably 20 minutes. No problem staying warm. Didn’t even notice the water temp actually. So I don’t think space for more socks will be an issue.
Latex booties are commonplace…
…and pre-date Goretex by many years. They can easily be retrofit on dry suits with latex seals, as I did on my own suit. Of course, they suffer from the same weaknesses as latex seals, chief among them being a limited lifespan.
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what he said