Lycra skin or 1 mm wetsuit?

[oira79]

My wife and I are going to Papua New Guinea in October. We dove Raja Ampat last December and I dove in a Lycra skinsuit, borrowed, for the entire trip and it was great. Fabulous. Felt so free, and I was never cold.

For PNG, we're buying suits (we usually rent everything but masks). My wife gets cold more than I do, she's getting a 3 mm wetsuit.

I'm torn between a 1 mm wetsuit and a Lycra skin. The skin was such a great experience, easy on, easy off, comfortable. However, I'm worried that if I do get cold, on the boat we're going on (MV Febrina), if I don't get on the boat with a wetsuit, there's no option to rent one.

I've never worn a 1 mm wetsuit and I wonder if anybody has any experience with them, and can compare them to just having a Lycra skin. Thanks.

 

[Laurie S.]

I wear a 1 mm and am comfortable down to the low 70s in it. It is so comfortable both in and out of the water. I've dived once in just my dive skin and I hated it. It was too loose feeling and gave me no real protection from scrapes.

 

[Damselfish]

I used to use lycra skins but have mostly moved to 1mm. You get some warmth in the 1mm, a bit more protection from whatever, and they're more durable. I also find a damp 1mm can actually be easier to get on than damp lycra. Sometimes I wear a 3mm vest over the 1mm, doesn't affect my comfort.

You could also look into Lavacore stuff. I found the early fleece lined laminates weren't stretchy enough to be as comfortable as I would have liked, but I don't know how Lavacore compares.

 

[guyharrisonphoto]

I would go with the 1 mil. It gives you a little protection if current or surge accidently brushes you against the reef. The skin won't do that for you.

I find the lavacore stuff to be heavy and not that well fitting compared to a 1 mil, especially if you get one of the new super-stretch neoprenes.

 

[Dirty-Dog]

Check the water temps and compare them to those you've dove in before. If you're comfortable in a skin at that temp, then just stop worrying about it.
The only time I wear neoprene is when we're diving cenotes, or when I need to have added buoyancy (SS BP and a steel HP120 is too heavy for just a skin...).
I've worn a 1mm and honestly can't tell the difference as far as warmth goes. Any neoprene is going to be slightly more confining than lycra. 1mm a little more so, 7mm a lot.

 

[cmulvaney]

I use a full suit Lavacore on dives to the low 70's. It fits excellently under my 3 mil for colder dives. It is neutrally buoyant so no extra weight. I prefer it over a 1 mil.

 

[knotical]

Skin plus X would provide flexibility (with X being either a 1 mm or fleece suit). You could wear just skin, just X or both. When wearing both, the skin underneath makes donning and doffing the other easier.

As for X: a 1mm is often cheaper, a fleece suit is neutrally buoyant and typically warmer.

Or option 97B – a skin and a shorty of your choice.

For all of the above, fit varies with manufacturer, so you might want to find what fits your body best.

edit - I think the Febrina is a liveaboard. If so, you can seldom have too much thermal protection when doing multiple dives over multiple days. You and your wife might want to even consider beanies.

 

[oira79]

I ended up buying a skin and a 2 mm shorty wetsuit.

I was surprised by how cheap this solution is: $40 for the skin, $50 for the 2 mm wetsuit. At those prices, why not? I haven't owned a wetsuit in years but if we keep going to warm-water places like this, since we're a once-a-year, 2-weeks-at-a-time diving couple, I could buy a new wetsuit for every trip. It's cheaper than renting and then I don't have to worry about cleaning it. Plus I bet one of the divemasters on the boat would be happy to get it.

We'll see if that's enough. Thanks for all the replies.