which drysuit?

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gbray

Contributor
Messages
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15
Location
warrenton,missouri
# of dives
100 - 199
I am preparing to take my drysuit class and will be looking to pruchase a drysuit in the future. I have 3 unused bc's hanging in the basement (progressed from jacket style to bp/w) and don't wan't to do this with a drysuit. I dive mostly quarries in the midwest but next year want to do some wrecks out of Chicago area. I don't travel much but may in the future. It seems the trilam suits seem to be the best all around suits. Do these hold up well for caverns? What are your preferences and why? There are just too many choices. I dive both single and double tanks. Which seals do you prefer?
Does anyone else gag from the neck seal when not in the water?

Sorry for all the questions but only want to do this once.
 
I dive mostly quarries in the midwest but next year want to do some wrecks out of Chicago area. ... It seems the trilam suits seem to be the best all around suits. Do these hold up well for caverns? What are your preferences and why? ... Which seals do you prefer? Does anyone else gag from the neck seal when not in the water?
You will probably get a good deal of personal testimonial, and my response is just that. I dive a back zip Diving Concepts trilam suit, purchased back in 2002. I picked it because trilam appealed to me as the best 'all around' suit for my needs, back zip because I figured I would seldom be in a positon where I did not have someone to zip / unzip the suit, and DCI because that is what the shop sold. I use it a lot - in quarries, on wrecks off the NC coast and elsewhere (recently, the St. Lawrence River for example), and have used it in FL caverns. I dive it with singles (although that is something of a weighting challenge, even with my SS backplate and a steel tank) and most often with doubles. I have had NO regrets, EVER, about the suit, the producer, the material. I added a P valve after several years, which I should have done when I ordered it. I changed out the inflator nipple, to be the same size as the nipple on my wings, rather than using the larger nipple frequently found on drysuits, which requires a different size hose coupling. My shoulder dump valve is an Aqualung model, which has always leaked just a bit, and which I will someday replace with a SI Tech model. I have latex seals, and replaced the original standard thickness wrist (bell) seals with heavy duty wrist (bell) seals, which I prefer. I do not gag from the neck seal when out of the water (or in), nor do I feel faint from carotid compression. I felt that sensation early on and went ahead and trimmed the neck seal some more, so that it is comfortable. I have integrated boots, rather than neoprene socks and rock boots, but I am plus/minus on that aspect. I may change to socks if I ever have to replace the boots. I wear Halcyon gaiters with the suit.

Tips: besides heavy duty, bell (rather than cone) wrist seals, installation of a P valve, proper trimming of the neck seal, and use of gaiters - get a suit, dive it often (for me, I only dive wet in the pool, and when the water temp is above 73 degrees), dial in your buoyancy and trim (I use my BP/W for buoyancy, and keep just enough air in my suit for warmth and minimal squeeze) and you will consider it the best scuba gear investment you ever make.
 
Fit is important in a dry suit in oprder to get both excellent mobility and range of motion with minimal baggioness and drag. That can be problematic if you are diving 35-40 degree water in the great lakes and then 70-75 degree water in N FL caves.

I used a trilam for years and liked it. DUI is a big name with a big following and it is hard for better companies to compete with thier name recognition. But both Andys and Diamond trilams were in my opinon much better quality drysuits at much better prices - however both companies are also no longer around.

About 18 montsh ago I bought a White's Fusion and it is now by far my favorite drysuit. It is very flexible and asy to move in yet is very streamlined in the water. It will also easily accommodate a change from heavy under wear to nothing more than a very light moisture wicking layer with no issues with reduced mobility or bagginess at either extreme.

It is also very durable and has survived well over 100 dives with no leaks or noticeable wear with a larger percentage of those dives being cave or wreck penetration dives. I would not have had the same leak free success with any trilam.
 
I've owned a DUI compressed neoprene suit, a OS Systems shell suit, a whites Catalyst, and Diving Concepts Ultra Flex Pro custom trilam, and now dive the Whites Fusion.

I've got over a year now, and close to a couple hundred dives on the Fusion, and it is for sure my favorite drysuit. I'm amazed how well it has held up to the abuse I've given it.

My first dives on the suit were during a wreck penetration class in the St. Lawrence river where the instructor made sure to have us blindly scraping and rubbing all over the sharp, oily insides of various wrecks, and (after some scrubbing off of the oil) the suit came out unscathed.

I dived the suit all winter in water temps in the 30's, and with the right undies (MK3) stayed as warm as in any other suit I've owned. But I also took the suit to Hawaii last march and with a really light layer underneath it was much more comfortable than a wetsuit.

I like the fact that suit will fit like a custom suit without paying for a custom suit, as the outer material compresses the inner material snuggly around any body shape.

The Fusion isn't perfect, and some of the issues I have with my suit have been addressed by Whites. Like pocket sagging, narrow ankles and adding a pee valve. But dollar for dollar, I think is is a fine suit at an excellent price.

If I lost the one I have I'd buy another today.
 
trilam suits are the most often seen ones in caves. for all of a drysuit, fit is the hugest issue - for instance, if your turbosoles fit, you'll love them, and if they don't you'll hate them. i have a new old stock andy's (ordered but not picked up, so the store sold it cheap) with a u zip like a fusion, and think it's great. i think my next suit will be a fusion, but there are some things i want them to iron out first.

and suits aren't bulletproof. i hear you on only wanting to do it once, but if you get 5-8 years out of a suit you're doing good.
 
Don't forget to budget for some nice undergarments...

I'd also recommend suspenders unless you like your expensive wrist seals dragging along the deck...
 
If you're considering cave/cavern, you really can't beat the durability of the DUI CF200 compressed neoprene. It's a suit that will outlast you! The added bonus of the elasticity of the CN...sold!
 
My first drysuit was a Diving Concepts trilam, which happened to be all cordura outer layer. I had some problems with leaking, and as it was getting old, I recently replaced it with a DUI CLX450. It's a trilam but with a cordura outer layer. Some people favor the trilam because it's a little lighter and it dries faster than the neoprene, and then others like the neoprene because it's more durable. I chose the option of the 450 with full cordura upper and lower- it's pretty bulletproof but if the weather's warm it will dry in a couple hours. Bottom line is I love the suit.
A comment about options- I'd suggest bellows pockets with velcro, bigger is better, and if you're planning any tech diving, a P valve is a must. I got the zip seals, but I haven't had a seal failure yet.
 
I was just about to change from rubber suits to something more modern, so tried a Typhoon (did not like it...no stretch, and the "bib" style wrap-around of the front entry suit was unconfortable to me). Tried a DUI CF200. Great suit but needed much more weight than with my old Viking. Find DUI a bit expensive but great suits.
Then found a cheap new Thor rubber suit from Northern Diver on eBay for only $800. Very stretchy, tough, and a large range of sizes to fit 99% of divers. You can also get them in the "heavy duty" weight and front or rear entry. Can still wear same amount of weight on my drysuit as I wear with my wetsuit. Tough boots on the suit, but comfortable.
Yes...I'm probably too vintage...but it works for me.
Fits fairly tight around the legs so very little baggyness or drag, does not hinder swimming very much at all. All come standard with suspenders from memory. That is the one must-have feature for me on a suit.
Best advice is...try as many as you can before you buy. Yes, that will take a few months, but at least you will buy what YOU like.
ALternatively, buy a couple of second hand ones on eBay, use them for a while, and then you can pretty much sell them again for the same money if you keep your eyes open and don't pay too much when you purchase. When you find one you like, keep it, or sell it and buy the new version of the same.
Too much choice and too little time to try them all!
 
yeah, the ebay-rebay idea is good if you have a reasonable idea what size you'd be.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/teric/

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