Review Seaskin Nova drysuit
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$424?! Ouch. Mine was $60 from Fedex. I wonder what changed.
OP
An update: I decided I wanted the Seaskin 150-gr undersuit. I got the 250-gr as part of my original order. It is great, but I think it is too warm for intermediate water temps. (And the 150-gr was only USD$130 + shipping! What a bargain!)
I ordered the 150-gr and specified to make it using the measurements from my first order. I ordered it on December 9 and it arrived today. It fits just as perfectly as the original gear. I am looking forward to using it! I'm doing a Meg tooth dive weekend out of Wilmington in 3 weeks or so and I think this will be just right for the expected water temps (55 - 60F range).
I ordered the 150-gr and specified to make it using the measurements from my first order. I ordered it on December 9 and it arrived today. It fits just as perfectly as the original gear. I am looking forward to using it! I'm doing a Meg tooth dive weekend out of Wilmington in 3 weeks or so and I think this will be just right for the expected water temps (55 - 60F range).
superheavydeathmetal
Contributor
I guess I will chime in here with my recent experience.
I just used my Nova for the first time last weekend. As this is my first drysuit, I don't have anything to compare it to or any frame of reference, so I will stick with facts.
The good:
1) It kept me dry! That's what it's all about, right? No leaks in the zipper, which is plastic. I have the SiTech neck seal and silicone wrist seals. They all worked flawlessly!
2) According to the people I was with who are experienced drysuit divers, the fit is great.
3) The thermal layers fit very well, and kept me nice and cozy under the ice! Also, the moisture-wicking base layers are outstanding.
The bad:
1) The attached hood makes donning the suit very difficult. You would have died laughing watching what everyone went through to try to get my head through the neck seal and hood. It really was quite comical. I may end up just cutting it off.
2) The Kubi dry glove system was a complete failure after only one use. I understand SeaSkin does not make this system, so at this point I am no longer commenting on the suit itself or SeaSkin in any way. First, it was extremely difficult to get the gloves attached to the suit. It took two people (not including me) and excessive force to get the glove assembly attached to the suit. The left glove flooded. The right glove did not. After diving, we were not able to remove the gloves from the suit properly. They just wouldn't budge. The only way to remove the gloves from the suit was to take them off of the glove-side seal rings. This was also extremely difficult. The retaining rings had to be pried off with a screwdriver. Now, the glove-side rings are stuck in the suit and I have no idea how to get them out.
Bottom line: if you are considering getting a SeaSkin Nova, I say go for it! But, I would advise against the attached hood. Also, be wary of the Kubi dry glove system. I ordered them based on all of the positive reviews I had read, but my experience has been entirely bad. Maybe this is just an isolated case of bad luck.
Happy diving!
P.S. If anyone has any idea how to get stuck Kubi glove-side rings out of a suit, I would be very grateful!
I just used my Nova for the first time last weekend. As this is my first drysuit, I don't have anything to compare it to or any frame of reference, so I will stick with facts.
The good:
1) It kept me dry! That's what it's all about, right? No leaks in the zipper, which is plastic. I have the SiTech neck seal and silicone wrist seals. They all worked flawlessly!
2) According to the people I was with who are experienced drysuit divers, the fit is great.
3) The thermal layers fit very well, and kept me nice and cozy under the ice! Also, the moisture-wicking base layers are outstanding.
The bad:
1) The attached hood makes donning the suit very difficult. You would have died laughing watching what everyone went through to try to get my head through the neck seal and hood. It really was quite comical. I may end up just cutting it off.
2) The Kubi dry glove system was a complete failure after only one use. I understand SeaSkin does not make this system, so at this point I am no longer commenting on the suit itself or SeaSkin in any way. First, it was extremely difficult to get the gloves attached to the suit. It took two people (not including me) and excessive force to get the glove assembly attached to the suit. The left glove flooded. The right glove did not. After diving, we were not able to remove the gloves from the suit properly. They just wouldn't budge. The only way to remove the gloves from the suit was to take them off of the glove-side seal rings. This was also extremely difficult. The retaining rings had to be pried off with a screwdriver. Now, the glove-side rings are stuck in the suit and I have no idea how to get them out.
Bottom line: if you are considering getting a SeaSkin Nova, I say go for it! But, I would advise against the attached hood. Also, be wary of the Kubi dry glove system. I ordered them based on all of the positive reviews I had read, but my experience has been entirely bad. Maybe this is just an isolated case of bad luck.
Happy diving!
P.S. If anyone has any idea how to get stuck Kubi glove-side rings out of a suit, I would be very grateful!
Why on God's green earth would you get a drysuit with an attached hood?
OP
@BurhanMuntasser LOL!!
@superheavydeathmetal The key to the Kubis is to lube the O-rings on the glove side rings (that ones that seal between the glove and suit rings) with a bit of silicone grease. That makes ALL the difference. I'm not too surprised at the difficulty you described. My first time using them, without some lube, was almost (but not quite) as bad. I was able to eventually get them apart.
I know there is some Kubi documentation somewhere that says you don't need to lube the O-rings. They are on crack with that. Once you get them apart again, pop that one O-ring off and lube it and it will be a 100% transformation. I lubed mine over 2 years ago and haven't needed to lube them again yet and they still go together and come apart just fine. You don't want to lube them TOO much as you don't want it to be TOO easy for them to pull apart. Like any O-ring, you just want it lubed enough to look shiny.
Unfortunately, I don't have any real suggestion on how to get them apart. They are a MF-er when they have no lube... Do try twisting and pulling at the same time, if you haven't....
@superheavydeathmetal The key to the Kubis is to lube the O-rings on the glove side rings (that ones that seal between the glove and suit rings) with a bit of silicone grease. That makes ALL the difference. I'm not too surprised at the difficulty you described. My first time using them, without some lube, was almost (but not quite) as bad. I was able to eventually get them apart.
I know there is some Kubi documentation somewhere that says you don't need to lube the O-rings. They are on crack with that. Once you get them apart again, pop that one O-ring off and lube it and it will be a 100% transformation. I lubed mine over 2 years ago and haven't needed to lube them again yet and they still go together and come apart just fine. You don't want to lube them TOO much as you don't want it to be TOO easy for them to pull apart. Like any O-ring, you just want it lubed enough to look shiny.
Unfortunately, I don't have any real suggestion on how to get them apart. They are a MF-er when they have no lube... Do try twisting and pulling at the same time, if you haven't....
If you get a front zip drysuit, get the telescoping torso.
Otherwise they just make it long in the torso so you’ll actually be able to get in and out of it. This sucks because it doesn’t fold the same way every time and you have to futz with it. When I ordered my drysuit, it was not an option. It is the only part of my seaskin purchase that I wish were different.
Get the telescoping torso option. Do not question this. Do not argue. Do not make excuses. Just get it.
Otherwise they just make it long in the torso so you’ll actually be able to get in and out of it. This sucks because it doesn’t fold the same way every time and you have to futz with it. When I ordered my drysuit, it was not an option. It is the only part of my seaskin purchase that I wish were different.
Get the telescoping torso option. Do not question this. Do not argue. Do not make excuses. Just get it.
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