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Drake Waterfowl Gear Comments

7K views 32 replies 31 participants last post by  ChattanoogaDuckHunter 
#1 ·
I'm interested to see if everybody is having the same results from Drake Waterfowl gear as I am/we are

2 of us ordered their new late season waders. $300 rockets. On both pairs the boots were glued together. Couldn't even get our feet in them. Called Drake and the lady told me to just shove my feet through the glue as they have been having this problem lately. So I did. Tore the lining and sent them back. My other hunting buddy had his for one year and the stitching came undone and they leaked in the crotch. I also looked around on some other treads and seems like this is a common thing with their waders.

Sam buddy with the leaky waders was sliding his gun into the scabbard Saturday afternoon and the gun barrel went right threw the end. Stitching tore right out.

I have a Drake EQ Jacket. 2nd season of hunting. Looked down Saturday morning and the zipper had fell apart and rendered the zipper unusable. :hammer:

At this point I beginning to see a pattern.

Anybody else having my luck?
 
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#2 ·
I have the mid season wader jacket now... 2nd season.. no issues... I like that the top is nylon to cut wind and drips, and the under wader is lighter... we will see if it holds up...

the wader thing is redonk. Oh we know we have had this issue, yet we sent them to you anyway.? UMMM NOPE.
 
#4 ·
I too have had several issues with their LST waders, but they've done a decent job standing behind their product. 1st pair bought in September 10 developed some crotch leaking midway through their second season (11-12 season). I called up for a new pair and said it would be about 4 weeks as they were backordered so I just gutted it out for the rest of the season and got a new pair shipped to me in February 12. Worked great for most of the 12-13 season, but with 2 weekends to go in January 13 another case of the moist sack :lol: developed. Called them once the season was over and they admitted there was something of an issue going on, but a new product would come out summer of 13 that would solve the crotch leaking. Decided I would wait for the new pair.

Here is where I was a little frustrated...I called up, story in hand, they said they understood the issue, but if I wanted the new pair I would have to pay $100 towards (or I could get one of the old pair for free) getting the new set. I decided to go ahead and pay the money and get the new style. Figured it would be worth it just to test them out.

I will admit I've only had them on once this season (most of our weather has been warm enough to use my breathables), but they kept me warm. A word of warning. If you're just an average or above average size guy, I would seriously think about going with the stout size. I'm 6'2" 165lbs and I have the size 12 and they are a pretty snug fit when wearing a jacket. Other downside (or plus side if you walk in deep water) is that the arm pits come up higher on this pair which can restrict the use of the inside hand warmer pocket.

I didn't have any issues getting into the waders for the first time, but they are a little bit stiff (which should go away once they get worn in I would imagine). If these waders develop a leak in them the first two/three years I can say I will be done with drake equipment in-so-far as their waders are concerned (haven't had any of their other products). Their customer service has been fairly good to me, but I can't keep expecting them to send me a new pair of waders every time they develop a leak.
 
#5 ·
I, too, had a pair of the LST waders a couple years ago. They develped the leaky crotch through the seam. I am pretty hard on equipment, so I just chocked it up to crossing barbed wire fences and climbing in and out of boats...but the more I read and hear, maybe the waders are flawed. Makes for a miserable hunt in waste deep water!

All their other products have treated me well, though!
 
#6 ·
I own their 1/4 zip MST jacket. I've worn it for 4 seasons now and it's held up just fine.

I did have to sew a rip in the armpit, but I'm guessing that is from trying to pull it over heavy layers of clothing the first year I owned it. It was my only waterfowl jacket so I had to make it work from early season to breaking ice season. I now have a Cabela's jacket for the late season stuff.

I'd have no issue recommending it to people.

I also have one of their hats. If you have a small head it might work for you. If you have a large head, the bucket of the hat isn't deep enough to sit on your head right.
 
#9 ·
I have 2 drake jackets......they are crap......the rain shell is not waterproof and the zipper covers face the wrong direction so the water runs in and leaks thru the zipper........the MST wader jkt (3rd one) hoods need the snaps glued to stay on, the wind zipper protector the covers the neck from the zipper gets caught every time......had to sew it out of the way!!!
I like the magnet and spring pockets..........not overly warm or waterproof!!
my experience with Drake is their stuff had some good features but quality is CRAP.......anyone notice the Cabela's doesn't carry much of it any more....gee I wonder why!!!
 
#11 ·
Est pullover parka and pants soaked through from the get-go until Nikwaxed, and the parka still lets water in the chest pocket openings. Pants design is drawcord, rather than full fly, and correct inseam wouldn't pull up over my narrow tail, so there's no way most adult men with my inseam length are getting them on. Wrote Drake nice polite letter about that flaw and received no response.

That said, I like the parka as an outer layer on dry days and have only had to resew the collar seam after frequent wear over several seasons.
 
#12 ·
Ordered a Drake wader-style pullover jacket several seasons back in XL sizing. It was closer to a large M in actual fit & wound up selling it to a buddy for his son in lieu of returning it.

Ordered the Cabela's Dri-Plus insulated anorak style pullover as a replacement garment. Have used it for ~9 seasons w/o any hitches or leaks. It is my go-to jacket for temps below 20 degrees.

Wonder if Cabela's has their stuff manufactured in the red China industrial sector instead of the black China sector which appears to be where some of these other outfits go for their labor?
 
#13 ·
I've got one of their windproof layering jackets that has been great. I've also got a pair of their bonded fleece pants and a pullover. Kind of pricey but they are warm, however they will soak though during a sustained rain. Just bought a pair of the new style 2.0 LST waders. I was very hesitant of buying them considering the horror stories I've heard on several sites about Drake waders leaking. I've only hunted them about 6 or 7 times and they have been great so far. Time will tell but all of the seams are glued over and seem to be well put together. My only gripe so far is that the boots are extremely wide, and seem to be huge around the ankle. Waders themselves fit great, sides come up right below my armpits.
 
#14 ·
I don't hunt in the rain or at least a heavy rain so I don't care how waterproof it is.

I've not had any real problems with my drake gear. I've owned several of their MST jackets and they all are great overall. I agree they could be warmer but I dress in layers so not a big issue.
 
#15 ·
I have a few Drake products because a buddy of mine used to staff for them. My take is that their clothing has great design and ideas and poor execution. The hardware, zippers, etc are just made from cheap, crappy material and don't hold up. Here's what I own:

Shoulder bag-this is my 4th season with it, one of the zipper pulls broke almost immediately when I got it but other than that it's been a really good bag. This year I siliconed all the seams on the bottom because they were starting to leak but the panels are still waterproof. The clear plastic on the underside of the flap has a big crack in it.

Under wader pants- my 3rd season with them, they are fleece lined and warm. I wear mine under breathables and they help me stay nice and dry. The crotch split last year and I got my wife to sew it up. No issues other than that.

Big mouth decoy bag-4th season with it, it's held up well. No complaints.

Stand-up decoy bag- 2nd season with it. I have the XL size one, it's great for hunting out of boats. Makes it really easy to pick up and bag texas-rigged decoys. My favorite decoy bag honestly. Not really comfortable to wear backpack style so I just use it as a boat bag. No problems.

Double Duty Decoys-mine are 4 years old. I never use the keels, I know they had some problems with the tabs breaking off. I really like these decoys, the paint has held up really well and they are super lightweight. They can be a pain to set out because you can't toss them, you have to set them individually on the water. They do move really well in the breeze though. I bought mine secondhand but I wouldn't hesitate to buy new ones.

Long story short, their actual gear seems to be OK but their clothes and waders could use some improvement. They are certainly better than Avery though (what isn't.)
 
#17 ·
m y 1st floating gun case was a Drake, I used it to carry my gun everywhere, but after only my 3rd actual hunt I noticed the barrel stickin out the end! took it back to Gander and they swapped it out for a Primos one.

I do have a MST equader 1/4 zip that the gf got me for my birthday, 2 years of hard huntin and not a single issue

I like Drake, but I am a bit leary at times of their products
 
#19 ·
The waders are junk. Period. There are too many other brands out there for comparable prices that last so much longer on average than their sorry excuse for a wader. The 3-in-1 jackets look nice on paper, but all those pockets on a meant to be waterproof jacket leads to multiple openings for water to seep through. They bought a company (McAlister) who, at one time, made some of the most durable waterfowling gear on the market. Their quality can also be seen declining. I'm ashamed to say that I jumped on the Drake bandwagon at one point only to see my hard earned, part time college job money being pissed away. And dear lord don't expect any kind of customer service. For the most part I was basically given the tough luck approach to their falling apart products. Is it that obvious that they left an awful taste in my mouth?
 
#20 ·
I'm on the same page as you are. I bought the LST 4-in-1 parka last year. Believed the 100% waterproof claim on the $250 jacket. Wore it that weekend in the blind in 20 degrees and pouring rain. Had my phone in the front pocket of the liner, not the shell, and water proceeded to soak through the shell and ruined my phone. I then got frostbite. After several days of arguing with the rude folks at Drake, I got a refund due to their false claim as to the jacket being waterproof.

Buddy of mine has a pair of MST waders and can't stand them. The arm seams are so low on him they're practically hip waders!

Not sure about ya'll, but Drake just seems to have downright crappy overpriced products..
 
#21 ·
Hands down WORST hunting gear I've ever owned! Will never buy Drake anything again. I owned a 4 in 1 jacket which leaked like a screen door, LST waders (3 pairs from sending them back, all which leaked), a blind bag which was about as waterproof as toilet paper (toilet paper was of higher quality too) and a "waterproof" ball cap, which of course, wasn't waterproof. Their customer service wasn't the best in my experience either.

This is the only brand of waterfowl equipment that I've owned that I will NEVER own again. PURE DOG****.
 
#23 ·
I have a MST 1/4 zip pull over and that thing is awesome. Was very surprised how warm it is. Was out yesterday in 12* temp and 15 mph wind and never thought about getting cold. Waterproof too. I have heard some bad stuff about Drake, but this one is a keeper.
 
#24 ·
I'm going broke mailing leaky waders back and forth with them. This pair, 2.0's, is leaking after 5 hunts. I'm keeping them and will seal the hell out of the from both sides and hope.

I can't believe I recommended them to my hunting buddy. Glad he did listen.

O2Fsh
 
#25 ·
Almost forgot.... If you have a pacemaker DON"T order their jackets!! From personal experience, the magnets in the magnattach pockets interfere with pacer operation. Longest hunt of my life trying to figure out why my pacer was shocking the crap out of me. Found the zipper hanger warning in the trash where I threw it out of pure joy at getting the jacket I'd saved up for.

Called Drake and spoke with a live person and he said the warnings in the ads are cut out by their copywriters to same space. Seems like a B-S answer now.

If you have a pacer, beware of their magnattach pockets....strong magnets affect our pacers.

O2Fsh
 
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