Wet suit repair

Hi. Anyone have any tips on repairing small/medium tears in wet suits?

Any alternative to Aqua seal that can be found anywhere?

Cheers

Hi. Anyone have any tips on repairing small/medium tears in wet suits?

Any alternative to Aqua seal that can be found anywhere?

Cheers

Depends where the tear is.....

You could find a neopreane off cut and glue a patch on the inside, You could have a section removed and a replacement piece sewn and glued into place.

If on a knee or elbow you could glue a knee protector over the top

Or you can patch it with Aquaseal....

If it is near a seam you probably want it stiching as well or the glue will pull apart. If the suit is quite old and has split due to wear and tear don't be supprised if once repaired it then splits in another place......may be cheaper and easier to get a new suit...

Duncan

Duncan

cheers

only for small tears

when you can get a 7mm for $200AU its not worth going to too much trouble

plus the neoprene would be compressed by the time it starts to wear

so yep, just for little, new nicks and cuts

For small nicks and cuts, Aquasure is best.

Tip I use is to pre-heat the tube for a minute of two in some hot water, helps it flow a lot better.

If I do any sewing on a suit I also use a small spot of aquasure to help seal the threads at the ends / seam joints.

Cheers,

Richard B.

p.s. Heard a rumor that Black Witch isn't made anymore :-( I've made many a dodgy repair with the little red tubes ! (Black Witch and Aquasure are very different, for what you want use Aquasure, I was only remanising about black witch.)

HI All,

I use Black Witch which you can still get it in the UK. Stoney Cove in Leicestershire Sell it & I think their are many

different outlets in the UK.

Andy

For small nicks and cuts, Aquasure is best.

 

Tip I use is to pre-heat the tube for a minute of two in some hot water, helps it flow a lot better.

Another quick tip - if you store it in the freezer it will last almost forever - however, you do need to wait for it to thaw before use !

Paul C

I use Picasso neoprene glue.

apply two layers on each surface with 5mins apart. when its touch-without-being-sticky-dry press it together. if you have nylon on the outside you can sow it after glueing.

hope im making sense.

Mads

- Aquasure.

For small nicks, cuts and bits missing, but not normally for bonding two seams (but it will).

It is very thick and fills holes etc nicely and gives a smooth tough finish.

Pour a bit into the hole etc and then let it set.

- Black witch (or other contact adhesive, Picasso etc.).

Used for joining pieces together.

Very thin film is used.

If on the surface such as to cover / seal a seam it will rub off as so thin.

Apply to both halfs, leave it to dry for 5 minute, mate parts together and will bond on contact.

Dry suits are more complex particualry membrane suits as the different materials can need different types of glue or even primers needed and if you get it wrong on a dry suit you get cold and wet, thankfull with a wetsuit it's a lot less important.

Cheers,

Richard B.

Membrane suits - use Dunlop S2000 two part contact adhesive.

Latex seals, and general suit repair.

Paul C

Cheers for all the help. Seems like Aquasure is the go.

The freezer trick sounds good as I had a container and it dried up.

Thanks guys/girls.

I bought some books from these guys earlier, and they are very knowledgeable...

http://www.airspeedpress.com/divesuit.html

I've used good ol' neoprene cement.

Done right, it is stronger than the material. I tore a hole in my 7MM gold core arm pulling it on and cement worked great!

I've also used it to make neoprene covers for equipment.

We re also fortunate here in SoCal to have a population of cheap surfers so we have folks that will do more major repairs quite reasonably.

My wife's favorite Henderson vest ended up with a split seam and for about $10-$20 we got it all fixed up.

... seems like Aquasure is the go...

Aquasure dries overnight, Black Witch and other neoprene cement dries between dives...

... Aquasure penetrates into foam and nylon mesh, but only when it's warm. It doesn't work so well on slick neoprene.

I use a fine stitch through the nylon cover and neoprene cement, and that works pretty well. It's useful when travelling, though I do have a little Aquasure somewhere, too.

Tim

Dont think we can get black witch here in OZ so might have to go with the Aquasure.

Thanks for the help guys.

Cheers