Lavacore Review

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Dave616

Contributor
Messages
396
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Location
West Michigan
# of dives
50 - 99
LavaCore Review
On a recent trip to Cozumel (Feb 1-8, 2014) I decided to see if Lavacore products were worth ditching the wetsuit for. I couldn't find any quality first-hand info on this stuff prior to purchase.

Water temp all week was 78-80, first three days were partly to mostly cloudy then turned mostly sunny for the rest of the week.

First thing I want to mention is that I was sized at a local dealer and I’m glad I did. They need to be tight all over; hard to put on tight. The garments will loosen up after use. I was able to purchase a ML top and medium socks at my local dealer, but had to order the ML pants from www.leisurepro.com and another medium pair of socks (for my wife) from www.scuba.com. Apparently I’m in the popular size group.
The top is long enough to overlap with the bottoms by at least 6” on me. I’m 5’11”, 212lbs. 46” shoulders, and 34” waist, size 11 shoe.
These garments are comfortable and light weight when dry, but heavy wet. They are probably heavier than a 3mm after the dive. They can be wrung out like a towel to reduce some water weight.

After a week of diving (11 total dives), the garments show little wear except the socks. The rubber grip on the bottom of the socks starts to wear off after two days of diving. At a size 11(US) shoe, I still had to get medium socks. Larges would be recommended by the sizing chart however, both sizes I tried on were very loose and baggy on my feet. The socks did grip well while they still had the grip. The grip mostly wears in the heal area. My wife and I both used them in 3mm O’neill Shorty Tropic Dive Boots. The biggest problem I had with the socks were after the first day the Dive Op (Tres Peliconos) offered to take our gear back and hang it all up. The socks remained right-side-out (fleece inside) and stayed wet all night but became the most awful smelling thing on the dive boat. After that day we started bringing them home and hand washing them and hanging them ourselves. Putting baby shampoo in the socks prior to diving seemed to fix the problem. Next time I would opt for my 2mm neo-socks which were cheaper and dry faster.

The top was nice and comfortable, but lacks any wrist, neck , or waist seals to retain body-heated water. It does block wind, but is not very warm in the wind when wet. You are better off getting it off after the dive and drying off. The bungee cord around the waist is too small and too stretchy. I’m considering replacing it with good quality 1/8” bungee.

The bottoms basically had all the same issues as the top except, by the time I had them broken in, I probably could have worn a size Medium bottom. When getting on the boat, the bottoms would fill up with water like water balloons down by the calves. There is a ton of vertical stretch in them. There no stirrups; I’m not sure how I would get them under a wetsuit. There is also no way to attach the tops and bottoms which would be nice.
If you look close you can see it bunched up around the knees:
CozSafetyStop.jpg


With the humidity we had in Coz, Lavacore will NOT dry overnight. It will stay damp the rest of your trip.

As far as the dealer telling me “this stuff is supposed to be as warm as a 3 mil”, that was and is false. I was cold every dive and being from MI, I’m usually good with cold water. I was kicking myself for not going to a dive shop and buying a 3mm to finish the vacation. My wife brought her custom Wet Wear 3mm and was warm all week long.

LavaCore was nice to pack and carry when dry and is not buoyant in the water.

One bonus is using the bathroom. Very easy, anytime.

In closing, these garments seem to have more potential under a wetsuit than as a standalone exposure suit. They have a durable exterior material that should stand up to regular use. I was a little disappointed for the amount of money I spent ($265+), I do not feel there is any value in these products at their current price point. Next February, I’m bringing a 3mm to Coz.

Hope this helps.
 
Thank you for the detailed review. Would you be able to share the difference in weight used between your Lavacore get up as described, and if you had gone with your standard exposure wear? I've just bought Lavacore elite pants and a Fourth Element isotherm top and may not be able to try them out before my next boat dive. If I can't, it would be helpful to have a decent starting point for how much weight I could drop.
Much obliged.
 
My gear in the pic:
Oxy 18lb. Mach V Extreme Wing
Oxy Fabric Travel Plate/Hog Harness
Dive Rite SS Tank Straps
Weight belt w/XS-Scuba double weight pockets, Dive Rite Thigh Pouch
Zeagle FH-7, ZX 2nd stage, Z octo, MiFlex hoses. Hog SPG (rubber HP hose).
SMB/Reel
Dorcy Dive II light
Atomic Frameless mask
Force Fin Pro Mil.
Xcell Tropic low 3mm boots
Lavacore Polytherm top/bottom/socks
Uwatec Aladin G2/Aeris Epic Watch
Suunto SK7 Compas in DSS tech mount.

I dived 8lbs. of lead all week and was probably 2lbs. over weighted using AL80's, and at least 3lbs. over-weighted using AL100's. I could have easily used 6lbs. all week and been fine. I mainly used 8 because my weight belt has 2 double XS-Scuba weight pouches on each side and the smallest weights they had were 2's.

When using a 1mm Bare Sport full suit and a Bare Sport 3mm vest in St. Lucia I still used 8lbs. of lead so I know I was over-weighted in Coz.

With a full 3mm, I would need 8 to 10lbs depending on tank. So for me, without more experimentation, it's around a 4lb. difference. I wouldn't use this stuff again as a stand-alone exposure suit unless water was 85+. I can't imagine the full Lavacore suit being much more warmer.

Hope that helps.
 
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I wear Lava core under my dry suit. Sometimes as the only layer, in FL caves. Sometimes as a mid layer, Lake Huron, over a base layer and under a heavy layer. They told me that's not what its for...but it works very well for me.

Not to be ugly, but using it for a wetsuit sounds like trying to fix a problem that's not broken. I thought the stuff was either a heavy rash guard or a 'beef up' to a wet suit, but I never understood how you'd get it to fit under a proper fitting wet suit.

My results have been good, but I too am using it, as I am told, in an unintended fashion. What I like about it is that you can't help but have condensation from perspiring in a drysuit and most of the moisture against the dry suit inside doesn't migrate back thru the lava core. At least this is my experience as my base layer is drier post dive when I wear it vs typical soft fleece.
 
My experience with a Lavacore full suit was similar in some ways. I arrived in Puerto Morelos on Jan 7 and in Cozumel (also dove with 3 Pelicanos) from Jan 16 to the 25th. I normally wear XL but the large worked well for me. We had the coldest water I have seen down there, as low as 77 degrees. I normally wear a 3mm full suit and in fact packed it just in case. I never went to the neoprene. The Lavacore is not as warm as 3mm neoprene, but not bad. In the wind topside it is cold. Wearing a windbreaker over the wet Lavacore made an astounding difference. As soon as I put on the windbreaker I was fine. I think you need to cover it between dives if the air is cold and it is blowing. On a couple of long, slow, hour plus dives I noticed a chill underwater. It wasn't so bad that I kept thinking about it. So far as wear, the very limited plastic protective strips on one knee are peeling off. I think I dove 26 tanks. It seemed to hold up ok and in fact I wore it for 3 eight hour days on a boat with the local spearfishermen so it got some hours and sunshine. I won't pack my neoprene again. When dry, which takes 24 hours unless there is a bunch of sunshine, the Lavacore just doesn't weigh anything and doesn't take up much space. When travelling with dive gear this is important. The whole 3 plus weeks I was considering if I should buy a really lightweight shorty to go with it but I won't for now. It was enough. I think I will find a light weight hood to wear if it gets really cold. Too bad the full suit doesn't have an attached hood as an option. I've seen divemasters wearing neoprene suits with attached hoods and they pull them on if they get chilled. Lavacore?? Are you out there??

As an aside I think the Lavacore works like people think a neoprene wetsuit works, by trapping water and keeping it from moving around so much. Obviously there is no compression so you don't lose anything at depth and I hardly used my BCD until I was back on the surface. I am apparently made out of something that floats and normally wear 18 to 20 actual pounds of lead with a full 3mm neoprene. I was fine at 15 or 16 actual weighed pounds but needed to ask for about 18 to get that in some places. Did you ever try weighing your weights in Mexico? I've been handed "20" that weighed 16 real pounds. My suspicion is a lot of tin in the lead. Sorry about the length.

Brian
 
... became the most awful smelling thing on the dive boat. After that day we started bringing them home and hand washing them and hanging them ourselves. Putting baby shampoo in the socks prior to diving seemed to fix the problem. ...

Wow - you certainly have the right username - Reef Wrecker. Not something to be proud of. You seriously dump baby shampoo into your socks and then dive????? Sunscreen, soap, and insect repellant are very detrimental to reefs. Soaking socks in shampoo and then diving is just wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
 
Wow - you certainly have the right username - Reef Wrecker. Not something to be proud of. You seriously dump baby shampoo into your socks and then dive????? Sunscreen, soap, and insect repellant are very detrimental to reefs. Soaking socks in shampoo and then diving is just wrong!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I guess I'm just hoping BP will will name an oil rig after me... Please don't muck up my thread with your hippie environmental opinions.
 
I dive a lavacore as my primary exposure suit in warm waters as well. A boat coat is a critical piece of gear for surface intervals so you don't have to take it off. A few of the big online scuba sites sell coats for about $60 if memory serves. I agree, it does hold lots of water in the fleece. I always take my gear to the hotel after a days diving and rinse it. Personally, I've found it to be worthwhile vs a wetsuit for the comfort factor... when the lavacore is warm enough that is.
 
.....
As an aside I think the Lavacore works like people think a neoprene wetsuit works, by trapping water and keeping it from moving around so much. Obviously there is no compression so you don't lose anything at depth and I hardly used my BCD until I was back on the surface. I am apparently made out of something that floats and normally wear 18 to 20 actual pounds of lead with a full 3mm neoprene. I was fine at 15 or 16 actual weighed pounds but needed to ask for about 18 to get that in some places. Did you ever try weighing your weights in Mexico? I've been handed "20" that weighed 16 real pounds. My suspicion is a lot of tin in the lead. Sorry about the length.

Brian

I didn't get a chance to weigh my weight but at 8, 1 or 2 lbs. wouldn't have made much difference for me.

It's very possible I may have stayed warmer keeping my head covered. Maybe I'll give it another shot at some point. I just not a fan of wearing a hood in the tropics because I'm forced to up here in the great white north.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/swift/

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