How tight is tight

[fish_bowl]

Hey guys,

I bought a wet suit a few months ago and I tried it on today. I didn't realize how tight these things are. Mine is a 7mm (cold here in the north) and well I am thinking it is a little too tight. Are wetsuits really tight when you first get them? Does it get better in the long run. I don't have trouble getting the top done up, its mostly my legs that I have trouble with. In fact I put a small tare in my wetsuit when I was putting it on this time. And no I haven't gained weight. I work out regularily at the gym.

Well I guess if my suit is o.k. I need to know how to fix the small tare.

Fish

 

[HammerNoMore]

fish_bowl once bubbled...
Hey guys,

I bought a wet suit a few months ago and I tried it on today. I didn't realize how tight these things are. Mine is a 7mm (cold here in the north) and well I am thinking it is a little too tight. Are wetsuits really tight when you first get them? Does it get better in the long run. I don't have trouble getting the top done up, its mostly my legs that I have trouble with. In fact I put a small tare in my wetsuit when I was putting it on this time. And no I haven't gained weight. I work out regularily at the gym.

Well I guess if my suit is o.k. I need to know how to fix the small tare.

Fish

Real tight is tight. It is never easy to get into a properly fitting 7mm wetsuit. A smooth inner lining helps but only so much. If you think it is hard now, wait till you put it on while it is wet.

It sounds like you fit fine in the upper body. If that is the case, you are not going to get something with bigger legs without either a custom fit or chaning manufacturers.

When pulling the suit on your arms or legs, don't just trust your arm/leg in and yank, Treat it like a woman putting on panty hose, "bunch it up" as much as possible and start at the ends, working your way up.

You should be able to repair your small tear using a neoprine cement, such as Aquaseal.

James

 

[Brutus23]

Good morning,

This might help, I was on a dive boat the other day and seen a diver squirting soapy water (I believe it was baby shampoo/water) from a dish soap container into the arms and legs of his suit... he slid right in. I haven't tried it yet, but will the next time I put on my 7mm suit.

Safe Diving,
Brutus

 

[Allen42]

James Goddard once bubbled...
A smooth inner lining helps but only so much. If you think it is hard now, wait till you put it on while it is wet.

Couldn't disagree more for my suit. I have a custom suit from Aquaflite that has "Oceanliner" which is very, very similar (the same?) as Henderson's Goldcore, and it helps IMMENSELY to get the suit wet. I and my buddies all dive this fantastic suit. Mine is a custom-cut, skin-tight fit and it used to be a pretty good wrestling match to get that thing on. Now I dunk it and myself and then literally slide right in.

The water sprayer bottle is a great idea, but I don't want soapy water on me for the dive. (My suit fits so well and has the liner, so there is hardly any water flow... I don't think the soap would be washed away.)

My .02 cents,
-Allen

 

[HammerNoMore]

Allen42 once bubbled...
Couldn't disagree more for my suit. I have a custom suit from Aquaflite that has "Oceanliner" which is very, very similar (the same?) as Henderson's Goldcore, and it helps IMMENSELY to get the suit wet. I and my buddies all dive this fantastic suit. Mine is a custom-cut, skin-tight fit and it used to be a pretty good wrestling match to get that thing on. Now I dunk it and myself and then literally slide right in.

Well I was refering to putting on a suit that is still damp from the previous dive, not putting one on with liberal amounts of water between you and it.

James

 

[Allen42]

You could be right. I don't typically get out of it in between dives, I just take take the top portion off.

 

[hodgson]

I have big feet (almost don't need fins LOL) Here's a trick I learned 30 some odd years ago.

Stick your foot in a large plastic bag. like a grocery bag and slide your leg into the suit. It's really slick and even works when your suit is wet. Pull the bag off of your foot when you get the leg in. For colder water, I sometimes kept the bags on my feet and just slid my dive boots over them.

Works on your hands too if that's also a problem getting into the sleaves

 

[diver_paula]

Wearing a dive skin will help you 'slip' into a wetsuit. Works both wet or dry. When I was still using a wetsuit I kept multiple dive skins so I'd have a warm & dry skin between dives. It wasn't necessary but sure was more comfy.

Paula