Florida girl moving west!

[chaotic-neutral]

Monterey's not that cold, you get used to 50 degree's after a few min.. lol.... i dive a semi-dry 7 mm. and haven't had too much of a problem. breakwatter is a great place to get in a quick dive, the breakwatter wall has alot of stuff to see in it, the only problem is the "90% of instructos do their ow classes there" so unless you get out past the class' there will be alot of silt in the already low vis watter. another good dive is hole in the wall/hidden beach, i've heard it called both. it's almost directly across the street from the monterey bay dive center. i work in emeryville/oakland at the oakland port, haven't seen any dive shop's around yet, but i also have a good lds in the central vally where i live, so i haven't really been looking either, their small but really good on customer service. that and i am friend's/dive buddy's with one of the owners . i am availabale most weekend's, have friday and saturday's off, so if you need (yet another offer) a dive buddy let me know.

 

[triton94949]

Well, there seems to be quite the difference of opinion when it comes to Dry Suit vs. 7mm. So far as cold tolerance, don't let the "Florida" girl thing throw you off, I did grow up in New England so I have atleast had a taste of cold. But, it does sound like I will prefer the Dry Suit in the long run. The determining timeline will be when I have settled down financially out there. Hopefully by the fall, I can make the investment. Until then, I might just battle buoyancy and wear the wetsuit (and perhaps become accustomed to shivering....a lot).

Thanks for the advice, folks. It really is a huge help. And, I look forward to meeting some of you when I am out there.

A drysuit would keep you warmest, although you would still be cold.

The new single-piece 7mm "semi-dry" wetsuits that are just now coming out on the market (Scuba Diving had a recent write up on them with photos) might be viable for you, if you do not want to make the $1000+ investment in a drysuit right away.

I strongly urge against the two piece 7mm farmer johns. Too much neoprene and too much lead required for comfortable diving.

 

[The Chairman]

Ah... I'm gonna miss you!!! Have fun! Dive safe!!!

 

[simbrooks]

I strongly urge against the two piece 7mm farmer johns. Too much neoprene and too much lead required for comfortable diving.

Not to mention the gaping great holes for water to conduit through between the jacket and john/jane part - makes me cold just thinking about water pouring through there!

 

[Chuck Tribolet]

Not to mention the gaping great holes for water to conduit through between the jacket and john/jane part - makes me cold just thinking about water pouring through there!

Back in my wetsuit days, I was reasonably comfortable in hooded
vest, farmer john, and beaver tail jacket, all 7mm. It took about
32-34 pounds to sink it with an AL 80. Having 21 mm of insulation
on my trunk helped.

But the drysuit is much better.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

The best wetsuit I ever had was a Picasso Commercial Termic (Termic-not a typo).
It was a 9 mil, 2 piece beaver tail with an attached hood and gold smooth skin on the inside, no zippers. Many dives I remained dry for quite a while before a little water barely seeped in. I used to have to lube it up with a combo of hair conditioner and water to be able to put it on easily. Unfortunately I outgrew it (got fatter) and sold it to my buddy whom it fit perfect. It costed me $800 and it was an "off the rack" suit.

I now use a Teknodiver Super Duty Commercial dry suit which is a 7 mil neoprene suit made out of Rubatex and is extremely heavy. It really is overkill for the warm waters of Northern California (joke). It really is made for long exposures in ice or water in the 30's up north. I bought it because I got it for a steal at $900.

I also just bought another cheapo 2 piece wetsuit as a back up, or sometimes I just like to dive wet and get invigorated by the ocean salt water. I do miss getting my body wet with a drysuit and sweat doesn't count.

ZKY

 

[miskatonic]

FYI I too am looking for a dive buddy...more to the point a group of dive buddies.

 

[miskatonic]

In a word no. The gear in the shop looks like it is 10 years old. The shop itself is a mess. Everything was piled upon everything else.

The owner was creepy. I told him that I was not really sure if this was a dive shop or it it was even open. His reply was "We like to keep a low profile." I live down the street from Steels but I am going to do all my shopping in San Francisco at http://www.bambooreef.com

 

[OrlandoRogue]

Thanks again, all for the great starter info. above. Still debating in my head about dry-suit vs. wet-suit, I suppose the pocket book will make the decision at first, though buoyancy will be a bear! I get spoiled diving with no weight in the Springs and only a few pounds in my 1mm here in Florida . I'll probably try out a few different dive shops that you all have recommended above, thanks for the suggestions. I'll post again when I am out there b/c I'll definitely need some local tourguides to get me started in the colder waters! See you soon, Rebecca

 

[boomx5]

Thanks again, all for the great starter info. above. Still debating in my head about dry-suit vs. wet-suit, I suppose the pocket book will make the decision at first, though buoyancy will be a bear! I get spoiled diving with no weight in the Springs and only a few pounds in my 1mm here in Florida . I'll probably try out a few different dive shops that you all have recommended above, thanks for the suggestions. I'll post again when I am out there b/c I'll definitely need some local tourguides to get me started in the colder waters! See you soon, Rebecca

Hi Rebecca,

Before you decide to "pull the trigger" on a new suit, PM me and I'll see if I can help get you a good deal on a new DUI.