I have hunted in rubber boots both insulated and non insulated for years now, with the thought that they prevented some scent from being deposited on the ground. Yet if you smell the bottoms of the things the rubber has a very strong odor!

How many hunt with rubber boots for scent control and what type do you use?

Jimmy,

I archery hunt almost exclusively in rubber boots. I have several pairs of LaCrosse Alpha Burly's - both insulated and non-insulated.

I don't think I've ever used a pair of them for hunting if I acquired them in the same year - sometimes TWO years. I scrub the heck out of the new one's, use them for turkey hunting etc. The smell dissipates after awhile.

I've tried a lot of them over the years, the Alpha Burly is my favorite. Great fit, and, they're pretty light.

I use LaCrosse too. Very comfy. They do stink. Tromp thru mud will help. Also snap some fresh pine tree limbs and close them in a bag together. Any pines in GA?

i wear leather sole Toni Lama shark skins

I to wear LaCrosse Alpha Burly's and have several pairs of - both insulated and non-insulated.
I've wore LaCrosse's for over 20 years.

Pretty much mirrors my findings

I wear mine (ruber) when it rains and leather when it doesn't.

Rubber boots won't turn mesquite thorns.

I do believe there is a scent advantage to using them, However, I don't.

I like to move around a fair bit, so I wear lace ups.

best hunting boots money can buy

I love hunting in rubber boots. My latest are Muck's. Very comfy.

While I'm conscious of scent, and try to control it, I also make it a point to not walk across trails or through the area in front of a stand where I expect to see deer, if I'm stand hunting. My favorite hunting of all is stillhunting, where I'm on the move, and any scent that I might leave is behind me in territory that I've already covered.

I wear comfortable leather waterproof boots. Rubber boots just don't get it, on my feet anyway, for long hikes. I like the feel of snugly laced up boots, and that's what I use.

I used to wear rubber boots exclusively . As my feet have aged I find I need more support on those all day still hunts that I just love to do . So it's Wolverines for me and cover scent , coon or fox pee .

Never wear rubber boots hunting and its raining 99% of the time during deer or elk season here. My leather boots are water proof.
I cover a lot of ground when hunting so pick boots for comfort and water proofness more then anything.
I suppose if I was hunting out of a blind or stand that I might try to keep from tracking my sent all around my hunt area.

My choice, comfortable and waterproof.

I do wear them but i mainly stand hunt. when i am hunting on the move i'd rather have leather

They aren't scent free, but my leather boots stink too and are also more prone to pick up a foreign scent compared to the rubber IMO.

Lacrosse Grange 18" uninsulated is all we need here in SC/NC. On the rare really cold morning a good sock and a chemical footwarmer is more than sufficient.

I wear Lacrosse Alpha Burly's for bow and sometimes rifle. Mine have held up well and are comfortable for me even on a couple miles hike in Michigan's U.P. big woods and swamps. I wear them mostly to keep scent down but their great around those swamps too. I wear them in the mud and let em sit out back at the edge of a field in wet grass over night to get rid of the new smell, but having said that one of the best hunters I know is a forester that has killed several big bucks wearing the same leather boots that he wears for work and sometimes around town.

I only wear rubber boots when its wet, hunt the wind and it won't matter if you have a bag of garbage around your neck. well to you it might

If I have bow in my hands, I'm wearing my rubbers.

I've had mine for probably 8 years. One of the best investments I've made. Great boot.

interesting, I have for the last 10 years or so gone with the less expensive RedHead rubber boots, a pair of non insulated and a pair of insulated for hunting hear in GA. My reply to the wind comment is that leaving scent on the trail can put it in a different position relative to the wind direction depending on how you get to your stand. The real question in my mind is do the darn things really make a difference regards scent on the ground!!!

Grizzly Bear links to the same boot I use (not exclusively), but regularly. I'm on my second pair and have been using the Maine Hunting boot since I was in my early 20's. The pair I use today has some thermal lining in the rubber portion.

and there is the question! the soles on those white soled boots don't have the same pungent rubber smell as the typical rubber boots you see...at least the ones my friend uses do not, maybe his are old...

Jimmy, my "newest" pair are about 15 years old, whatever smell they have may be noticable to the deer, but I can't smell them. However, I haven't ever put them up to my nose either!

I use LaCrosse Alpha's in pretty much all conditions. Insulated and uninsulated varieties.

CLB

Reminds me of seeing coon asses at the store coming up to hunt in Mississippi.

$300 worth of new camo and white shrimp boots.

LaCrosse
Pull ups or Lace ups
AMRA

Yup....creek crossings and swamps are common

I wear rubber boots only when I want something that is absolutely waterproof. Even then, inside moisture will eventually become an issue. I never worry about scent with any of my footware.

I wear LaCrosse Alpha Burly boots when it is cold and the plain old LaCrosse Grange when it is hot. The 800-1000gram Burly model is pretty warm for still hunting. I always spray my boots well with scent killer when I am around my hunting areas, even if I'm not hunting. I can't recall having a deer spook when crossing my trail. I believe in the scent killer stuff.

LaCrosse alphas for me as well. Although I believe one of my uninsulated pair is a set of Rocky's. They are old though, they are Advantage camo...

STX,

Built in snake protection ??

Paul.

I have used them religiously for the last fifteen years or so. I mostly bowhunt so scent control for me is paramount. The first time I had a doe group feed accross my entrance trail without smelling me made me a believer.

I wear plain old Lacrosse Grange till it snows, then 400 gram thinsulate Burlys. When I hunted a little further north I wore the Lacrosse pac boots with the replaceable liners.

I still haven't worn out my last pair of Granges in @ ten years. I just replace the foot bed liner with a new Dr. Schols liner each fall. Good product.

I usually wear LaCrosse rubber boots while walking to the stand and have seen many deer cross my trail and not act as they smelled me and then have my dogs trail me right up to the stand when the wife lets them out too early. miles

Here I am thinking, that picture shows way to much already and there you go and ask him about his snake protection...

use to have pair of snake proof boots but stop using them to hot and uncomfortable. i just pay attention to were i'm stepping when i'm out in the brush

STX....kinda reminds me of a Garth diddy: "Blame it all on my roots....I showed up in boots...and ruined your black tie affair..." you can fill in the rest. Freaking priceless and I love it!

Whoops, sorry CMG !

Paul.

there is no self respecting snake that could strike at those boots, be laughing too hard to hit one.

MUCK for last 3-4 years. love em, warm and comfy

and rattler proof


Woody Armor�
Premium Hunting Boot
New Mossy Oak Break-Up � SBR-MOBU

Designed to provide additional protection from attacks by snakes*** and stingrays.

* Full rubber upper provides improved resistance to snakebites
* Wrap-up toe bumper provides added protection toe protection
* Kick rim for easy removal
* MS-1 Outsole is rugged, aggressive and durable for maximum protection and stability
* Rubber design is scent-free for improved stalking abilities
* CR flex-foam bootie with four-way stretch nylon, 100% waterproof, lightweight, flexible and buoyant
* Breathable Airmesh lining
* Comfort range of -20� F to 70� F

***PASSING the TEST
This product was tested by personnel from Clyde Peeling's Reptiland using widely accepted test methodology. The product was filled with inflatable latex ballons that fit directly into the interior of the boots surfaces. A 5 foot Eastern Diamondback Rattlesnake was allowed to strike variuos portions of the boot. There were seven solid strikes to the toe and six solid strikes to the side. In no event did the snake bite penetrate and break the balloon when the boot was struck up to the top of the rubber overlay. A second 5 foot Eastern Diamondback was restrained by the handler and the fangs worked by hand pressure against the boot's surface at an angle to achieve greatest penetration. There was no noticable penetration to any of the camouflage portions of the boot.
This test is useful for general guideline purposes. Honeywell cannot assume liablility for injury resulting from the use of this product as protection from snakes. The wearer must assume responsibility for any injury incurred while using this product.

Muck Woody Max for bow and turkey season.

One day around 20 years ago a group of marketing guys were sitting around brain storming, trying to figure out a way to expand the market for rubber boots beyond commercial fisherman, farmers, gardeners, etc....you know people who actually need them. The lightbulb goes off and one of them says "Hey, how bout hunters....they are a gullible lot who will buy any damn thing"! "Here is the ticket....we camo em up and convince hunters that they will help them kill deer! A naysayer says "wait a second, I remember from freshman biology that deer are color blind animals....they will never buy it!" "Nah" says the first guy, "hunters already buy millions of dollars of expensive camo outerwear to hunt colorblind animals with.....they don't care! Okay then, get Bill Jordan on the phone and order some of his camo patterns. A third genius pipes up "we need a few articles in hunting magazines about "scent control"....get a few of those guys on the blower"!

So, they painted their boots camo, tripled the price and put them in Bass Pro and Cabelas...the rest is history! Even sweeter is the fact that the boots are made in China costing them about $10 per pair and they sell them for over $100!

I gather, by your sardonicism, that you're not a fan of rubber boots.

Back in the day when we had quail, all the bird hunters wore that style of boot but as I recall they were Red Ball. It was a lot more than twenty years ago. miles

Hunters around here have been wearing them for a lot more than 20 years. Of course they didn't know they needed the camo ones back then.

Should have mentioned that the farmers and dairy men wore the old Black gum boots that pushed your socks to the ends of your toes. miles

I bought a pair of Muck boots about six years ago and absolutely love them. I have hiked pretty long distances in them over rugged terrain and do not feel that they are inferior to lace-up boots if you hunt on the move. If you hunt areas that may have swamps, sloughs or creeks they are far superior to lace-ups. These boots are far from a marketing gimmick.

I agree with RJY66
.

Ummmm, what do you and RJY do when you come to a swamp?

Spend a day still hunting this and you will wish you had them.
LaCrosse alpha work just fine.

Nice..........

The closest I ever came to frostbite was caused by rubber boots. I was hunting in a foot of snow on a clear, warm day. By noon, my feet were wet with sweat. Then a front moved in, the temp dropped at least 20 degrees or more and my wet feet started to get cold. REAL cold. I had a 2 mile hike back to the truck where I could get them dried out.

Gore-tex is much better but a long way from perfect. Your feet will stay dry, but the insulation is on the OUTSIDE of the membrane and it will get soaked. Your feet will be dry but inside a tub of ice water. I've never figured out why they can't put the insulation on the inside of the membrane.

If I could clarify....

I was mostly having fun in that post yesterday morning. If you are going to be mucking through lowlands and snow on a regular basis, certainly a pair of rubber boots are called for. Just don't pay extra for camo if you are going to be deer hunting, the olive green ones are fine....haha! It is the "scent control" aspect of wearing them I am dubious on and was poking fun at.

If ya'll are worried about the deer smelling your footprints on a trail here is an idea regardless of what type of footwear you choose to use. Scrub your feet in the dirt and leaves on the forest floor before you begin your hunt.....all the better if you find a downed tree in the process of decay. Voila! "Fresh earth" cover scent!

I live in farm country and there used to be a man that lived here that would keep an oil squirt can full of diesel and he would spray a little on his boots before walking to his stand. He killed some nice deer. miles

i use the woody armor by MUCK. I have no complaints. I prefer them to lace up because they are slip off and on and waterproof all the way up!

Problem with your little theroy is.... mine aren't camo.

I always get a kick when at the gas station at 0 dark thirty and I see guys heading to the woods that are wearing their rubber 'scent free' boots while gassing up their truck.

I used to wear rubber boots when I did a lot of hunting from box stands, but now the very rough terrain that I hunt plus the long hike in requires a good leather boot.

Boots like the alpha burly have thei place and work well BUT you have to do your part to actually help reduce sent. Only wear them in the woods, store them in a garbage bag or big tuppaware container with some sort of natural sents ie pine branches, leafs and what not. I do this with my hunting clothes and don't buy any of that scent lock stuff. Its an old trick handed down from my wifes grandfather and I think it works better than any of the scent control stuff.

Yes. Sometimes when I am just walking to a stand. I figure they smell less than the leather. I try to find cow piles either way. Seems like the most natural cover scent where I hunt.


stumpy

Ahhhh, 10-4.

I'll also add that in addition the the LaCrosse boots I have, I also like the lighter insulated Bean boots. Very comfortable and you'd be surprised how quiet they can be while still hunting.

CLB

I always wear my old LL Bean 8 inch boots.

For over 25 yrs., I wore northerner pac boots[all rubber], for both coon and deer hunting. Now that I have some feet issues, I wear a pair of irish setter hunting boots with 800 grams of thinsulate. Still kill the same number of deer, every season.


maddog

Bean boots for me, in numerous heights and insulations

I've killed truck loads of deer & I have never wore a rubber boot hunting.. I see guys that do. I just think it is Ridiculous! My leather boots have rubber soles, that will have to do... lol

Rubber boots are hell on your feet in steep rugged terrain, not enough support, I don't use em, if I lived in flat country I would, I do like the idea.................Hillbilly.

MUCK Woody Armor snake proof during turkey and bow season. Lacrosse (non-insulated) and Schnee's pac's (when cold). The rubber doesn't allow scent to pass through (same as it doesn't breath and sweat can build up)...it's really the best "scent lock" out there. I don't put much stock in scent lock clothes, unless you don't breath, it's the wind that matters, but in boots I think it's better not to leave a scent trail on the ground. Of course, what you walk through on the way makes a difference...walk through gas at the gas station and you'll leave a petro trail on the ground...but it's not coming from inside of the boot.

I hunt some rough mountain sides and have no problems with rubber boots aside from tire tread outsoles being slick. How well conditioned you are can make a big difference here. They will never be as supportive as a lace up but if you're well conditioned they won't slow you down much.

JCM

the alpha burly's I tried on were too tight across my instep, I looked at some mucks...

These work...not with my fat feet in 'em, but they seem to work in the application at hand!

I use Rocky's sometimes if the weather or the area calls for it. There is no do it all boot. One needs a few different kinds depending on where you are hunting.