closing back-fitted zipper on drysuit by oneself...???

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birdwrasse

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i have a whites, nexus ii... i've tried, but i can't close the zipper by myself... even tried attaching a long cord and pulling from all angles...

can anyone zip closed their own drysuit? not with a front-fitted zipper, of coarse...


i can probably take it off by myself, but would like to go diving on my own but that big hole in my back might let a little water in, so i can't. any suggestions?


:D




--c
 
Try securing the cord onto your vehicle - close it in the door - and turn your body to get the zipper closed, rather than pull the cord. This way you can stretch the opening by bringing your arms forward and getting the zipper in the correct position.
 
It can be done if you have a line that you can tie the lanyard off to. If your garment has any bulk to it then it's a crap shoot at best. Otherwise you just walk the zipper around hoping for the best. Nothing beats a buddy for this task.

My DS is a back zip and I have a 4-5 foot line with a carabiner at each end in my gear bag. I have it just in case I need to get out of the suit unassisted. An example would be a dive I call on entry where the rest of the team goes on with the dive.

Pete
 
You can close the zipper by yourself as mentioned above, but you must accept much higher risk of damaging expensive watertight zipper. I don't recommend.
 
I'm able to put on/off, zip/unzip a stock,backentry Bare NexGen by myself.
 
rakkis:
I'm able to put on/off, zip/unzip a stock,backentry Bare NexGen by myself.


Care to explain how you accomplish this?
 
DawgDiver:
Care to explain how you accomplish this?

Most importantly what are you wearing under the suit?
 
stunaep:
i have a whites, nexus ii... i've tried, but i can't close the zipper by myself... even tried attaching a long cord and pulling from all angles...

can anyone zip closed their own drysuit? not with a front-fitted zipper, of coarse...


i can probably take it off by myself, but would like to go diving on my own but that big hole in my back might let a little water in, so i can't. any suggestions?
--c

I have the Nexus myself, but I have to do the "hug the tree" bit and get my buddy to zip me up. I notice your "solo diver" designation, so that is obviously why you are asking the question. I've been told it is do-able, but the concern is getting the suit material caught in front of the zipper as it is being closed - a real danger.
 
DawgDiver:
Care to explain how you accomplish this?

I'm not double jointed, but I have a pretty good range of motion with my arms. I can overlap fingers with one arm over my shoulder reaching behind my back and the other reaching up to the first.

I use both arms to zip/unzip.

zip:
Get into dry suit and pull my head through the neck seal.

I start with the arm closest to the zipper tab stretched around in front of me (under the other arm) as far as I can to create traction for the zipper threads to be aligned. Then, the arm furthest from the zipper tab goes over the shoulder (behind my head) and closes the zipper as far as that arm can. Once the zipper goes as far as it can, I switch the position of both arms, but the arm that is now grabbing the zipper goes in from my chest as well as it reaches for the zipper to finish closing it.

unzip:

Reverse above and get my head through the neck seal.

Get both hands inside the dry suit past the cuffs so they are not restrained. Reach behind with both arms and gently pull the fabric of each arm away from the shoulders little by little until you can't anymore. Then start gently pulling a shoulder out as the other arm pulls agains the first arm's fabric. Do a bit, and alternate arms until you're out.

Step out of dry suit.

I guess in a sense... I'm my own tree. How zen is that? <goes off to meditate>

spectrum:
Most importantly what are you wearing under the suit?

I wore jeans/shorts, a tshirt, and added a sweater for the ocean.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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