Henderson 7/5 hyperstretch semi-dry vs. Bare Arctic

loco4scuba · Aug 22, 2007

I live in the Great Lakes region and need a good wetsuit. A drysuit is on my wish list but is too expensive right now. So are there any suggestions or comments on which of these two suits would work for the Great Lakes/Quarry diving?

Thanks,
Loco

johnny_bravo · Aug 22, 2007

I did the Bare Artic vest and fullsuit for many years in the Great Lakes/St. Lawrence. Great suit great fit i loved the integrated hood.

Having said that the best piece of neoprene i've ever bought is my 5/3 Henderson Gold Core hooded vest.

Cheers.

-J.-

hunter991 · Aug 22, 2007

I sell both of these suits and I am pretty familiar with them. The bare suit is going to be more durable. I use the bare artic in my rental program. The hyperstretch is going to be much more comfortable, but show wear a little sooner. They are both very good suits. I think either of them would work well for you.

Brent

emcbride81 · Aug 22, 2007

I dive with the Bare Arctic 7mil jumpsuit and I absolutely love it...I was in 41 degrees with hood/gloves and the only part that got chilly was my cheeks...on my face...I highly recommend it!

PlayMore · Aug 23, 2007

I have both a Henderson 3mm fullsuit and the Henderson 7/5 SemiDry. Love the 3mm, not really fond of the SemiDry. It is a warm suit, but it is fragile: easy to shred that gold lining with just so much as a toenail and brushing up against a rock can easily split the nylon exterior. I also find the ankles and lower unnecessarily tight--and I have very thin lower legs.

I bought the suit thinking the reduced chance for water intrusion given by the attached hood would be a benefit. I find that it actually makes the suit much less versatile. There are days when you need 7mm coverage but could dive a shallow second dive w/o a hood. With the semi dry, you can only pull the hood down around your neck, but I find this constrictive (maybe even choking). My wife dives a 5mm with the 5mm hooded vest--great versatility.

If either suit is less money, I'd buy it and be that much closer to affording the drysuit. I got mine this past January and love it.

diveprof · Aug 24, 2007

Artic Bare is the way to go between these two suits. Who ever said henderson is more comfortable, remember, Bare make a gazillion sizes (give or take a few). Nuff said....

RV · Aug 24, 2007

I just bought a Bare. I've only gotten it wet a few times but I like it. Sounds like I made the right choice.. I'm still trying to decide whether to trim the hood or not..

pir8 · Aug 24, 2007

I got about 6 years on my Henderson 7/5 hyperstretch. I think its time to retire it now but I got my moneys worth from it. Oh yeah I've dove it on Jersey wreck dives and it kept me warm.

The Mighty Thor · Aug 30, 2007

Bare also makes a 7mm in the Progressive stretch/hydrostretch/SGS flavor, which is a little more like the Hyperstretch. I just bought the Arctic SGS 7mm, and it is very comfortable and seems more durable than my older Henderson

spectrum · Aug 30, 2007

The SGS has been discontinued for a while. Some are still around in smaller mens and many ladies sizes.

Between the 2 suits I'd go Arctic, hands down, I'm very happy with mine and would rebuy in a flash. Plan to get the companion hooded step-in vest as well.

If warmth is priority you don't want 5mm panels and soft neoprene.

Pete

Henderson 7/5 hyperstretch semi-dry vs. Bare Arctic

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