Wetsuit for my skinny son...help please

[mcpowell]

My 18 year old is a string bean! He’s 5’10” and weighs 125 lbs. We dove Blue Grotto (spring in FL) a few weekends ago and he was cold due to his rented wetsuit being too large in the upper body. I really don’t want to buy a new custom suit because he’s growing like a weed and it likely won’t fit him next summer.

We’ll have a few more cool water dives before going to Cozumel in July. I’m thinking a 3 mm shorty would work for him in Cozumel, and he could wear it under a 5 mm when in cool water.

Surely other parents have had the same issue. Anyone have a wetsuit sitting in their closet, they no longer want, that fits a skinny teenager? I’m happy to pay a fair price.

Or, if anyone has advice on where to get a wetsuit, off the shelf, for him I’d be very thankful.

 

[decompression]

At my shop we are selling a rental Whites drysuit for $600 CDN, so around $400 us. I’ll check to see what size it is, guaranteed to keep him warm.

 

[teknitroxdiver]

Bare makes some pretty slim wetsuits.

 

[thirdparty]

Bare and 4th element make great stuff, but if fit is the problem for those, layer Lavacore type merino shirts and neoprene vests under the suits-as many as he can fit under it to stop the water flush.

 

[Aviyes]

Maybe look into wetsuits that come in tall sizes. I am skinny as well at 6'2",160 lbs and have a Henderson Medium-Tall that fits perfect. Thermoprene® Men’s Back Zip Jumpsuit • Henderson Aquatics

If you still expect him to gain a few more inches in height it might work to get a wetsuit with a little bit more in length that he can grow into and still not affect the water flush. Nice part about new wetsuits vs rentals, especially for those of us that are skinny, is no stretched wrist/ankle/neck openings.

 

[mcpowell]

At my shop we are selling a rental Whites drysuit for $600 CDN, so around $400 us. I’ll check to see what size it is, guaranteed to keep him warm.

Jay, thanks for the thought. I don’t think he’ll need a dry suit. I guess I should have defined “cool water” (~70*F).

 

[mcpowell]

I’ll definitely check out the Bare and Henderson suits.

 

[divinh]

If you're hoping to save some dollars, you can check out the available ones on Xcel's website. They have a sale section with older models at significant discount. Not all sizing is available on sale items, but it might be worth a look. Most are for surf, but dive suits are available too. (Some say surf ones compress more at depth, losing some of the warmth.) Shipping is free, but if you have to return/size exchange, you have to pay postage to Irvine, CA.

Also, Diver's Direct has their own line of wetsuits, called Evo, that are discounted if you don't mind 2016 or 2017 models. They only seem to change in style and color combinations.

 

[kelemvor]

Bare makes some pretty slim wetsuits.

I'll second that. Bare had physiques like your son's in mind when they came up with their standard sizing. I'm a fat dude, no doubt about it, but when I bought my custom cut bare drysuit, the bare rep called the diveshop to tell them their measurements were obviously screwed up because "They couldn't possibly be the measurements of a human." The shop talked bare into cutting the suit to my measurements anyway and it fit perfectly. My point is as I originally started. Bare's standard sizes are designed for the very thin.