"5mil but feels like a 7mil" - Bare Reactive, Henderson Aqualock

[broncobowsher]

Check out, SEAC Komoda wetsuits. I have the 7mm, great wetsuit.

I once owned a SEAC 7mm, same time as the 5mm Aqualock. Day and night different suits. The 7mm was a 7mm suit with all the Pillsbury Doughboy attributes that come with it. Far different that a 5mm that feels warmer than a 5mm should feel.

I think the SEAC got dove twice before I sold it.

 

[stuartv]

The reason that they "feel" warmer is that they have liquid tape sealed seams.

The Bare Reactive suits also have taped seams. Bare calls it "NST" for No Seam Technology or something like that.

Glued and blind stitched seams are waterproof without being taped, so I have always felt like that was a bit of a marketing gimmick.

Also, I actually don't like the seam tape on the Reactive suits. It is not as stretchy as the neoprene itself. On mine, I'm a little bigger than the intended size for an XL, but the XL+ is actually too small for me to fit into and the 2XL is too big. So, I have XL and it's tight on me. The areas with seam tape are extra tight. When I take my suit off, you can see the red areas on my skin where the taped seams have pressed into me more than the rest of the suit.

That is another reason I like my new Waterproof W7 better than my (now sold) Reactive 5mm. The Waterproof does not have seam tape and is more comfy (to me).

 

[EKKsoldier622]

Thank you, everyone! Ended up going with the Aqualock because of reviews and that I found it in-stock for quite a bit cheaper than I could find an in-stock reactive. Used the extra bit I saved to get some aqua lock boots. Suit fits great and I can't believe how quickly it dries. Gotta figure out the hood situation because I prefer the bib over the vest, but the folding of the bib causing gaps in the 'seal' may be an issue. IF it fails me, I'll be picking up a 2021 reactive

 

[kelemvor]

Looking to get a nice 5mm suit. I have asked many people and the same 2 suits keep coming up; the Bare Reactive (2021ver. has recently been mentioned to me), as well as the Henderson Aqualock. Both have been mentioned as being a "5mm but feels like 7mm" kinda wetsuit. Any preference for, or against either?

My experience with a 5mil that supposedly feels like a 7 mil was with a wetwear custom wetsuit. IMO it feels just like what it actually is, not at all equivalent to the next thickness up. Don't buy into the hype. I'm not saying that the suits are bad, just that the "feels like xx thickness" thing is totally bullpoo. The FTC should deal with false claims like these.

 

[CT Sean]

The Bare Reactive suits also have taped seams. Bare calls it "NST" for No Seam Technology or something like that.

Glued and blind stitched seams are waterproof without being taped, so I have always felt like that was a bit of a marketing gimmick.

Also, I actually don't like the seam tape on the Reactive suits. It is not as stretchy as the neoprene itself. On mine, I'm a little bigger than the intended size for an XL, but the XL+ is actually too small for me to fit into and the 2XL is too big. So, I have XL and it's tight on me. The areas with seam tape are extra tight. When I take my suit off, you can see the red areas on my skin where the taped seams have pressed into me more than the rest of the suit.

That is another reason I like my new Waterproof W7 better than my (now sold) Reactive 5mm. The Waterproof does not have seam tape and is more comfy (to me).

It is worth noting that the newest version of the Reactives ditches the rubber stuff out the outer seams and inner tape and goes back to traditional glue and blind stitching. I have 3mm and 7mm Elasteks where they started with the outer seam rubber and, while my 7mm is fine, my 3mm is flaking rubber like crazy. I wonder if there were similar problems with the Reactive.

 

[stuartv]

Side note, because I just went and looked again at the latest web page on the Bare site for the Reactive suit.

I noted that it says this:

"Fundamentally, Graphene is a one-atom-thick layer of carbon arranged in a hexagonal lattice structure. At room temperature, it’s one of the best conductors of thermal energy ever discovered. Materially, Graphene is strong, flexible, lightweight and, of course, highly conductive—all traits that are well suited for use in a wetsuit."

Which just strikes me as really funny. Why would anyone want their wetsuit to have material that is great at conducting thermal energy? That means it is really good at taking heat from a warmer object (your body) and transferring it to a cooler object (the water around you).

It seems like you'd want a material that is one of the best insulators of thermal energy, not conductors.

The suits do work well. At least, the previous gen did - I have no experience with the new ones. This just looks like a Marketing department with nobody who knows ANYTHING about basic science run amok.

 

[wnissen]

Graphene is also like US$20K an ounce. Weird.

 

[broncobowsher]

Graphene is also like US$20K an ounce. Weird.

But if you only apply it one atom thick it goes a long way

 

[wnissen]

But if you only apply it one atom thick it goes a long way

I lol'ed. You are 100% technically correct, the best kind of correct. I am reminded of the experiment done by Ben Franklin that (unbeknownst to him) put an upper bound on the size of a molecule of oil. He took a teaspoon of oil and put it on the surface of a lake. The water under the oil was calmed. Franklin was mainly just amazed at the large area that could be effectively covered by a single teaspoon, but later scientists recognized that he had inadvertently made a pretty reasonable calculation of the size of a single molecule.

Anyway, the bonds in graphene are on the order of 10^10 per meter (10,000,000,000), so you'd need 10^20 atoms to cover a square meter. The molecular mass of a carbon atom is 12ish,, so you could cover about 100 square meters with a gram of graphene. Assuming you could get it to spread that thin on the paintbrush.

 

[NAUI Wowie]

Looking to get a nice 5mm suit. I have asked many people and the same 2 suits keep coming up; the Bare Reactive (2021ver. has recently been mentioned to me), as well as the Henderson Aqualock. Both have been mentioned as being a "5mm but feels like 7mm" kinda wetsuit. Any preference for, or against either?

I have a couple of newish bare reactives and a Henderson. And many other brands. Just an fyi there are no 5 mils that feel like a 7 mil in warmth. Thats just hype and not true. If you want 7 mil warmth do not get even the best or most expensive 5 mil.

im a wuss when it comes to cold water and wear a 9 mil semi dry in northern california. in P.I. in 85 degree water i still wear a full 3 mil. mainly for abrasion protection as i do wreck dives there in Coron etc.


long story short a 5 mil is way thinner and more flexible than a 7 mil. it wont keep you 7 mil warm. If you are very athletically thin or just skinny always go thicker. All the seals etc dont beat an extra 2 mil of protection.