Does ANYONE in the USA dive a Ursuit drysuit?

[amajamar]

Just wondering, as I just tried one on a demo this weekend and my GF and myself really loved it. However, it was not really any less expensive than other suits and after doing some quick research it seems that they are much more popular in Europe.

Any thoughts?

Thanks.

 

[legions]

I recently ordered the Ursuit heavy light fz. Unfortunately for me, I did not have a chance to demo the suit. As soon as I take delivery of it and get it wet, I will let you know how I find it.

 

[amajamar]

Why did you choose the Ursuit? From what dealer did you order it? I ask because the Ursuit is the only suit that my LDS sells now, and I met the president of Ursuit USA and he said that there were only a few dealers nationwide, and that there was really no plan to increase the number of dealers.

That makes me wonder how quickly they will catch on.

However, it seems to be a really nice drysuit!

 

[legions]

I purchased the suit from Divers Cove in Essex Connecticut after many long hours of discussion with Ed the owner and family. I have know Ed for about 17 years and value his opinion. But I like to think I did my homework. I checked with a lds that does a lot of drysuit repairs to see what suits require a lot of attention. This steered me away from some suits. I would have ultimately liked to talked with divers who use this line, but there are not as lot in the states.

This style of suit is a great departure for me as I have been with Trellborg since 1980. That it comes with a life time guarantee on it's seams made a great impression on me. But as you know there is not a lot of information about this line, on line. I was hoping to find customer reviews or opinions. The few that I did find, were all in Europe.

To be honest, the only remark I found negative about the line, was the price, suggesting that it was steep. But, my Vikings were very steep in price also. After trying one on in the shop, I was very impressed with the way the suit fit, and the ample freedom of movement it provided. But once again, this is a tremendous departure from my previous drysuits. I also liked the idea that the suit was made in Finland, but this is just a personal preference. My other suits were ALL made in Sweden.

Maybe as more and more of these suits are used by the American market, there will be more info in the way of reviews and advertising. I guess only time will tell.

I know that this does not account for much nowadays, but, with all the suits that are out there nowadays, if I thought for one second that this suit would not perform in the way I wanted, and expected it to, I would not have purchased it. And I do not mix my words.

 

[amajamar]

Yeah, I'm not surprised that you got it from them in Connecticut, as the representative from Ursuit was saying that he had another LDS down there. As I said before, the only issue I had with their marketing plan was that Ursuit USA has planned very limited dealerships.

The suits seem to be built to last, so I don't think that longterm ownership is the problem, it's more the "I bought this suit two years ago, and I want to sell, or trade it now", isssue. That is my concern. Where as many other name brand suits have the ability to sell used at reasonable values, I'm not so sure about a "no name" has the same desireablity in the used market. (I know it's not a "no name" elsewhere in the world.)

Did you get the black or the orange "Rescue" model?

 

[legions]

I originally wanted the rescue, due to I feel, it's high visibility. That more reflected the visibility of the Viking, which I liked in murky water. After careful consideration, I did not like some of the wording on the suit, so I opted for the black.

I myself personally, am not as concerned about a company going out of business, as I am about that same company being swallowed up by a conglomerate. It has been my observation, as it personally happened to me that, a large company comes in and buys it's competition, and then runs it into the ground, so at that point, they have no competition. This solidifies their place in the market. That is the only thing I would be afraid of. So I guess in the long run, the original company goes out of business.

But this is an ever changing world we live in. At one time in my diving career, the company that I had been loyal to for thirty years, commanded a very large piece of the drysuit pie. Commercial divers, police and fire and rescue divers as well as sport divers all seemed to embrace this line. I do not believe they command that same privilege now. Sometimes you cannot rest on your laurels.

The other suits have the ability to resell ( or not ) , at least right now, because they have some history.

I believe starting out with a small number of dealers, at least right now, is just good business. Before I brought a lot of dealers on board I would want to see if there is enough of a demand to justify such a move. And at least in this way I would have some control over my product.

 

[legions]

I also like the self-donning capabilities of the suit, though the life of the zipper remains to be seen. I had always been taught that the ideal local for a zipper was across the shoulders. And in that placement it would never turn out against itself. In 30 years, with three suits, I never experienced a zipper problem. Seals yes, zippers no.

But, to not require an extra body to zip you up, well, we'll see.

 

[amajamar]

The suit has a cover to protect the zipper, and many suits are front zip now, so it probably is not a problem, hopefully!

I wasn't concerned about the company going out of business, and they are affiliated with Suunto and Aqualung in Finland, I believe, so their european entity is seemingly strong.

What was the wording on the suit that you didn't like, if I may ask?

 

[legions]

Lets just say that I do not like to draw any undo attention to myself while diving. I liked the color, and I really liked the reflective tape with the arrows, as I stated earlier,in murky or dark conditions I felt those items were ideal. I would have rather there had been no reference written on the suit. That's all.

As far as my understanding, the cover in front of the zip, protects it from chaffing and getting contaminated with debris. What I am making reference to is the way the zip bends. Across the shoulders the zip bends in a natural arch, like an up side down smile. What I had always been taught is the zip is not made to bend the opposite way, with the position of the zipper facing upwards. This means it is bending against itself. With a front zip, if you were to bend over to touch your toes, you would be bending the zip against itself. Now how often you bend over to touch your toes while in a dry suit remains to be seen. But that is what I had been taught.

When I take delivery of the suit and get it wet, then I will know. Like I stated earlier, this suit is a departure from what I am used to, so I imagine there will probably be a slight learning curve in the beginning. Now, if it does not perform the way I believe it should, that's a different story.

 

[amajamar]

What I had always been taught is the zip is not made to bend the opposite way, with the position of the zipper facing upwards. This means it is bending against itself. With a front zip, if you were to bend over to touch your toes, you would be bending the zip against itself. Now how often you bend over to touch your toes while in a dry suit remains to be seen. But that is what I had been taught.

That makes sense to me, too. I have heard that too, but I never really thought about the possibility of bending it wrong while diving. I suppose there are ways to do that, though.