Trilaminate or Neoprene drysuit

[60plus]

I know this question will have been asked before but as manufacturers of both materials claim continued improvement perhaps its time to update the discussion.
In my limited experience the only downside to either material during a dive is the extra drag in currents from the rippled trilaminate.

 

[Marie13]

Neoprene will be heavier and will also take a longer time to dry, which is an important consideration if you’ll be traveling with it to dive.

 

[Neilwood]

There are a lot of considerations to think about when looking at neoprene or trilam:
1) Weight of the suit - the neoprene will be heavier on the surface.
2) Compressibility - unless you purchase a crushed neoprene suit (which will be more expensive) there will be an element of compressibility in neoprene which you may have to take in to a ccount when thinking about weighting.
3) Warmth - The neoprene suit will provide an element of thermal protection whereas the trilam will provide nothing at all. This means that a trilam will require more insulating undersuits
4) Drying - as @Marie13 says neoprene will potentially need longer to dry

My personal choice was to break the budget and go for a crushed neo O-three drysuit however I in my club there are people with both types and they all seem fine with their choices.

 

[BoltSnap]

My personal choice was to break the budget and go for a crushed neo O-three drysuit

Do they have front entry suits or are they all back zip?

 

[Neilwood]

Do they have front entry suits or are they all back zip?

I think they normally come with back zips but IIRC you can order a front zip.

 

[BoltSnap]

I think they normally come with back zips but IIRC you can order a front zip.

I was looking at their Ri- 1-100 suit, it looks interesting but I didn't see anywhere that they do front zip self donning suit. I just sent them a message on their website.

 

[Neilwood]

I was looking at their Ri- 1-100 suit, it looks interesting but I didn't see anywhere that they do front zip self donning suit. I just sent them a message on their website.

I have seen a couple of them around so I can only assume it is something they do as a special order.

I have no hesitation in recommending them. Only issue I had was not ordering a pocket on both legs (my fault as I didn't check the order) but that was fitted within a week between first contact and it being returned so excellent customer service.

 

[lexvil]

I have both types, Seaskin brand, I prefer compressed neoprene for everything except the back zip, once they offer a front zip option I’ll get another neoprene. Neoprene does take longer to dry, trilam can be dry in a day, neoprene will take two.

 

[Bert van den Berg]

I love the 4mm thick compressed neoprene drysuit. Tried a tri-lam and was cold even with quality thermals underneath (it was winter and water was 14 deg. C).

As regards the extra drag with tri-lam, the compressed neo also has more drag than a wetsuit. Not really a problem unless you want to cover a lot of ground while hunting/gathering. Then it can be a bit tiring.

 

[ajtoady]

In my case, I like my SeaSoft TX-3 compressed neo suit. Fits well and no worry about the air moving about, mostly because it fits closely unlike some of the tri lams. Ease of body movement is outstanding. I wear a 100 gram thermal and have been warm throughout a 80 min 55' dive in 33* F waters. I did find out however,,never drink a pot of coffee and then dive in a drysuit without a pee valve!! Choice of drysuit is however a personal choice. Sorta like the big,,which reg should I buy,, debate!!! Find a way to try both kinds and draw your own conclusions.