Footwear for chasing Luderick off the stones

[Pickles]

I need to upgrade my old Kaydee and volley’s both of which finally fell to its and rusted away. What do you blokes wear that is comfortable and effective off the rocks?

[rickmarlin62]

I buy cheap sandals from kmart  try and get partly enclosed toes  and black soles are grippier    next chice if you can find them are black soled  small studs grass sport shoes used for touch footie   i buy the sandals big enough to wear wetsuit socks in

[Killer]

Volleys and stainless steel plates - always.  I have a pair of commercial, rubber boots with lots of small 'spikes' in the soles. Next to useless in my opinion. That was $80 badly spent  

[Rebel]

I wear Adrenalin low cut rock fishing shoes. Seem ok better than the boots.

[noelm]

There's a bit at play here, rocks vary so much, some are covered in barnacles, some are slippery, some are steep, some rough, depending on where you fish will determine foot wear, my "secret" spot you could fish in a suit and tie, but when the sea is big, I fish a harbour, and shorts and bare feet/sand shoes are preferred, because it just flat concrete with water washing over it, so, depending on the terrain will determine what you need, safety is always the prime concern.

[Green Hornet]

On the slippery sandstone, south coast rocks either cleats or spiked wet suit boots are a must.

Spiked boots are comfortable but the negatives are the spikes wear out quickly and they are next to useless for kicking cabbage in for berley. When the spikes wear down you can instal those screws the trout guys put in their wading shoes with a bit of Araldite for added security.

Cleats can be uncomfortable for long periods, but I know a guy who sells these stainless steel ones and they are far better than anything I've ever tried commercially available. Excellent grip and as comfortable as you're going to find.

If you want a set of these cleats, message me and I'll give you his number.

[61 crusher]

After doing a bit of research a couple of years ago I came across these the cleats were painted & are made of steelthey are quite comfortable & into there second season & the points are starting to wear down. What I like about them is you can walk in & then slip them on & off as needed & come with a bag. A few months ago I came across them in a tackle store in eastwood with stainless cleats at the same price & bought them, he mentioned that they had tested lots of different versions & found these by far the best out there. They were originally made for climbing icy mountains, they’re available in 3 sizes & fit all types of shoes 

PM me if you’re interested 

[Koalaboi]

I used to use cleats but tired of them especially over rough or honeycombed rock where they are dangerous with it very easy to roll an ankle. The bolts used to secure them to my shoes would eventually press uncomfortably into the soles of my feet and I frequently managed to swing the heel cleat too close to my ankles resulting in cuts and bruises which were very painful.

Tried the wetsuit boots with steel spikes embedded in the sole but got sick of their weight and broken zippers.

I now use low cut wetsuit style shoes which are secured by a velcro tab across the top of the shoe and find them easily the best non slip footwear I have ever used. They are light and flexible and very comfortable. They are safe on uneven surfaces and provide a secure grip on slippery rock.

There's a couple of brands available and though I have only used one, they look very similar. I purchased my last pair online a month or two ago and they arrived within a couple of days.

I get a year or two out of each pair which is cheap given the number of hours I spend in them.

Highly recommended.

KB

Edited May 24, 2020 by Koalaboi

[61 crusher]

After doing a bit of research a couple of years ago I came across these the cleats were painted & are made of steelthey are quite comfortable & into there second season & the points are starting to wear down. What I like about them is you can walk in & then slip them on & off as needed & come with a bag. A few months ago I came across them in a tackle store in eastwood with stainless cleats at the same price & bought them, he mentioned that they had tested lots of different versions & found these by far the best out there. They were originally made for climbing icy mountains, they’re available in 3 sizes & fit all types of shoes 

PM me if you’re interested 

[61 crusher]

$70 to $80 approximately 

[Guest Guest123456789]

Those neoprene rock fishing boots are crap, so are cleats and so are those slip on spikes. Cost a fortune and last bugger all.

go to the rebel sport football boot bargain bin and find a pair of steel stud football boots. If they’re too small no matter you can cut open the front which is good for letting the water drain out anyway. These have lasted hundreds of sessions and grip incredibly well, especially on uneven rocky ground. I wear neoprene socks with them to stay warm.
 

Wear something else more comfortable though to get you to and from the ledge 

[BuckWild]

I have a pair Adrenaline rock fishing boots, but I end up wearing  Rip Curl Reefwalkers most of the time

[wazatherfisherman]

Just a warning for anyone wearing higher cut boots- make sure you can get them off easily in the water. Try swimming with them first. If you are washed in they can be like cement shoes- I experienced this once and went back to KD's then Volley's when they wore out. 

Volley's started being made in China and the quality became too poor to use

Like Green Hornet says plates are the go on most surfaces, especially for kicking cabbage in.

[savit]

Interesting topic.  Just wondering what would be an opinion on Volleys  Safety Steel  Toe sneakers  with added plates or studs ? They are heavier however the rubber is supposed to be more heavy duty.

[wazatherfisherman]

4 minutes ago, savit said:

Interesting topic.  Just wondering what would be an opinion on Volleys  Safety Steel  Toe sneakers  with added plates or studs ? They are heavier however the rubber is supposed to be more heavy duty.

Hi Andrew no good- I had my life-changing health event from wearing cleats and getting impact injury, so is important topic to me. Light-weight shoes with plates attached is important.

We used to put a "bar" inside shoe (volley's) to stop plate bolts pulling through, then 2 layers of home-made rubber "innersole" to prevent "bolt-strike" which is similar to plantar fasciitis often suffered by people wearing extreme high heels.

After changing to Kay Dee sandals we glued same thin rubber on top of sandal as they can "turn" when jumping, due to slick surface of plastic

[Green Hornet]

8 hours ago, wazatherfisherman said:

Hi Andrew no good- I had my life-changing health event from wearing cleats and getting impact injury, so is important topic to me. Light-weight shoes with plates attached is important.

We used to put a "bar" inside shoe (volley's) to stop plate bolts pulling through, then 2 layers of home-made rubber "innersole" to prevent "bolt-strike" which is similar to plantar fasciitis often suffered by people wearing extreme high heels.

After changing to Kay Dee sandals we glued same thin rubber on top of sandal as they can "turn" when jumping, due to slick surface of plastic

Aside from the steel cap type, there are actually two different types of Volleys and the more expensive pair is close in quality to the old Aussie made ones. They are a much better shoe for cleats.

Like Wazza said. I use a short piece of hoop iron strap under the insole, between the bolts to prevent the heads pulling through. Its the stuff builders use as bracing in house frames, its thin and extremely strong. With this, there's no need for extra insoles. Galvanised too which is a bonus.

I've tested Volleys with cleats in the pool and its a fact, your feet sink like a stone. So make sure you lace them loosely so you can easily kick them off, in case you ever need to. Oddly enough, my spiked wetsuit boots float and are easy to swim in. Perhaps the flotation differs between brands?

[Koalaboi]

20 hours ago, noelm said:

There's a bit at play here, rocks vary so much, some are covered in barnacles, some are slippery, some are steep, some rough, depending on where you fish will determine foot wear, my "secret" spot you could fish in a suit and tie, but when the sea is big, I fish a harbour, and shorts and bare feet/sand shoes are preferred, because it just flat concrete with water washing over it, so, depending on the terrain will determine what you need, safety is always the prime concern.

I agree strongly with noelm.

Started fishing for luderick off the rocks in the late 1960s so lots of trial and error with lots of different footwear options:

On relatively flat and slippery sandstone ledges, cleats and the other options written about here are fine. If not using cleats, scraping off some cabbage to burley the fish is easily done with your fish scaler...I find the neoprene shoes are sort of  OK for this.

On the Central Coast near The Entrance, I have a range of surfaces:

1. flat sandstone: cleats are fine as are all the others

2. uneven pebbly conglomerates: cleats are just OK depending on the size and hardness of the pebbles, spikes are much better

3. honeycombed surfaces: cleats = rolled ankles, spikes much safer

4. boulders: cleats not so good manouvreing from rock to rock with different slopes etc  spikes better.

5. sand anything goes!

6. barnacle covered rock: most styles work ok but as barnacles are found in the impact zone I tend not to fish in such exposed spots anymore (I'm 67) as they are low tide options and anyway, I have found the top half of the tide the go for blackfish off the rocks

Fishing away from home on hard rock platforms of basalt, granite and dolerite etc, I found cleats difficult as they don't bite into the rock as they do on softer sandstone surfaces...I suspect that would be true of other styles of footwear too.

We ended up solving the problem of bolts biting into the sole of your foot by using coathanger wire, which did rust after a while and though ok, they did rust needing replacement now and again, (always took some in the gear if the wire needed replacing while fishing)and the cleats were a bit loose.

One style of footwear on the rocks should never be used: thongs. It was and still is surprising the number of fishers you see wearing them.

So, as noelm said, you need to choose the right footwear for the spot you are fishing. When you think about it, we have to choose the right tackle, techniques etc for our fishing possies and footwear is just another thing to consider.

Tight lines.

KB

 

Edited May 24, 2020 by Koalaboi

[marks1984]

19 hours ago, Koalaboi said:

I used to use cleats but tired of them especially over rough or honeycombed rock where they are dangerous with it very easy to roll an ankle. The bolts used to secure them to my shoes would eventually press uncomfortably into the soles of my feet and I frequently managed to swing the heel cleat too close to my ankles resulting in cuts and bruises which were very painful.

Tried the wetsuit boots with steel spikes embedded in the sole but got sick of their weight and broken zippers.

I now use low cut wetsuit style shoes which are secured by a velcro tab across the top of the shoe and find them easily the best non slip footwear I have ever used. They are light and flexible and very comfortable. They are safe on uneven surfaces and provide a secure grip on slippery rock.

There's a couple of brands available and though I have only used one, they look very similar. I purchased my last pair online a month or two ago and they arrived within a couple of days.

I get a year or two out of each pair which is cheap given the number of hours I spend in them.

Highly recommended.

KB

I have a pair of these and so does my wife we got ours from a shop many Moons ago but in boot form they are awesome have not failed yet knock on wood

[Rob81]

I use these croc sneakers. Allows water to escape easily when I walk through water and grippy on rocks where cleats arent really required.

And then I use the same style cleats at 61 crusher. Ive had mine for probably five years now, with no rust. I wash them in fresh water once in a while and then just spray the metal bits with inox.

Ive seen people wear them out in about a year and a half, or sometimes the metal cuts through the rubber part that holds them over your shoes, but personally I've not had any of those issues (hence its still my first set).

 

[PaddyT]

im old school-cleats and KD's (ive still got one of the last pairs) but a pair of old runners with cleats are fine too, cleats are essential around sandstone based ledges with weed and the wonderful black slime we get on that. Up on the north coast on granite cleats are incredibly dangerous- i use TEVA or similar rubber sandles- these are also pretty good for the walk in - but the soles do wear out fairly quickly. Never tried the boots but have heard a couple of complaints about poor wear and tear.

[Pickles]

Many thanks Raiders, your comments were all very helpful 

cheers

Pickles (Bob)