Best drysuits

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romanchirva

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Location
Mount Vernon WA. USA
# of dives
I am considering to buy a drysuit. I have a few options in the the same price range: whites, andy's and dive rite 905. Price is the same, which one would you recommend.
 
Which White's suit are you looking at?

I own a White's Fusion, and I have nothing but good things to say about it, after a year and about 100 dives.
 
I think you need to be a bit more specific.

In general, I've not seen many BAD drysuits on the market. Most are durable, well made, etc. So it comes down to features and price.

Provide more details, and you will likely get better suggestions and opinions.
 
Well, you don't have your location listed, and there are a lot of options within the three you listed. The drysuit you choose needs to work well in the diving environments you dive in. Here's what I can tell you:

- Crushed neoprene or neoprene tend to do pretty well in very cold water. However weight and dexterity will suffer when compared to a trilam suit.
- Crushed neo/ neoprene suits claim to have better abrasion resistance than trilam. You are going to spend less time patching a neo suit.
- A neo suit will likely have slightly less drag than a trilam suit, as there tend to be more folds of material in the latter.

That said:

- Trilam suits are light, very versatile, and can be dived in just about any water temperature with the right undergarments. I dive mine in anywhere from 40 to 75 degrees with no issues.
- Trilams are generally more comfortable and less restrictive
- Front zip trilams are easier to don and slightly more flexible (as most have a retracting torso). Whites is the exception here as they have the wierd zip pattern

If it were me, I would look at the dive rite front entry suit or the Whites Fusion or Catalyst 360. The fusion gets some good reviews, I'm just not sold on the durability of the shell for the diving that I do (wreck and cave). I don't have any experience with Andy's suits, but if he has a trilam I would check it out. Again, just my opinions. Lots of people feel strongly about drysuit choices. Hope this helps!
 
I have the Whites Catalyst and my wife dives the Whites Fusion. Both work out very well for us. Since I have never dived a different brand, I have no real way of comparing different brands/models with any degree of certainty.

That said, a Drysuit purchase decision has a lot to do with where and what type of diving you like. You may want to provide some additional diving information.
 
The best drysuit is the one that fits you best. Everyone's body is different, so unless you are the epitome of 'average' an off-the-shelf model won't be optimum.

Compare features and costs of custom suits.
 
I have a Whites Catylst 360 and love it. They have a prety good range of stock sizes to so you most likely will find one that fits well without having to get a custom fit one.

I can't personally speak for the other suits you mentioned, but the 905 also has a good reputation.
 
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I've used a Poseidon rubber suit, DUI TLS 350 trilam, USIA bi-lam, two different Diving Concepts crushed neoprene and have finally settled on the Diving Concepts Duraflex. It's a heavy cordura suit, but I dive the rocky entry/exit of Marineland most of the time, and crushed neoprene can still get cut there. My DUI suit ripped just looking at the entry.
The Duraflex is heavy and difficult to don/doff, but it keeps me warm and dry, and that's all it's supposed to do, as well as hold up to the abuse of rocks and wrecks.
Trilam suits are great if you only plan to boat dive of make sandy entries. They are light and dry quickly, although the resistance in the water feels like you're diving in a trash bag.
 
Having recently purchased a drysuit, I have to agree with blackwood. One of the key points of any dry suit is the fit. In my case, I tried on 5 different suits and in most cases to get something that fit in the shoulders and around my hips and butt, I had to go to an XL which made it WAAAYYY too big in the limbs (Im a stocky guy). This just meant more space for air to get trapped. I ended up with a White's Catalyst 360 which I got a heck of a deal on and am loving it. It fits me like a custom suit so there is not a lot of extra space for air to get trapped and the cordura shell is very durable. It is also self donning which is nice. My next choice was the Fusion for similar reasons. By using the lycra shell, it has more of a wetsuit type of fit. I have heard nothing but good things about them.

I can't speak to Andy's, but I don't know that there is a "bad" dry suit. I would recommend trying them on and let the fit and features be key decision points.
 
I can't say about myself that I am careful or pay attention to clothes because I always tear my clothes when I am fishing or hunting. So, I am looking for a drysuit with lots of reinforcements and still giving maneuverability?
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/perdix-ai/

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