Hi, I'm looking to buy a new membrane drysuit having had my current suit for 8 years. With so many manufacturers now can anyone recommend a suit as I don't want to pay excessive amounts, £500 - £600 if I can as long as it's durability and usability are top notch.
New membrane dry suit recommendations.
- Thread starter Burb1
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blanik
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you can't go wrong with a Bare Trilam HD ;-)
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I'v ebeen really happy with my Rofos which is out of Italy, may be worth looking into
Aqua-Andy
Contributor
For a straight Membrane suit I have a Bare Nex-Gen and really have no complaints with it. The Nex-Gen may be inexpensive as drysuits come but is tough as heck. I also have a Fusion with tech skin which I like very well also. The Fusion Is great when you have put on a few extra pounds
. The Fusion is also great if you dive in widely varying water temperatures, it fits and dives as good with a thin wicking layer as it does to your heaviest ice diving undergarments. Try this thread http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/exposure-suits/433165-best-worst-your-dry-suit.html. The linked thread was started by TSandM, it is great because all the comments are from divers that actually own and dive the drysuits.
. The Fusion is also great if you dive in widely varying water temperatures, it fits and dives as good with a thin wicking layer as it does to your heaviest ice diving undergarments. Try this thread http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/exposure-suits/433165-best-worst-your-dry-suit.html. The linked thread was started by TSandM, it is great because all the comments are from divers that actually own and dive the drysuits.
Mustard Dave
Contributor
Seaskin in Leeds are excellent. They will do a made to measure suit within your price range with many custom options. You can measure yourself and submit your order online or you can visit the factory to be measured. The membrane suit starts at £499.
Dry Suit - Seaskin Nova Drysuit
Dry Suit - Seaskin Nova Drysuit
Buoy_A
Contributor
I'm one of the biggest cheerleaders for the Nex-Gen drysuit. Have two and love them. However, their major drawback is that they *may* be prone to fail under rugged conditions (they're a super light construction). I have a friend who also has a Nex-Gen, loves it, but also is scared to dive it the way he wants to dive it because he's a photographer and finds himself rubbing up against all sorts of rough objects. I noticed that the OP quoted his budget in Pounds, and the Nex-Gen might not be the best choice for the general conditions in the UK with the wrecks and the poor viz. A BARE HD trilam would probably be a better choice if the OP finds themselves rubbing up against things all the time.
The UK is blessed w. a few often recommended drysuit companies. I've owned a Northern Diver Vortex drysuit and I was impressed with the construction at that price point. Was way too big for me so I sold it but would buy one again if I came across one that fit.
If you're in the UK, check out Seaskin. Base model starts at £499. Depending what you add for options, you can get a very good MTM for less than £600 (i think I paid £564 for mine).
Dry Suits from Seaskin Custom Drysuits home page
Dry Suits from Seaskin Custom Drysuits home page
GiantMoray
Contributor
I'm very happy with my Northern Diver Vortex drysuit, you should check them out.
Mustard Dave
Contributor
I had a Northern Diver suit for my first suit. I was going to get a Seaskin but I wanted something off the peg as I was keen to keep diving after my OW course. With anything M2M, there is a lead time, which is usually around six weeks for Seaskin. The suits at the dive school, which they will hire to club members, are like tea bags and it is difficult to get one that fits as people on courses will get first choice.
The Northern Diver suit served me very well and was dry as a bone. The only reason I got rid was because when I went onto diving a twinset, I found it too tight across the shoulders when reaching back for my valves. I sold the suit to a lad from my club and it is still going strong.
Northern Diver do seem to attract some bad press though. If you go on the UK based forums (such as 'The Dive Forum') and mention Northern Diver, I have no doubt you will get all sorts of tales of problems and poor customer service. As I say though, mine was perfect and I know many people who are happy with theirs. As with any service, the ones who are not satisfied will always shout louder than the ones who are.
Many complaints seem to be about a drop in quality since they moved manufacturing to China, but several people say the problems occur when you try to get a problem resolved. I have not experienced this, but one of the things that attracted me to Seaskin was they are manufactured in the UK and I can have any issues resolved by the factory and speak to the person doing the repair. When I went to be measured, I liked their attitude. Brian, who showed me around told me about their warranty, but also emphasised that they will do their damnedest to sort out any problems that occur outside of the warranty period.
The Northern Diver suit served me very well and was dry as a bone. The only reason I got rid was because when I went onto diving a twinset, I found it too tight across the shoulders when reaching back for my valves. I sold the suit to a lad from my club and it is still going strong.
Northern Diver do seem to attract some bad press though. If you go on the UK based forums (such as 'The Dive Forum') and mention Northern Diver, I have no doubt you will get all sorts of tales of problems and poor customer service. As I say though, mine was perfect and I know many people who are happy with theirs. As with any service, the ones who are not satisfied will always shout louder than the ones who are.
Many complaints seem to be about a drop in quality since they moved manufacturing to China, but several people say the problems occur when you try to get a problem resolved. I have not experienced this, but one of the things that attracted me to Seaskin was they are manufactured in the UK and I can have any issues resolved by the factory and speak to the person doing the repair. When I went to be measured, I liked their attitude. Brian, who showed me around told me about their warranty, but also emphasised that they will do their damnedest to sort out any problems that occur outside of the warranty period.
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