My indepth review of the Hollis NeoTek Semi-Dry

[MrGRD]

Welcome to the Board, it has been a while since I've been here, sorry for the delays. Mig Uel - I think you will be fine, mine was (and I do say WAS) loose in around the waist also but I could not get my shoulders into a smaller suit. The suit works well to about 60-80 feet fresh water then the material compresses and things get loose all over BUT not around the openings.

Get yourself some tall Aqualung polarzip (or equal) boots and some gauntlet type gloves and you will be golden.

REMEMBER: YOU CAN GET A SQUEEZE IN THIS SUIT. I got a squeeze at 50-60 feet fresh water. It took me a bit to figure out what was going on. If the surface water is warm enough, let some in before you descend OR prime your suit with some warm water before you enter the water. SO.. if you are descending and it becomes difficult to breath / take a breath - don't panic, ascend a little, let the water into the suit and try again.

This past winter had been long and a lot of sitting around eating. My suit is no longer very loose in the mid section.

My Girlfriend has just purchased a new SolaFX, she had a hell of a time getting the correct size. But after three returns (all paid for by the vendor) she got a great fit. She is small, 5'10", 120 lbs MAYBE. Aqualung size charts for this suit are way off. We are waiting for the ICE to melt and we will be trying this out in cold water.

 

[sibermike7]

it has been a while since I've been here, sorry for the delays...
She is small, 5'10", 120 lbs MAYBE...
We are waiting for the ICE to melt and we will be trying this out in cold water.

Hey McGRD

I never got a notice of the post from Mig Uel until you posted today! Wow.

I have used this suit to over 100' (30+meters) without problems. I DO prime it if I think that I will need it. Having dived with drysuit many, many times, I can recognize squeeze pretty easy.

If you think your girlfriend is small at 5'10", you must be huge!

Also, why wait for the ice to melt off, cut a hole in it!!

Mig Uel - it looks like your fit is fine (I imagine that you have already made a decision about this, but you never know!)

 

[asimpkinsjr]

I received my Neotek today, I ordered the XXXL. Im 5'10, 260lbs and waist is 38-40... heres my take on the fit...the length is a bit bunchy, even at 5'10...over all I could get the suit on fine and get it zipped up, I can tell getting it off will require some assistance, the issue is the front opening is not as wide as it could be for someone with wider shoulders so you find yourself shimmying out of it. All in all I like it. Despite the ridiculously long Hollis shipping delays, I was able to get one from a shop on ebay for the same price as the LDSs in the area and no sales tax with free shipping...

 

[sibermike7]

I was able to get one from a shop on ebay for the same price as the LDSs in the area and no sales tax with free shipping...

I can't help but think about why you wouldn't give your support for your local LDS for the cost of paying a sales tax. Seems little enough to keep a shop in business.

 

[asimpkinsjr]

I can't help but think about why you wouldn't give your support for your local LDS for the cost of paying a sales tax. Seems little enough to keep a shop in business.

Since you asked Ill explain it...I did order one through my LDS, and over a month later it still hadn't shipped and Hollis couldn't even tell them when it was going to ship... Hollis ships its gear into the USA via the west coast ports and those ports were on strike and weeks after the strike was over Hollis orders still dont appear to be making it to the LDSs and there is little word when they will resolve their backlog.

 

[C Dub]

Since you asked Ill explain it...I did order one through my LDS, and over a month later it still hadn't shipped and Hollis couldn't even tell them when it was going to ship... Hollis ships its gear into the USA via the west coast ports and those ports were on strike and weeks after the strike was over Hollis orders still dont appear to be making it to the LDSs and there is little word when they will resolve their backlog.

I had the exact same experience with my LDS about 8 months ago. Waited 4 weeks and they still couldn't tell me when it would ship. So I ordered it online, free shipping, no sales tax, and received it in 2 days. This is an old and recurring problem with Hollis, they simply are NOT supporting the LDS's in my experience.

 

[sibermike7]

I did order one through my LDS, and over a month later it still hadn't shipped and Hollis couldn't even tell them when it was going to ship

Excellent, good for you!

---------- Post added April 11th, 2015 at 11:11 AM ----------

I had the exact same experience with my LDS about 8 months ago. Waited 4 weeks and they still couldn't tell me when it would ship. So I ordered it online, free shipping, no sales tax, and received it in 2 days. This is an old and recurring problem with Hollis, they simply are NOT supporting the LDS's in my experience.

That is a sad situation for LDS's for sure. Hope Hollis gets the message!
I love the suit, BTW.

 

[Overvoltage]

Excellent, good for you!

---------- Post added April 11th, 2015 at 11:11 AM ----------


That is a sad situation for LDS's for sure. Hope Hollis gets the message!
I love the suit, BTW.

I was at my LDS today and asked if they could get Hollis equipment because I would really like to see and possibly purchase this simi-dry suit. The owner told me he has tried three times to be a Hollis distributer but Hollis requires him to purchase the entire line of equipment which for a small shop is not feasible. Hollis seems to want to cater to the online stores. I really like to support my LDS as do all of my diving friends. Our LDS is always there to provide support and guidance when needed. So, even though I really like this suit and the Hollis product reviews have been really good I will be going with a brand (Aqualung or Henderson) because they work with and support the LDS.

 

[buddhasummer]

Sounds like a good reason to avoid Hollis.

 

[sibermike7]

I have several different suits, wet, dry, and the Hollis, semi-dry. I have less than 100 dives on the suit but it has already separated under the armpits. Additionally, the material is separating between the thin outer layer and the thick center layer causing a wrinkled look. It is great on a dive and if I can get it repaired, will continue to use it, but it does have it's issues!
the pockets are nice, but they don't close securely enough IMO. I haven't lost any gear but have lost stuff picked up on a dive because they didn't close well enough.
I can don and remove by meself, but it took some fingering out to get a method to get the final 6 inches of zipper zipped. During removal, the hardest part is the arms and this may be where the material got separated into "layers".
Still happy with the suit overall.