BARE HDC Tech Dry Review - The Drysuit From Hell

[Shinythings]

Back in February 2015 I ordered myself an HDC Tech Dry. My old Pinnacle Evo 2 suit had finally given in and started leaking. The Pinnacle suit was never a great fit for me, so I felt it was a good time to step up and get one that did.

I ordered a stock size and colour suit based on input I got from my BARE rep, and also the need to get a new drysuit ASAP. A Trilam Tech Dry that was ordered with my suit came in two weeks later. My suit was no where to be found. After five weeks my LDS contacted BARE and they found out that they were having issues with the new synthetic cordura material that the suit is now made out of and were waiting on new material to come over from China. BARE made no effort to contact my LDS to let me know there was going to be a hold up on the suit. It was now the beginning of April and I had been diving a spare suit for over two months.

The spare suit I had been using was a Nex Gen, size XL. The suit fit me quite well, but was a tiny bit too short, and borderline tight in the legs. After speaking with my BARE rep, he told me that the Nex Gen would fit tighter in the legs than that HDC, so I would likely be fine in an XL HDC suit. To be sure the new suit would fit I ordered a 2XL. I fit into the size charts well.

Finally, the first week of May my suit arrived - 10 weeks after ordering (it was supposed to be less than 2). The only problem was that I had now gone away for work for 4 months and wouldn't be back until September.

When I got back home in September I picked up the suit. To my disappointment, my LDS had stored the suit on display all summer in direct sunlight and the neck seal was already showing significant signs of wear and cracking.

Then I tried it on. It was much tighter in the legs than the Nex Gen I was diving previously (which was a size smaller, and supposedly less roomy than the HDC). None-the-less, the suit was mine and I had to live with it.

After my first dive the inflation valve baffle fell off (which also happened to a friend of mines HDC). After a 6 dive trip I made just after coming back home the pockets were coming unglued (again, my buddy with the HDC had the same issue). The neoprene "strive torso recoil" was also coming unglued. I continued to dive the suit until the middle of October. After less than two months of diving the suit it was leaking - a lot. One of the seams in the crotch had come apart.

I spoke with my LDS about sending the suit back to BARE. I wanted to speak with the rep before that happened so my LDS sent a request to the rep. As this was the week before DEMA, it took over two weeks to get a response.

My concern was that the suit did not fit the way I was told, which likely contributed to the crotch seam coming apart. I wanted them to find a way to fix the situation. Either by building me a new suit, or by modifying the existing one to fit. I was willing to pay a reasonable amount for this. They had no interest in doing that. They quoted me $750 to make modifications to the bottom to make it fit (which was retail cost). I would be better off buying a new drysuit at that price.

So all in all, I am not pleased. The suit didn't fit the way I was told it would. It had several defects and started leaking after less than two months of use. BARE customer service/rep had no interest in trying to fix the situation. I WILL NOT be buying another BARE suit. As a dive pro and someone that holds a lot of influence in my local dive community, I felt BARE would want to make things right with me, but they did not. From now on I will definitely not be recommending up and coming divers to buy BARE.

 

[JohnnyC]

I'd make your LDS buy you a new suit. UV breaks down all sorts of things, not just seals. I could easily see that it was stored in direct sunlight all summer being a major contributor to the issues you had.

Sure, fit is a bummer, but the fact that a shop used your paid-for merchandise as a store display and put significant wear and tear on it but putting it on display, that's where my anger would be directed.

 

[KevinNM]

Aren't Bare dry suits just loads of fun? I love the way they use the wrong glue on pockets. I haven't had the suit falling apart trick, but all 3 of the other people who ordered suits from bare at the same time had them leak. A lot. Two of them got it stopped after one trip back to Bare, the other has needed at least two. I think their motto is "We are cheaper then a good dry suit".

And I'd be very annoyed at my LDS for storing it in direct sunlight and supplying you a suit that didn't fit. As in talking to Amex annoyed.

 

[They call me Tater]

I've had no problems with mine so far. Custom size but pockets are OK and no leaks other than operator error (zipper not lodged properly on a dive in Lake Superior).

I'd put a lot of that on the LDS for both storage and measurements if it didn't fit properly.

 

[Shinythings]

I've had BARE suits in the past and had no issues but it seems like almost every single suit that has come in lately has issues. One suit was brand new and was leaking from behind the zipper. They did such a poor job of glueing the zipper there was literally a 6 inch section that was only held on by a few mm of glue. Another made-to-measure suit has been back to BARE twice and is still not right. A buddy of mine (that ordered his HDC after me, and also has fewer than 3 months of dives on it) is having a complete new suit made for FREE because of all the stuff BARE messed up.

I definitely would not recommend BARE after what I've seen on the quality and customer service side.

---------- Post added November 25th, 2015 at 02:33 AM ----------

I'd put a lot of that on the LDS for both storage and measurements if it didn't fit properly.

The fitment is totally on BARE. I fit into the sizing chart and I was told by a BARE rep that the HDC would have more room than the Nex Gen, and even though I also upsized over my Nex Gen, it fit tighter.

 

[acxc]

I've had BARE suits in the past and had no issues but it seems like almost every single suit that has come in lately has issues. One suit was brand new and was leaking from behind the zipper. They did such a poor job of glueing the zipper there was literally a 6 inch section that was only held on by a few mm of glue. Another made-to-measure suit has been back to BARE twice and is still not right. A buddy of mine (that ordered his HDC after me, and also has fewer than 3 months of dives on it) is having a complete new suit made for FREE because of all the stuff BARE messed up.

I definitely would not recommend BARE after what I've seen on the quality and customer service side.

I had a similar experience with a different BARE suit earlier this year- zipper was very poorly glued and came apart from the suit on my 6th dive in it. I also had pretty bad customer service with it initially (had to pay a lot to ship it back, was quoted over a month before I'd have the suit back), but after a few more phone calls and speaking to the guy actually doing their repairs, I had the suit back in two weeks with reassurance that the problem had been fixed. It seemed that when I finally got past the front line of customer service, BARE was genuinely interested in figuring out what had failed with their product and making sure that I was ultimately satisfied.

I've had about 90 dives in the suit since, and though I still can't shake that frustration of sitting on the edge of a river with 40 degree water flooding into a 2 week old suit, at this point I am very happy with my suit and would not hesitate to get another in the future, assuming mine continues to work well.

 

[walkonmars]

If you purchased your suit using a credit card, call the credit card company and see if they will support you to completely scrap the suit as "unusable" and a "total loss". Then throw the suit away or keep it as a show and tell sample of how poorly made and awful service BARE makes and supports their hardware. In the mean time, go to Dive Right In Scuba and pick up a USIA Techniflex suit for only $999 (on sale now). Why bother with a suit that is obviously DOA. Re-gluing panels, seams and pockets to non-new material means poor adhesion and poor durability down the line. Give BARE one more chance to make good but asking them to give you a completely new suit. If no, call your credit card company to see if they will give you "purchase protection coverage" then scrap the suit and get another available on current "black Friday" and holiday sales. Sorry you had a bad experience but lots of leaks and tears is a potential safety problem as well as a comfort issue. (Shucks, I just purchased a Hollis Biodry suit on sale a month ago and would have preferred the USIA suit available now.) Keep us posted on how it all goes.

 

[KevinNM]

DRIS says they have sales on Santi this weekend too.

 

[acwaman]

Regarding the HDC suit in question, without knowing all the details, sounds like there has been some definite breakdowns in communication. The HDC model is made to order at this time, even a stock size, hence the reason the suit took considerably longer than the standard Trilam, that we will stock blanks in.
Why this suit took longer than the 4-5 week made to order time frame, I cannot say without further investigation, but if the delay was a result of material shortages, which can happen, this should have been communicated to you by BARE. I must apologies if it was not. As national sales manager for all Huish Brands, I am not aware of a delay due to defective materials, but certainly we will refuse delivery of components, materials, etc, etc, for all brands, if it does not pass QC. This should be commended, not condemned, but the delay should have been communicated.
Regarding the fit, we can only make a suggestion based on what information is provided, this is never a guarantee. However, in this situation, it is possible that it was an HDC Expedition, that is specifically "advertised" as a slimmer cut, preferred by many cave and expedition divers, for less drag and chance of snagging. Even though we cannot be responsible for sizing recommendations, we do try to accommodate wherever possible, but needs to be mentioned upon receipt and not six month later and after multiple dives.
As for the other issues mentioned, without further investigation, it is hard for me to comment, but we do our best to put things right in almost any circumstance.
There is mention of a customer having issues with a BARE suit, and after repeated failed attempts to correct the issue, they finally just made the guy a brand new suit for FREE!
Is this not exactly why you should buy from a reputable manufacturer such as BARE, there are too many companies out there that come and go, without the resources to make situations right. No dry suit company is without issues, the difference between the good and the bad, is how they handle them.
This being said, I do not have time for open debates back and forth, if you wish to contact me directly, I will do what I can to find an amicable solution to this situation.
Regards
Seamus Callaghan
seamus.callaghan@huishoutdoors.com

 

[Tyler Dickman]

As the Brand Manager for BARE I want to express a sincere apology for the poor experience you have had with your suit. Furthermore, I would like to get more details on this problem so we can ensure we can make any adjustments needed on our side so this does not happen to anyone else in the future. The true reality here is, BARE is 100% committed to ensuring we provide the best customer experience and making the best products on the market. As with any business there will always be learning opportunities and I apologize again for your experience and will make sure we provide the training necessary to better handle this situation. I can confidently say there is not another drysuit brand out there that will back up their products more than BARE will. As with any manufacture we are not perfect but I can promise we will always work at improving and strive for perfection. I'm committed to making sure you are in a suit that meets or exceeds your expectations, period. We will always be fair and take responsibility for our mistakes. Please send me an email directly, as I would love to discuss the details further to make sure you are taken care.

Since regards,

Tyler Dickman
tyler.dickman@huishoutdoors.com

Regarding the HDC suit in question, without knowing all the details, sounds like there has been some definite breakdowns in communication. The HDC model is made to order at this time, even a stock size, hence the reason the suit took considerably longer than the standard Trilam, that we will stock blanks in.
Why this suit took longer than the 4-5 week made to order time frame, I cannot say without further investigation, but if the delay was a result of material shortages, which can happen, this should have been communicated to you by BARE. I must apologies if it was not. As national sales manager for all Huish Brands, I am not aware of a delay due to defective materials, but certainly we will refuse delivery of components, materials, etc, etc, for all brands, if it does not pass QC. This should be commended, not condemned, but the delay should have been communicated.
Regarding the fit, we can only make a suggestion based on what information is provided, this is never a guarantee. However, in this situation, it is possible that it was an HDC Expedition, that is specifically "advertised" as a slimmer cut, preferred by many cave and expedition divers, for less drag and chance of snagging. Even though we cannot be responsible for sizing recommendations, we do try to accommodate wherever possible, but needs to be mentioned upon receipt and not six month later and after multiple dives.
As for the other issues mentioned, without further investigation, it is hard for me to comment, but we do our best to put things right in almost any circumstance.
There is mention of a customer having issues with a BARE suit, and after repeated failed attempts to correct the issue, they finally just made the guy a brand new suit for FREE!
Is this not exactly why you should buy from a reputable manufacturer such as BARE, there are too many companies out there that come and go, without the resources to make situations right. No dry suit company is without issues, the difference between the good and the bad, is how they handle them.
This being said, I do not have time for open debates back and forth, if you wish to contact me directly, I will do what I can to find an amicable solution to this situation.
Regards
Seamus Callaghan
seamus.callaghan@huishoutdoors.com