If you were buying a new drysuit today, which one would you buy?

[Dan Watkins]

I dive off of New Jersey in the summer/fall, so it is pretty cold water. I have only dove 7mm farmer john/jacket wet thus far, and I have seriously been considering a drysuit to begin my season a little earlier and extend it a bit later.

Well, I am at square one here. I have never dove a drysuit, so I am looking for some advice from those who have used drysuits for a while, preferably a few kinds of suits so that you know what you like, and what you do not like, and why.

I started off leaning toward a DUI Crushed Neoprene suit from a friends recommendation, but as I did a bunch of reading in this forum, the Whites Fusion suit really seems to be a pretty hot topic in recent threads. Being used to diving wet all the time, this Fusion seems to have some advantages in mobility and compressing air bubbles due to the lycra shell compressing everything? Would this make this suit easier to control say in an inverted situation where air might usually go to the feet? Is there less of a learning curve with this suit?

Those who have the suit, is the tech skin that much more durable or is the standard sport skin tough enough? I ask because reading White's website in the FAQ section about the skin durability, they write about how lycra is very difficult to actually cut, but then they go on to say "We do realize that there is a perception that lycra is not durable - for that reason we offer a lycra/neoprene tech skin." Is the tech skin only due to a "perception of durability" as they say, or is it really a better/more durable skin? I do dive on wrecks, but I don't really squeeze myself into tight spaces. So suit contact for me would be more accidental than purposeful.

Are their any cons to the Fusion suit compared to other more traditional designs?

I guess a lot of my questions sort of steered to the Fusion since it has piqued my interest from reading recent threads here. But please feel free to offer advice not releated to that particular suit as well.

Thanks in advance for the help!

Dan

 

[skdvr]

I will recommend the fusion... I have both the Tech and Sport skin and I must say that while I think that the tech skin is a little tougher. The sport is actually much tougher than I thought that it would be... One of my first dives with my fusioin I had the sport skin on it and I was walking around a little island that was covered with thorn bushes. I thought for sure that it was going to snag the skin up pretty badly, but you could not see a single mark. I got the tech skin because I wanted pockets. Some other folks just use x-shorts with their sport skin and have been plenty happy with that.

For my money I would buy another Fusion... As a matter of fact, my wife said that she is thinking about wanting a drysuit by the end of the comming year and it will be a Fuision I am sure.

It is a very comftable suit, mobility is awesome, durability is good (I only have about 40 dives on my suit).

I am sure that you will get lots of opinions. This is just mine....

Good luck in your search...

Phil

 

[sibermike7]

Hey Dan!
Wow you live in Jersey and just now are looking into drysuit diving!? Are you crazy?? Better shut my mouth since I live so far North and just went dry last month! I dive wetsuit down to about 40.

I own a Bare 7mm neoprene that I got in mint condition for about $250. That's all I got invested in it, really. It has brand new wrist seals (latex) and a neoprene neck seal which usually leaves me a little damp if my buddy makes me keep straining to look for him. I dove yesterday. It was 32 degrees or so. I was toasty. I was carrying 22 pounds of lead which was the least amount of all the divers that dove (there were about 15 of us). The reason they had so much lead was the amount of undergarments they needed to stay warm, which of course, added to their buoyancy. I wear undergarments too, just not as much obviously. However, the neoprene is only good for cold water. I needed something else for water about 50. Also, the neoprene is not very flexible to work in but great for observation and photography.

I am telling you this because there are a lot of considerations before you lay down the green stuff.

I would NOT recommend that you buy any suit before completing your drysuit course. You'll learn a lot that will help you make a wise decision.

I think that the Whites is a great suit and a lot of bang for the buck. I love the DUI too but they are pricier. You might want to consider picking up a suit off of eBay for your first suit and then when you know what you want, you'll be able to spend your money wisely.

Some additional considerations. What kind of boots/feet does the suit have? I am right now waiting delivery of my new fins that I was forced to buy because my wetsuit booties fit smaller fins than my drysuit.

You'll need an additional hose from your 1st stage regulator. not a real big deal, but necessary.

Also, my wetsuit gloves don't work with my drysuit, so I need gloves that will -another expense!!

Hope this helps!
mike

 

[TSandM]

I love my Fusion. It's the third dry suit I've owned, and I'm so bad I'll skip a dive if I can't dive the Fusion The comfort and mobility are simply superb. I have the Lycra skin and have had no problems with it at all -- I use X-shorts for pockets. I have cave dived in my Fusion, where the entries and exits often involve a bit of crawling on limestone, and the Lycra has held up very well, with only a bit of pilling where the most friction has been.

It is my perception that the compression from the Lycra makes the air bubble more stable, and makes buoyancy control easier. I don't know if the learning curve would be shorter, because I had been diving a dry suit for a couple of years before I got the Fusion. You can certainly still get into trouble if you get feet up with a lot of air in the suit; the Lycra is not a panacea.

If you don't do wreck penetration diving, I'd go with the Lycra skin and X-shorts. The combination is cheaper than the tech skin upgrade.

 

[sibermike7]

You can certainly still get into trouble if you get feet up with a lot of air in the suit; the Lycra is not a panacea.

That shouldn't happen if you have been properly weighted. And unless you are in a cave or wreck, it really isn't a big deal once you've learned how to recover anyway. I know I was a little intimidated by reading the PADI literature and hearing "war stories" about feet acting like SMBs to the point that I put off going dry far too long!

When I was testing my new BARE I grossly overinflated it and filled up my legs on purpose and it still wasn't a problem. Looked a little silly for a minute because some folks didn't know I had done it intentionally!

I also like to let my legs get some air in them to raise them off of the deck when cruising the bottom to keep silt down. It won't shoot you to the surface like an SMB as long as your buoyancy is under control.

You are going to have some much fun!

 

[mdb]

You are getting good advice and good comments.

You might also consider a neoprene style drysuit. Our micro-cell neoprene suits are streamlined, have good insulating qualities, require less weight and swim well: Apollo Sports: Dive Gear: Drysuits: 4.0mm EX Drysuit

Whatever your choice, best wishes for lots of comfortable and safe diving.

 

[sibermike7]

You are getting good advice and good comments.

You might also consider a neoprene style drysuit. Our micro-cell neoprene suits are streamlined, have good insulating qualities, require less weight and swim well: Apollo Sports: Dive Gear: Drysuits: 4.0mm EX Drysuit

Whatever your choice, best wishes for lots of comfortable and safe diving.

Hey, MDB, if you send me one to "field test" I will be able to give some really great advice!!
Oh, XL.

 

[sibermike7]

Actually, a lot of folks overlook neoprene. Personally, I like mine. I got it because it was cheap and I really wanted, I mean needed, my own suit. However, having dove in Tri and Bi-Lam as well as crushed neoprene. I do like the Neoprene because it contours well. This does cut down on the problem of air in the legs.
m

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I'm gonna go against the grain a bit here and say that while I like the overall mobility of the Fusion, I find it more struggle than it's worth getting into the suit. The separate layers take some getting used to ... and even once you get it figured out the suit's just not that easy to put on. Factor in the problem of pocket sag (or in my case, choosing a suit without pockets and wearing X-shorts), and the inconvenience factor goes up a bit more.

I find myself diving one of my DUI suits (by choice) more often than I dive the Fusion because I just don't feel like working that hard getting dressed.

I'm leaning toward selling my Fusion and getting another DUI TLS350 ... overall I'd have to say the one I've got's been the best suit I've ever owned, but it's getting a bit worn out ... primarily because I dive it more often than either of my other two suits.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[BEM]

If I was buying a new drysuit - I would probably buy the same one I have now - Bare Tri-laminate HD Tech. It hasn't failed me and I'm comfortable in it. It was soft boots, suspenders, pocket and attached gaitors - and SI dry gloves. The front opening is OK, but I'd rather have the inflator valve in the upper middle of my chest (as in the back entry model.)

I haven't tried any other brand or type (neoprene), and I'm sure there are better/worse suits than the one I have. It would be nice to try a number of suits, especially neoprene, but that wasn't your question.