Paramount Waders and Wading Boots

Who Paramount Outdoors is

Paramount Outdoors makes fly fishing waders and headwear and lists hunting gear, performance apparel and wading boots on its site. The home page puts the company in Guntersville, Alabama, and says its breathable waders are made in South Korea. I could not find a founding date or a company history on the pages I opened, so I won't give one.

What Paramount sells on Amazon US now

At our last check (October 2026) we track 23 Paramount listings: 16 waders and 7 wading boots. The table above shows all of them. If you see a dash, the value is not confirmed. "Maker" means Paramount's own page states it, "claimed" is a maker claim with no independent standard, and "listing" means only the Amazon listing says so.

The Paramount waders divide into five groups.

Stockingfoot chest waders. The core of the range: Deep Eddy, Deep Eddy Zippered, Stonefly, EAG4 (listed as EAG Elite 4), Meridian, Meridian Z, Whetstone II and the women's Whetstone. The maker lists breathable construction, mostly four layers, gravel guards and a one-year warranty. The Deep Eddy runs from Small to 4X with stout options, the EAG4 from Small to 3X, the Meridian and Meridian Z from Small to 3X, and the Stonefly and Whetstone II from Small to 2X.

Waist-high pants. The Fast Eddy and the Slate (plain and zippered). Stockingfoot, breathable, gravel guards. The Fast Eddy and the Slate Zippered list four layers per the maker; the plain Slate lists none.

Hip waders. The Emerger is a stockingfoot breathable hip wader with three layers per the maker.

PVC bootfoot. The Slipstream PVC hip boots (cleated) and the Slipstream PVC bootfoot chest wader with a felt sole. Nylon and PVC is the old, durable, non-breathable construction.

Insulated and standing waders. The Buffalo, an insulated breathable bootfoot chest wader with 1,200 g boots and a 120 g removable zip-out liner, and the GWT, a breathable bootfoot with 800 g boots. Both are listed by the maker for fishing and hunting.

The wading boots

Seven boots are in our data: Stonefly Cleated, Deep Eddy Cleated (men's and women's), Slate Felt, Women's/Youth Stonefly Felt, Slate SR Sticky Rubber and Salt Flats Surf. The cleated and sticky-rubber boots list a stud-compatible sole and drainage ports, and the Salt Flats is a neoprene-upper wet-wading shoe. Two use felt. See the wading boots page for the wider market and the felt sole page for what felt does and where it is restricted. Our felt vs rubber guide explains why.

A note on names. Deep Eddy, Fast Eddy: an eddy is the calm, circling water behind a rock, which is exactly where you want to be standing in a river, so the naming at least aims at the right place.

How to read the Paramount rows

Height. Chest, waist (pants) or hip. Chest waders reach the chest and need a belt. Waist-high pants end at the waist. The wading pants page and the waist waders page cover them.

Foot. Almost all are stockingfoot, which means a neoprene bootie and a separate wading boot. The booties are 4 mm in most of the data, with the thickness from the listing on a few. The bootfoot exceptions are the Slipstream PVC chest wader, the Buffalo and the GWT.

Material type and layers. Breathable for most, nylon and PVC for the Slipstream. Layers are a construction claim. The maker lists four for most pairs and three for the Emerger.

Insulation. Only the bootfoot pairs list it: 800 g, 1,200 g.

Fit. Stout options appear on the Deep Eddy and Deep Eddy Zippered, and sizes run as far as 4X.

Warranty. One year, defects in materials and workmanship, for the waders that list it.

The main series and who each suits

Deep Eddy. The widest sizing in the range and a zippered version. It suits an angler outside the common size range, or one who wants a zip. The maker lists four layers and gravel guards.

Stonefly. A breathable stockingfoot wader from Small to 2X, and the name of the matching wading shoe and the women's/youth felt boot. It suits an angler who wants a straightforward wader plus a boot of the same line.

Meridian and Meridian Z. The Meridian is a four-layer stockingfoot chest wader and the Meridian Z adds a zip. Both list gravel guards and are labelled for fly fishing.

Whetstone and Whetstone II. The women's Whetstone is a four-layer chest wader in sizes Small to XL, labelled for fly fishing. The Whetstone II is a men's chest wader with a 4 mm bootie.

Slate and Fast Eddy. Waist-high pants for warm days and shallow wading. The Slate Zippered adds a front zip.

Emerger. A hip wader, light and simple. It suits small streams and shallow crossings.

Buffalo and GWT. For standing in cold water from a bank or boat.

Warranty

Paramount's warranty page says one year from the original purchase date, with proof of purchase, covering defects in materials and workmanship. It excludes damage from unreasonable use, misuse, accidents or alterations, ordinary maintenance and care, general wear and tear, commercial use, and incidental or consequential damages beyond repair or replacement. You can return the product to the dealer, who decides whether it is defective and either replaces it or refunds the purchase price. Or you can email Paramount for a return authorization. Paramount then tests the product and repairs or replaces it if it is defective, and does not give cash refunds. The page applies the terms to waders.

One year is a common figure in this part of the market. If the waders will be used hard, I'd read the exclusions before the headline.

Sizing

Stockingfoot waders are bought by body size and the wading boots by shoe size. Paramount's size chart is on its site, and our Paramount waders size chart guide shows how to measure. In short: measure chest, waist, inseam and height, compare them to the chart for the exact model, then check the stout options if your torso is long or your build is broad. Boot size for wading boots must allow for the neoprene bootie and a sock. Our general wader size chart guide covers the measuring technique.

I haven't read enough buyer feedback on Paramount fit to say whether the waders run large or small.

Choosing between Paramount waders

Four questions sort the range.

1. Chest, waist or hip? Chest for depth and cold, waist for warm days and shallow water, hip for creeks.
2. Zip or no zip? A front zip makes getting in and out easier, and adds a component to keep clean.
3. Do I need stout or the biggest sizes? The Deep Eddy covers the widest range in the data.
4. Do I walk or stand? Walk in stockingfoot with separate boots. Stand in bootfoot.

Common mistakes

Choosing waist-high pants for deep wading. Water over the top fills them. Pants are for shallow water.

Skipping the belt. On chest waders, a snug wading belt limits how much water enters in a fall.

Buying felt without checking the rules. Felt is restricted in some places. Check where you fish.

Forgetting boot size. In stockingfoot waders the bootie goes inside a boot, so size the boot with the bootie and a sock on.

PVC hip boots and the Slipstream

The Slipstream PVC pieces are the simple end of the range. Nylon and PVC is a rigid, waterproof construction with no membrane, so it does not breathe. The hip boots list a cleated rubber sole and boot sizes 8 to 13, and the bootfoot chest wader lists a felt sole. They suit a farm pond, a boat ramp or a muddy bank where you stand more than you walk. Hip-height gear is for shallow wading only, and our guide on how to wear hip waders explains how deep is too deep.

Women's and youth sizes

The women's Whetstone chest wader runs Small to XL, and the Women's Deep Eddy Cleated boot runs women's sizes 5 to 10. The Women's/Youth Stonefly Felt boot lists combined labels such as W5 Y3 up to W10 Y8, which means the same boot size serves a small woman and an older child. Youth sizing in waders is a different matter: if a child will wear waders near moving water, an adult should be within reach, and a wading belt and a life jacket in boats are basic. See the youth wader size chart.

Paramount compared with other stockingfoot makers

Paramount competes with other fly-fishing wader makers on specification and warranty. Frogg Toggs lists a four-layer Hellbender Pro with a one-year warranty, and Compass 360's Deadfall lists a PTFE membrane, four layers and a one-year warranty. Within the maker data we hold, Paramount's one-year warranty sits at the same level. Our best fly fishing waders page shows how a written rule applies across brands, and the Frogg Toggs page covers that maker.

Care in short

Rinse the waders after each trip, hang them to dry inside out out of direct sun, and store them without sharp folds. Check gravel guards and boot cuffs for wear, and patch small holes early. Our wader repair guide and how to find a leak guides cover patching and sealing.

Where to go next

Start with waders, then stockingfoot waders, breathable waders and chest waders. For women's options see women's waders. To compare with other brands, the best fly fishing waders page applies a written rule.