Home Forums Hunting & Shooting General Big Game Snowshoe Selection

In snowshoes whats a good value. I wont use them alot so i dont want to pay much more than $100 but i also want i a decent pair so i actually enjoy using them. I would need a a weight range between 200 and 220 lbs. right now i am lookingat cabelas selection because of there coupons they have out, spend a 100 get $30 off. I live in SD and i will be in anything from hardpack on the flats to fluff in the black hills.

Thanks

It has been a while since I was in the market for shoes. I spend a lot of miles on them, we get around 200 inches per year.

One time I did get a pair from Cabela's. They are no longer marketed and were returned broken after one trip and it was cut short with a broken shoe.

You need to pay close attention to the construction of the bindings. The above pair had two 1/8th inch aluminum pop rivets per side. That is what held my foot to the shoe, at least for a couple of hundred yards.

If I was seriously looking at buying a pair of shoes from a catalog, I would look for old catalogs and see if they are still marketing them. If the shoe is no longer in the catalog one should seriously ask, why?

The loss of a shoe can be more than a minor problem.

My shoes are currently Sherpa's. Unfortunately they are no longer made. At the time I got them they still had a good reputation and were making the top of the line shoes.

Sportsman's Guide has some nice military surplus snowshoes; price is right and good construction...steel cable lacing and steel frame, a good open-country, big snow Michigan-type design.

They are quite light for their length (yes, I bought a pair last year but have yet to try em' out.)

10X56 min for your size.

Besides the weight requirement of what size shoe,you need to decide how you will use them. Are you looking for a trail shoe or a shoe that can get around in thicker treeded terrain.I use a pair of bear paws that I ot from Cablas years ago.

Atlas is a good brand.

Don't pinch pennies as the el cheapos will not hold up and it's money thrown away.

Just looked at those, and for $40 they seem exceptional value..They might not be as good as some of the civilian brands but they look ideal for keeping in a vehicle for emergency use, along with some of those Mickymouse boots from the same place..

Ya, they are more than adequate for regular use as well as an emergency. The bindings are set up for the Mickey Mouse boots; they adjust for leather boots (my preference when snowshoeing) but I haven't yet adjusted the nylon bindings that come with the shoes for my leather boots, so no report there.

I always liked the leather H-style harness (still sold through Iverson's in MI); the rubber inner tube style is supposed to be good with the pac/Mickey boots but I need to see a pattern for making those.

The Atlas' also have a good rep, and my pal likes his old Sherpas...sometimes Craig's List has older, like-new Sherpas for almost nothing....

Good luck with your purchase...

I have always had good luck with Iverson snowshoes. Of course being from Michigan and all I may be a little bias toward them. The Michigan style have been the best for me when out in fairly deep snow. They're not the cheapest but they will last quite awhile and they can be re-laced and refinished. I have a pair of Cabela's that are aluminum frame and plastic web and I can't stand them. They hold snow when it's fluffy and seem to be "slippery" when you get a little snow on top of them. Just my experience.





http://www.iversonssnowshoes.com/

That is perfect advice!!! If you buy cheap ones, not only will your legs feel it but they will not hold up!!

Bought a pair of TUBBS last year, put on 12 miles chasing coyotes the very first day I wore them, never felt better walking in snow. I wore them at least 30+ days in the feild last year and more than 200 miles total. They never fail in any way!!! The bindings were bad ass, fast on and even faster off. They are tight and never had ANY issues with them feeling uncomfortable. I got the 30" model and i'm about 185lbs. The 36" would not have been to big, but I wanted small a compact for hunting mode. In fact, as i'm wrighting this my wife strapped them on and is out walking the dogs now. She is small, and they don't fit perfectly but she flies across the top like nothing!!

I think I paid about $160.00 for them, if I had to buy new ones today and they were $250.00 I wouldn't even think twice.

The Backpack Hunting forum has lots of good info on showshoes.

I'd not be cheap when it comes to snowshoes. I use MSR Denalis with the 8" tails. I'd also borrow as many as possible before buying.


Travis

I have tried the cheap ones from Sportsmans guide, they lasted about 1 hour and broke, and I returned them. For the price, I maybe would consider them for an emergency pair for the truck but not for a good pair. At the end of last season, I picked up a pair of 1230 Atlas shoes for $170, Reg price was $239. Heard alot of good things about them, and alot of good product reviews, have not got to try them out yet, hope next weekend!

wow alot of good information, and iknew some was going to be to spend the extra money .

On my second pair of Snocraft, Norway Maine, Alaskan 10" x 56". Got them off e-bay last year.

Wood frames, gut web and leather bindings, which can serve you well in a emergency. Build a fire with the frame and boil the gut and binding for sustenance.