06-09-2009, 12:19 AM
The orange cheapie PFD will do, if you don't have/want to wear it. Neoprene waders are cheaper, but breathable is much more comfy if you can spring for them. I bought mine from Bass Pro Shops for about $90, and I will never buy neoprene again. Judging from the stores you mention, you might be somewhere in SoCal. If so, Sports Authority has Hodgman breathable waders that go on sale sometimes for about $75-80 if I remember right. Don't know if you can wait for a sale though. You can get some good deals online if you dig through closeout sites.
As far as fins, nobody seems to use the hard strap-on type fins that you mentioned. Except for me. I am on my second pair (my first got chewed by my dog), and have been using them for years, probably over a decade. I have no problems with them, except that if you use the ones with the buckles, sometimes the buckles are a hassle.
Luckily (unluckily?) for me, when I bought my current pair of fins, they were the last pair at the store, and they didn't have the straps in the package. I was desperate, so I just bought them anyway. I laced them up with thin nylon cord (you could also use long shoelaces), and just double tie them. They work fine.
I also just responded to another post today about fins, where I mentioned the Fantastic Fridays sales at creekcompany.com. Every Friday, they mark down five items to 75% off. I have seen a couple of models of fins on there. I am kicking myself for not buying the lightweight fins on there when they were only 10 bucks.
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As far as fins, nobody seems to use the hard strap-on type fins that you mentioned. Except for me. I am on my second pair (my first got chewed by my dog), and have been using them for years, probably over a decade. I have no problems with them, except that if you use the ones with the buckles, sometimes the buckles are a hassle.
Luckily (unluckily?) for me, when I bought my current pair of fins, they were the last pair at the store, and they didn't have the straps in the package. I was desperate, so I just bought them anyway. I laced them up with thin nylon cord (you could also use long shoelaces), and just double tie them. They work fine.
I also just responded to another post today about fins, where I mentioned the Fantastic Fridays sales at creekcompany.com. Every Friday, they mark down five items to 75% off. I have seen a couple of models of fins on there. I am kicking myself for not buying the lightweight fins on there when they were only 10 bucks.
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