Pinnacle Black Ice Drysuit: Mini Review

[catone]

Brand new to dry suits. Bought it Friday, dove it at Jackson Blue for a couple of hours (2 dives) then 2 salt water dives off of Panama City. I've already installed my p-valve in yesterday, looks great, now I need to figure out the condom size to use (obviously, the medium one supplied with the valve was way too small ) As far as undergarments I was diving an Underarmour shirt and a fleece plus my shorts and cheepo WalMart polyester socks. I was warm as the suit is thick and the water was about 70, but the squeeze was there as I had to get all the air out due to the underweighing issue. Overall very pleased with being dry, I just need more practice until I figure the right amount of weight for an AL80 in salt water.

 

[Paco II]

I hear that. I'm using Fourth Element Xerotherm top and bottom. Still at about 30 pounds, but hoping that will drop over time. I haven't had any neck seal leaks - be sure the neck seal is folded in well. Did get some moisture around the wrist seals, but merino+ undergarments took care of that easily. So far no regrets with the neo of the BI. I see some people here with the tri-lam and some seriously thick undergarments, and glad to be able to wear very little underneath the BI and still warm and comfy.

 

[catone]

I have no regrets buying a drysuit either. The BI came highly recommended by a shop owner/cave diver (who dove several suits and settled on the BI) whose unbiased opinions I trust, plus some others (including our own Cave-aholic ) so I went for it. I have no idea how other drysuits perform, but the BI seems bulletproof, keeps me warm with minimal amount of undergarment, is easy to don and doff, quite flexible even with all the air out, has nice standard pockets attached, came with a free 7mm hood, and I got a good deal on it.

 

[Paco II]

I had such a different experience when doing research on the suit. None of the shops near me had any info on the suit. They'd never sold one before, had never even had one in the shop, and they didn't know of anyone who had one. And they were pushing the Fusion. Ultimately my love of all things Pinnacle kept me on course

 

[Freezerbrn]

Hi all, I know this post is a little old so I hope you don't mind if it revive it again. I too like Paco could find any store of diver that used the suit, had a suit in stock, or had anything good to say about crushed neo suits. I do like the Pinnacle wetsuit (my first was the 7MM Merino lined). Having said that, I took the plunge and bought a BI suit (great deal at Dayo Scuba look under hot deals here on SB). I am waiting on delivery.

My questions are:
Do the owners of BI suits here still like their suits since they posted here?
What would you recommend to a new owner based on what you now know?
Type of boots worn with suit and undies. I dive So cal. My last dive surface temps 58 at depth 51. Froze my @$$ off doing 4 deep dives in a 8M semi dry.

Thanks.

 

[coldwaterlloyd]

Did my first dive in Black Ice today .

I fell right in the middle of Large Short size on Pinnacle chart . When I first tried the suit on it felt a little "clunky" . Almost a sloppy fit . Once vented it lined up much better .

I have been diving in a 3mm hi-density neoprene suit . The Black Ice just felt like I would need a lot more ballast. I added an extra 4 lbs and had more on hand if needed .

To my surprise I was a little negative and had no problem dropping down . I did not need any extra weight which pleasantly surprised me .

I am not a fan of the neoprene socks . I have ordered a pair of rock boots and will eventually replace the neo-socks with HD drysuit boots .

The suit U/W was incredibly comfortable . It honestly felt like a pair of broken in Levi's and a merino sweater . I was impressed right away .

I was already a fan of Merino lining as I use Pinnacle wetsuits in warm water . It is the best lining I have ever used and I have used a lot of suits over the past 20 years of diving .


The water temp right now in Pacific Northwest is a balmy 45 degrees . I did a 65 foot dive for 45 minutes and I was quite comfortable . I use fourth element xerotherm undergarments .

For the first dive in a brand new suit I was very happy . These suits are a bargain at the current clear-out prices found on this forum .
About the only dark cloud on the suit is the small tag inside that reads "Made in China"
Is nothing sacred ?

I bought this suit for repetitive winter dives when water temps drop below 50 degrees . I planned on using my Mobby 3mm for summer . When the Black Ice is broken in the Mobby may hang for a long time . Stay tuned

 

[Paco II]

Still loving my BI! Not a hint of buyer's remorse. Tried on a Fusion again recently, just to see how it would feel after having used the BI, and I still don't like it, even if they are 'all the rage' right now I hope Pinnacle gets its business 'back in order' soon. Bit of a mess, the whole thing with Zeagle.

 

[helimvee]

My questions are:
Do the owners of BI suits here still like their suits since they posted here?
What would you recommend to a new owner based on what you now know?
Type of boots worn with suit and undies. I dive So cal. My last dive surface temps 58 at depth 51. Froze my @$$ off doing 4 deep dives in a 8M semi dry.

Thanks.

Yes, I still like mine. I had the Evo2 and for various reasons switched to the BI. While there are some things I like better about the Evo2, I am happier with the BI.

It came with the neoprene socks, which I absolutely hated. I now have the attached rubber boot.

As for undergarments .... everyone is different.

 

[Paco II]

What's it like with the attached boots? It's definitely something I am thinking about. I don't hate the neoprene socks, but having to then also put on boots is one more step I'd love to be able to skip.

As far as undies, as others have said, it really depends on your tolerance, and the type of diving you do. For example, I am doing Monterey shore diving. Typical dive is maybe 45 mins, 50F temps. I am super comfortable in just fourth element Xerotherm underneath. If I was doing longer dives, or colder dives, I'd likely need more. Warmer temps, even less. Really depends.

Yes, I still like mine. I had the Evo2 and for various reasons switched to the BI. While there are some things I like better about the Evo2, I am happier with the BI.

It came with the neoprene socks, which I absolutely hated. I now have the attached rubber boot.

As for undergarments .... everyone is different.

 

[Freezerbrn]

The update. I got the BI suit in XL thinking it would git my 6'3" 210 frame. It didn't. Too baggy in the torso area. I was very sad that I had to send it back. I liked the feel and the toughness the suit appeared to be. The Dive Shop didn't have a large tall. I ended up buying the Scuba Pro Ever Dry4 crushed neo dry suit. To be honest, the BI felt better and more durable. I will be diving the Scuba Pro version of the BI Friday at Catalina. Temps have been in the mid to lower 50's. I am not a fan of rear entry DS but with Pinnacle in the situation that it is and limited stock for sale I missed out. Enjoy all. If interested I will post how the Everdry4 worked.