Drysuit wrist seal question??

[JeffG]

String once bubbled...
People ive spoken to have a few reasons.

Firstly, the air in your suit is often (via a straw) connected to the gloves to precent squeeze. The result is fingers full of air which makes them hard to bend (as early astronauts found out!).

Well, your hands are usually the lowest point, so most of the air is forced out of them anyways. (They only get "filled" with air when the straws fall out and you ascend)

String once bubbled...

Another factor is you need to wear gloves underneath the dry gloves in most cases as the air and material alone provides no insulation (just like a membrane dry suit).

This makes them thick and hard to move.

The gloves are not snug (more excess material), but I find the gloves (I have the Skaana gloves) more pliable than wet gloves. So IMO its a wash.

String once bubbled...
Ive heard a few people complain that although cold numb hands where near impossible to use, dry glove hands were just as bad.

As far as comfort goes, I will never give up my dry gloves. (And it does fix the leaks from skinny wrists )

 

[bridgediver]

Glad you like them Jeff. Everyone around here (Alberta) seems to have them except me!!

Where do you do most of your diving?

mark

 

[oxyhacker]

The butyl rubber used in most inner tubes doesn't have the sort of "soft" stretch that natural rubber has, necessary to get a comfy, compliant fit, unless you happen to luck on a section just the right size. Wide rubber bands, from an office supply or vacuum cleaner store, may work better. You can also make custom rubber bands out of old latex seals by cutting strips then gluing them with rubber cement - since the band will be worn outside of the seal, the crude joint won't make any difference. If that doesn't work, replace the seals.
I wouldn't go to dry gloves just because my seals wouldn't fit - drygloves are great when you need them, but one more hassle otherwise.

Oh if one is using bike tubes you can stretch them by overinflating them for a while before you cut them.

cyklon_300 once bubbled...
very small wrists...I was told you could cut wrist bands from a motorcycle inner tube to lessen the seepage (kind of a stop-gap measure until you get new seals). The trick is finding the right size tube, tho...

I tried using mountain bike tubes, but they're too small...

 

[airbrnebkr]

Thanks Oxy. I will see what I can find. I think this might be a good plan for me right now, as i am not really sure there is going to be a leakage problem. I just want to have something on standby for my first dive in this suit, sorta a save a dive contingency plan.

 

[airbrnebkr]

Oxy,
How wide a band you think would work best? 1 inch? 2 inches?

 

[DeepScuba]

I've worn the Skanna gloves for years, and they're far more "dexterous" than any wet glove, the squeeze is zero when using the "air transfer" tubes.

They are the best piece of kit I've ever owned for the price!

And if by chance your fingers get a tad cold, raise your arm to add more air in them. My finger have actually warmed up after being cold after the "hand lift" manouver

As far as "they're more hassle than what they're worth"..... What are you smoking?

They're far less hassle than anything else! And warmer too! Nothing else compares for cold water diving.

 

[airbrnebkr]

Well Deep you have convinced me, if I decide to go to a dry glove sounds like the Skanna's have it, assuming I can find them down here in Washington.

 

[DeepScuba]

I should add, incase someone takes it the wrong way.."what are you smoking", from me, is more comical than a dastardly put-down.

I find some don't take it that way.

Anyways, I have even purchased some different styles of gloves that slip on and off the skanna ring system in about 5 minutes a pair.

The gloves and liners separate, I can repair the gloves when they get a hole in them easily, and I can dry them in about 5 minutes in a dryer when separated (Liner and glove).

I even bring a spare set of gloves along on every dive, so if I "blow" a glove, I an do a simple change out during the SI and have warm, dry hands for the next dive.

When I was diving the Empress this year, I "blew" a glove (touching) :smash: and "item".

I bent the offending finger in the glove over, preventing a leak of any real proportion, and continued on my dive.

Great system. I'll never go wet again.