Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Gore Tex Footwear lining just a big lie ?

I have had half a dozen or so goretex and similar Teflon lined rain jackets for hunting and daily use.
My experiences have been similar to most who already reported. They worked reasonably well when new, like one season of occasional use. After that the resistance to soak through reduced based on wear.

They scotch guard type silicone and fluoride based repellants helped. That just shows that the outermost layers were repelling from the treatments, but not the white Teflon semipermeable barriers that were the original design.

I called one US company that has a contract with Dunham's sporting goods and talked to the owner about the warranty and my disappointing experiences when afield.

(2B Continued) I need to get my post quota up ...

Gore tex is useless. IMO.

The most important trait for a boot is how fast it will dry. Your feet WILL get wet whether its from the outside or sweat. Quick drying footwear is the key. Change your socks. Dry your socks.

Walk your boots dry.

There's a spectrum. In one direction there's how waterproof an article is. In the other direction is how breathable an article is. You have to pick where on the spectrum you want to live.

If you want something that's absolutely waterproof, use neoprene. Won't breathe at all.
If you want something that's absolutely breathable, use cotton. Won't be waterproof at all.

In the middle there's a bunch of compromises. PVC. Good at waterproof, poor breatheability. Waxed cotton. Nicely waterproof, only fair breatheability. Or Gore-tex. More breathable than waxed cotton, but not as waterproof.

Don't expect either waxed cotton or Gore-tex to allow you to stand in water for 30 minutes. And be prepared in either case to have to do periodic maintenance.

I've owned several different brands and types of Gore-Tex boots and the only ones that have leaked is when they were very heavily worn, never when newer. As far as letting vapor out, I have never had anything that is water proof or even water resistant do that, I've stayed sweaty damp in them all. I've never owned any Gore-Tex clothing aside from hats and caps (unless boots are counted as clothing items).

I have one pair of goretex boots. Just like the animal, they were named after the movie heros of the movie Red Dawn.

I agree with you OldHat.
The heat from your feet will eventually get it done depending on conditions and time.
I just realize that feet in goretex will get wet from perspiration if walking much or carrying meat.. they don't breath as well, but it's not like wearing bread bags.

Likewise, wet leather doesn't breath well either since the fibers expand and water is saturating the hide. Unlike gortex, it improves with drying.
That said, I too prefer leather with a repellent conditioner and odorless spray. Wool socks help too. The feet stay warmer when wet. Some like polyester, but it grows bacteria and stinks. But Im getting off the trail.
What you said about socks is key.
(I could've just been lazy and did +1).

There’s waterproof.
There’s breathable.

Cannot have both together, IMO.

SNOSEAL!!!



lol

It's raining now. If I had a job to do or spend more time outside that from parking to store, I'd wear my custom tailored vintage US Army field jacket converted to a oil cloth/ waxed rain jacket and matching hat. They both breath, but I don't wear them on hot days. I wouldn't go jogging in them, but have speed walked plenty.
Trade offs with everything.
This is from an airborne ranger who did serious missions, highly decorated through V Nam and Korea.
Instead of keeping it in a chest of moth balls, I wear it and remember my uncle and our hunting trips.

I like one or two of my good gore tex jackets, because they look exceptionally good. They are quality except for the gore tex. That junk breaks down and leaves dandruff behind when you hit that point. Unlike the new looking outer shell and liners, the membrane is nothing more than microporus Teflon tape. Unlike tape, it hardly stretches. It pulls apart at the seams and forms leaks where the shoulder straps of your pack stress the seams.

Then the dandruff is the worst. You don't want to breath in teflon dust.
I'm thinking of just cutting it out so I can continue wearing the nice outer shell as a light casual jacket.

I must have had better luck than some of you. I have worn Goretex-lined footwear for about 20 years, and gone through several pairs of boots with it. Sure, they aren't Wellingtons, but for hunting in rain, puddles, mud etc they keep my feet dry. They are a long way ahead of leather boots without the liner, even when those are treated regularly with various dressings.

I also have had rainwear with Goretex or similar breathable membranes, for about 25 years. I first bought such a coat, a NZ-made Swazi, back in the mid-90s, and it was an absolute revelation. After decades of various nylon, oiled cotton, PVC, wool and other options, whether alone or in combination, this finally was the solution to staying dry and comfortable through days of rainy weather. I like hunting in the rain, and this stuff makes it comfortable. That Swazi jacket was bloody expensive, but it was worth every penny, and I've had others since.

There's no way I'd willingly go back to oiled cotton/japara (heavy, tends to be smelly, and picks up dirt), nylon (laughably ineffective, fragile, and you sweat in it) or PVC (hot and noisy, and you sweat inside it too), wool (you just get wet, and then its cold and heavy).

YMMV

My Gore Tex.boots (three different pair) each stayed waterproof through two years of 10 to 12 hrs/day of daily wear. Never had one leak until I put a hole completely through the boot.

Gore Tex coats. I have a Cabelas Guide Series Parka about five years old. I wear it all day driving hyster in the rain. Last time I used it was on the boat fishing while about 1/2 inch of rain fell.

Still 100% waterproof. I was the only one on the boat warm and dry. At least from the waist up.

I've had several pairs of Gore Tex boots from Danner, Irish Setter and Cabela's over the past 20 odd years. Hunt all day in snow, sleet, rain, crossing creeks, feet stay warm and dry. No way in hell I'll ever go back to treated leather or pac boots.

I have a set of west German milsurp goretex rain gear in flectarn camo. It's never not worked and I've used it for over 20 years. My FIL has a set of US Army goretex. Same story.
I ran Danner boots for years. Canadian model. The greater failed about the time they required a resole. No big deal. For the last two years I have ran Kennetrek boots with some sort of breathable and waterproof lining. They haven't failed me yet.

I've had generally good luck with Goretex lined boots. They work pretty well if you get good quality. But, as noted by others, if you plan on wading in the water for very long you need rubber boots. It's true that Goretex lined boots do not breathe as well as unlined boots, but they keep your feet a lot drier than the same boot that's unlined.

I almost forgot. I have a sitka three layer gore tex jacket and a sitka down filled jacket and bib with three layer gore tex. Those haven't leaked either.

I've worn gore-tex boots pretty much constantly for hunting the past 25 plus years. Danner, K-trek, Meindel, Hoffman, Salomon. Most performed pretty darn well. Beat the heck out of wet feet that's for sure. The more expensive all leather/goretex boots did the best and the lightweight nylon hikers(Salomon) did the worst. I'll keep buying goretex boots for snow and wet weather hunting/working/hiking.

Everyone I ever knew with Goretex boots had problems and leakage. One feller had his expensive Goretex boots fail on Mount Everest. I never trusted them from the very beginning, so I never purchased a pair. Only all leather boots for me. I like Thorogood and Red Wing's USA-made boots. I've also found no advantage to a dedicated "hiking" boot over a good work boot... and I've never had wet feet, unless I walked through water higher than my boot tops.

My story also. Actually, my first set was from Cabelas. 3 hours walking in steady medium rain and waist high grass, I was wet.

sent the set back. Same thing 2nd set. Pretty much across several other brands I have tried.

The only pretty good use I have found is snow machining at 0 to 32 degree weather. Good wind stopper, breathes well (one isn't exercising very heavily), and sheds solid precipitation well, even if it is melting some from body heat. Not enough wet produced to make it through the fabric. Usually.

Gore-tex insulated boots in the above conditions work quite well. And in fact, work better than the pants or jacket apparelunder other conditions. For a time. After a year or so of moderate to heavy use, not so well.

Break out the leather water-proofing... which would seem to my mind to cancel out the breathability thing.

I'll second Lonny.

gore-tex will leak at pressure points especially in a rain suit. we used to wear gore-tex while running the lakes bass fishing. anywhere you touched the boat or seat you would push water thru it. we bought walls microdenier suits and solved that problem. i still have a 20 year old walls suit that has never leaked .

What's microdenier?

I have had good luck with all the gortex products I have purchased over the decades. Had good luck with cabelas 2nd generation dry plus as well.
1st gen not so much. It was noisey.