Looking for a dry suit!

Hi Folks,

as the cold wintertime nears I am in the market for a nice dry suit.

I am strongly interested what the wetpixeler's consider as a good option.

So far I have no real preferences yet, but I strongly like the optics of

Eric Cheng's Oceanic Dry suit and the Waterproof Antarctic 2000 Z.

Let me know what you would buy and what you think is best value

for money.

Thanxx, Andi

If you travel with a dry suit, as I frequently do, consider weight and packing size. Many suits are quite bulky and crushed neoprene is VERY heavy and takes a long time to dry. I've been using the DUI TLS 350 for that reason and been very happy with it. I don't know its European availability and support, though.

Regards,

Things to consider:

What type of diving? (wreck, reef, boat, beach, etc)

Will you travel with it?

Budget?

Answer these question and it will narrow down the suggestions.

I've owned all three types of suits. Crushed neoprene are way above as the best suits to use and wear. Weight and and drying time for travel may not be the best with these suits. I use the Diving Concepts 2 mm crushed neoprene and it's the best suit I've ever used.

Hi Andi,

I live and dive alot in the Northwest (USA). DUI is very popular here and you see a variety of their styles worn. I chose the CF200, which is crushed neoprene, for it's durability and close fit. As others have said, it takes a while to dry out and probably wouldn't be the best choice if you travel alot. I'd go with the TLS350 as well if I had to pack it after diving and travel. They are not cheap however but would last you for a long time.

Rand

As said above, if you don't plan to travel with it and you have the money go with the DUI CF200. It is bulletproof just a PITA to dry.

Thanks Guys,

after a first glimps I am more into crushed neopren too, but the DUI is just so

goddamn expensive. Also I will travel north with this suit a few times in my life.

But I think most of the time it will be used in destinations that I can reach by

car. Can you be more precise how long it takes to dry them? Days, hours?

hi andi

thought id add my bit .

i dive on the south coast of australia most of the diving here is temperate .

dry suits are becoming much more popular here , and the majority of them are neoprene .

i use an apollo neoprene suit(custom made).

i like the neoprene coz

-u get warmth out of the suit (unlike shell type)

-they can be custom made (helpfull if u arnt the standard size)

- cost . mine was about $1800 ozi dollars about $1080 us

yes my suit is a bit bigger to pack up than a shell suit , but all my gear still fits in a standard dive tub so no issue there.

?? how long to dry out ,,mm... how long is a piece of string .

i leave my suit to air dry at the end of a dive weekend . couple of hrs in a breezy place takes away most of the moisture , hang it up again when u get home to get it totally dry .

there are down sides to a dry suit ... some people actually dont like them .

but i love mine and would never want to dive in cold water without one.

* also invest in good polopro under garments its worth it

i dont think there is a right or wrong decision just what works for u

reguards

matty

My wife and I did not want to dive wet here in the Puget Sound, so we bought a pair of Bare NexGen drysuits before our first open water training dives. We've been very satisfied so far. The primary driving force in our purchase decision was the low price. We now have about 20 dives on the suits, and no signs of wear yet.

I dive in Sydney, Australia, and use a DUI FLX 50/50 and am very happy with it, but as has been mentioned they are expensive, A friend has recently been looking at suits with my help and she decided on the Polar Bear Brand which is made in the UK, I think it was about $1500 (australian pesos) which I think was great value, you may be able to get it cheaper being closer. Another option worth looking at are the Gates suits (who I think now maunfacture as Hunter) good luck! once you go dry you'll wonder why you didn't years ago!

One more quick comment regarding neoprene suits. Think how long your wet suits last. That's about how long a neoprene dry suit is going to last (a few years of heavy diving). Now crushed neoprene is a different story as it will probably last longer than you want (it will be long out of style but you won't have an excuse to buy a new one). On the other hand you might be able to buy two neo's for the price of one crushed neo. Food for thought.

For all around best of everything type suit I have found the shell Otter suits excellent. The cordura material they use is heavier than any other I have seen. (and I have seen them all since I manufacture for the dive industry) They use 6 pitch BDM zippers whcih are the best made. Their latex seals are heavier than any I have seen in a US suit maker. They have real boots. This material is just as tough as crushed neoprene and dries nearly as fast as a lighter wgt shell suit like the CF 350. They have the most complete list of options there is and the price was so affordable I thought they made a mistake.

www.drysuits.co.uk

Check them out.