Hi,

I have decided I want a wading staff. I have used just a big stick I found, but I don't like that how buoyant it is. Is there anything in between DIY and the $100 to $150 SIMMS ?

The Simms Wading Staff, says it will lock itself open, so if the tip gets stuck the sections won't seporate. On paper that sounds very useful and a possible way for me to rationalize paying $100 for a "stick" .. DOES ANYONE have an opinion on if this is just a marketing feature or a real advantage ?

Also, is the $150 Carbon SIMS Staff that much better than the $100 Aluminium one ?


-thanks

I pretty much take a wading staff with me every time I wade, but I don't always use it. So, I am a very big fan of the collapsible style since they are easy to carry along with you.

I used one of the off brand aluminum staffs for years. I think I got it from Bass Pro, and the last time I looked they still had them for about $30 or so.

TFO offers two styles of wading staffs an Aluminum version and a Graphite version under their Springbrook label. A couple years ago, my wife needed a wading staff so I got each of us a Springbrook graphite wading staff. I think they are about $90 these days. I have never used one of TFO's aluminum staffs.

Comparing the two staffs, the TFO graphite staff does feel more solid and stable than the off-brand Al staff, but I never felt "unsafe" with that Al staff. The graphite staff has a "nicer" feel to it while using it in fast water. The TFO staff is better made, it fits together smoothly and more importantly at the end of the day it is easy to take apart. If I ever had to put a lot of weight on the Al staff, it would sometimes get stuck together and could be a pain to take apart. I've never had any trouble with either of them coming apart while wading. Of the two staffs, the Al packs up in shorter lengths and it is lighter. I have no doubt that the graphite staff will out last the Al staff, but it is still going strong long after I decided to upgrade. But I do like my newer staff.

Bottomline, yes, there are lower cost wading staffs available that work well. I'd suggest wandering in to a shop and putting your hands on a few of them, you can tell really quick if the staff feels secure or not. And then like everything else in fly fishing, you just have to ask yourself "how much do I want to spend"?

Thanks Rex.

I have used the one from Bass Pro the last year and it has served me fine but it will pull apart if you get it in to deep. I did add the Simms retractor to it to keep it snug to my wader belt.

I bought a couple aluminum this summer off Amazon for $30 each. Can't remember the name but they worked great. We flew with them to The Smoky Mountains. I fished and she hiked with it. Amazon has the Simms and Orvis models too.

When it comes to safety equipment, I want the best...and my research led me to Folstaf. It is a great product and I highly recommend it. Seemed like a lot to pay for basically a stick...until I got into a high flow dangerous Alaska steelhead river...and it was worth absolutely every penny.

Thanks ..

In the end I bought an inexpensive aluminium trekking pole on sale for $15. I have looked at the nicer poles, and this one isn't as light, but when I leaned hard on it, it felt just as sturdy and less flex than some of the real light poles. I abused it in the store and it never collapsed etc. I really liked the Black Diamond Z-pole Wading Staff and for $99 with re-tractor and holster it seems like a better deal than the Simms for the same price. I also came close to buy a pair of Leki trekking poles at REI, for $99 you can get two poles. But after some thought, I knew honestly I wasn't going to take up walking/hiking with poles.

Wading is a part time deal for me, as I usually fish out of my kayak, and when I do wade this will easily give me the extra stability I need on the slippery rocks etc. So I couldn't justify the $100 price at this time.

Thanks again for the feedback.