drysuits: shell or neoprene?

[Thrillhouse]

I did my first two classes of OW in a neoprene. It leaked, I got soaked, and spent the one hour surface-interval very miserable. I've used a shell-suit since. While I've got plenty of fleece to wear under it, the shell is a bit baggy. My uncle has dived (dove?) for close to 2 decades now, and swears by neoprene. His reasoning is that if it does puncture, you're safe and still warm...

That being said, which do you personally prefer, and is there a danger to having a shellsuit puncture, causing you to sink ala fisherman in flooded hip-waders?

 

[3-Ring Octopus]

I think you really have to try (or just be THAT unsafe... ) to have a shellsuit puncture. That being said...I like diving neoprene drysuits. They pack enough inherent warmth and insulation that I'm hardly ever cold enough to call a dive because of it, while I have buddies in shell suits (USIA's are popular around here...) call them quite often.

What kind of drysuit did you dive in OW? What kind of seals/how old were they? I have an O'Neill 7000x (with a few modifications..like the removal of the dry "socks" and the attachment of actual boots from a BARE suit...) with neoprene seals and love it. I get the occasional dribble down my arm...but certainly not a heavy leak. And if you have a good LDS, they should be able to modify a suit to put on latex seals if you so choose.

How do you like the water in our neck of the woods, Thrill?

Cheers,
Austin

 

[Jeremy Bouwman]

I have a trilaminate shell, I'm pretty sure I would need to try with a knife to get through it. At the same time, I'm careful about sitting on urchins :11: and really careful when on wrecks for sharp edges and all that. I'm plenty warm even in our 45 degree water. A good undergarment should keep you pretty warm. that's got to be pretty cold for someone with a drysuit to be calling a dive because of the cold.

 

[SteveAD]

Your uncle seems to have flawed logic in pointing out that a drysuit will keep you warmer if it flood. While there is some truth to this, a flooded neoprene drysuit is a poorly fitting wetsuit, we all know what a poorly fitting wetsuit is worth.

Instead of considering which option is better if it fails, let's look at pros and cons of each type, and likelyhood of failure.

Neoprene has significant insulation inherrent to the suit, but, like a wetsuitis subject to compression and will lose insulation as depth increases.


Shell has little or no insulation inherrent to the suit and is non compressible. Assuming you keep the suit equalized insulation remains constant.

Neoprene- repeated compress-release cycles will degrade the material, making it permanently thinner and eventually causing it to start "seeping"

Shell- Not compressible

Neoprene-Significant Bouyancy due to the material which will compress and lose bouyancy at depth resulting in a greater bouyancy swing and need to add more air to stay neutral.

Shell-Not compressible

Likelyhood of failure- I have been diving dry for 15 years and teaching students to dive dry for 12 during that time I have seen plenty of "newbie floods" from silly mistakes (fouled seals, wrong size seals, open zipper, whatever) but almost no suit failures, beyond minor pinholes from sea urchins and the like.

 

[ReefHound]

There is also something else called crushed neoprene that does not degrade significantly from the depth and compression cycles.

 

[LG Diver]

As others have pointed out the purpose of the drysuit is not to provide warmth, but rather to keep the water out. The undergarments provide warmth. IMHO, using a neoprene drysuit for it's insulating properties is flawed logic. It introduces problems such as changes in buoyancy at depth breakdown of the neoprene after repeated cycling, etc. Shell suits avoid these issues, but have their own issues. Depending on the construction (bilaminate, trilamate, outer covering, etc) they will vary in durability and puncture resistance. Most shell suits have no stretch to them, so they are typically cut more baggy than neoprene suits to provide adequate range of motion. As Reefhound mentioned, there are crushed neoprene suits that are a hybrid of the two ideas and have their own benefits and drawbacks. They will not compress with depth so there are no changes in buoyancy characteristics or breakdown of the cell structure over time, they are more stretchy than a shell suit so they can be cut more streamlined while retaining good range of motion, they are VERY resistant to punctures and abrasion, but they are very heavy when wet (only an issue out of the water), take much longer to dry than a trilam suit, and are typically more expensive.

I'd recommend that you think about what conditions you'll be diving in, talk to folks that have dove each type, maybe try out the different styles if you can get your hands on them, and then make a decision. I personally dive a DUI CF200 (crushed neoprene) and absolutely love it.

 

[Louma]

My vote trilaminate shell (don't laugh remember I'm originally from NJ -not a FL native) Dove with a trilam suit for over 12 years. No rips, tears, floods. You can use heavy underware when it's cold all the way to wearing shorts or a baithing suit when it's warm.

 

[hunter991]

I vote for the trilam. You can use thermals underneath the trilam that still insulate when wet. It will be a much more versatile suit that the neo.

Brent

 

[300bar]

An other vote for the trilam/shell suit :14:
quick drying
small packing
not as have as a neopreen suit

to the last part of your question,
You will NOT sink when flooded,and i'm sure about this, because we tried this in the pool.

1 the suit is (a little) buoyant.
2 a leak will not flood the suit completly(don't try to open the neckseal as we did in the pool )
3 your undersuit and BC will keep you a flaot as well.

I've been diving drysuits for aprox.20 years,2 neopreensuit which were, after a few years of(intensive) use VERY wet
and the last 6 years in a shellsuit no leaks so far.(knock-knock)

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

I love my Seasoft crushed Neoprene......keeps me warm and dry I have dove both, and liked the shell, but I love the crushed.....each his own, I would try to try them both out at a demo days the manu. or your dealer might throw and see which one you like