[REVIEW] Boa Closure System

After having torn several pairs of laces apart, we now just turn our wading boots on. This may sound a bit strange for strapping on a boot, but that’s exactly what you do with the Boa Closure System.

The laces on our wading boots eventually all failed on us. That’s no surprise as you rig the laces tight behind the eyelets on the upper part of the boot each time you put them on. In the long (or sometimes even mid-term or short) run this will damage the lace and make it break at a certain point in time. What we used to do was buy a new pair of laces and see how long they would last.

That was until the beginning of this year. At the end of 2014 I had my wading boots sent back to the manufacturer because they were failing on me – not the laces; the stitching came loose. The boot I had back then wasn’t in stock anymore, so the tackle shop owner offered me to try another type of wading boot. These boots were fitted with the Boa Closure System. At the time I wasn’t familiar with this technology, but the assurance that I could have the boots replaced by other ones if I didn’t like them won me over to give them a try.

The first thing that struck me is that putting on your wading boots is done so much easier and faster. Boa laces are made of braided stainless steel and they crank tight by simply turning the boot’s built-in, ratcheting dial at the top of the boot. Want to kick off your boots? Pull the dial, the wire loosens and step right out of the boot. This system has been successfully applied to ski and snowboard boots, athletic footwear, cycling shoes, skates, golf shoes, hiking shoes, horse boots and in water sports like wakeboarding and kiteboarding. And thus also fishing footwear.

Fishing rock marks was no problem, but after a session on the beach I really struggled to get my boots off – at a certain point I thought they were never going to come off again. Sand had gotten into the system behind the dial and clogged up the Boa components. It wasn’t after a proper rinse that I was able to get my foot out. The next thing I had to do was to screw the dial cap loose with the specialized Boa dial tool (that is supplied with the boots) and clean the system with lots of water to get all the sand out. This routine takes a bit of getting used to, but it’s no rocket science either.

Rinsing your boots is thus essential with the Boa Closure System – like with all fishing gear that is exposed to saltwater. Maintaining and cleaning the system by giving it a proper rinse, will make the wire more durable and keep the system working longer. After each use, pull the wire all the way out evenly on both sides and rinse, rinse, rinse. Of course nothing is going to last forever in saltwater angling, so in due time (hopefully that won’t be any time soon) the system probably will break eventually. Just make sure to carry a repair kit with you, as you can’t splice the wire.

After almost a full season of bass fishing, we can definitely say that the wire is far more durable than any fabric laces. Plus the Boa Closure System is very comfortable and convenient. No more hassle due to wet, worn and torn laces, but simply turn or release the dial to put on or kick off your wading boots.