5mm? 7mm? 3mm? Crazy Wool Thing?

[matthewkavanagh]

Hey Folks,
So, I've been diving for 10 years but have managed to buy almost no equipment since most of my diving has been while living abroad.
BUT, I'm taking the plunge and about to buy a real wet suit... I dive a few times a year in Central America, but am also starting to do some quarry diving and diving off the East Coast (Maryland, Virginia, North Carolina).
I'm assumning what I really need is two suits, right? I couldn't get away with doing a 5mm suit and calling it even?
Recommendations, if so, for what to get? Should I get 3mm and a 7mm? What's the combination that'll get me the most flexibility for the least cash?
Finally, I've been reading a lot of posts here and folks have been raving about Pinnacle's funny wool suits... which Pinnacle says are warmer than a 5mm? Is this really true anyone????

Many thanks!
_Matt

 

[RonFrank]

I dive wet, and dry. If I can't do it in a 3mm I dive dry.

The most bang for the buck would be a tropical suit, and a cold suit. What cold suit you choose depends on your budget. For me it's dry, but a lot of divers do use a 7mm.

 

[johnny_bravo]

How about a 5/4 fullsuit and a 5/3 hooded vest...this should give you a range of 55F-80F water temps (at least it does for me).

Cheers.

-J.-

 

[O2BBubbleFree]

How about a 5/4 fullsuit and a 5/3 hooded vest...this should give you a range of 55F-80F water temps (at least it does for me).

Cheers.

-J.-

That's basically what I plan on doing when I replace my suits. However, I'm going to have the hood on the full suit, not the vest.

Considering the fact that keeping warm means minimizing water exchange, I'll wear the vest under the full suit.

 

[johnny_bravo]

That's basically what I plan on doing when I replace my suits. However, I'm going to have the hood on the full suit, not the vest.

Considering the fact that keeping warm means minimizing water exchange, I'll wear the vest under the full suit.

Cool...don't discount the Gold Core hooded vest from Henderson...best piece of neoprene I've ever owned

Cheers.

-J.-

 

[tc_rain]

I agree with RonFrank. I have a 3mm, 7mm and drysuit. I figure the 7mm will get limited to no use from now on. If I can't dive the 3mm, I will dive dry.

 

[jeraldjcook]

I have two Pinnacle suits. A 7mm without the Merino lining and a 3mm with the Merino lining. The Merino lining is nice and in my opinion does add a little warmth, but at twice the cost. And the wool is only on the torso, nowhere else. I've heard that a 5mm with Merino is as warm as 7mm without but I probably wouldn't go that far. The "standard" lining in my Pinnacle 7mm is nice, soft, and plenty warm.

 

[Jimmer]

I have a Pinnacle 4/5 Merino, that I Ice dived for 20 minutes in 38 degrees. I can definetly vouch for them being very warm suits. In addition to that I have found the Pinnacles to be of higher quality construction than Bare (which I see a lot around here as well).

Jim

 

[Damselfish]

Yeah, you can't buy one wetsuit that works for 2 extremes, winds up not being right for either. Mixing and layering can help some, but that only goes so far. But, thin wetsuits can be fairly inexpensive so a shame not to get one if you're someplace it works for you - shame to wear lots of neoprene when you don't have to.

When you say Central America, are you talking about the Carribean or Pacific side? Caribbean side I'd say 5 is more than most people need. I use 1mm.

 

[docmartin]

IMO you can't get too warm underwater. if you felt uncomfortably warm (never happened to me) you just flush some water through the neck. I used to own a wetsuit in pretty much every thickness - 1mm, 3/2mm, 5mm, 7mm. now i do all my diving in a 5mm henderson gold core including in 80+ water. when i need more warmth i add a gold core hooded vest. if that does not do it i wear my drysuit. while i understand the argument to just own a thin wetsuit and go dry for everything else it does not work for me when travelling. the drysuit is just too heavy and bulky to pack and there are plenty of great destinations where a 3mm will not do (Galapagos, Fiji...).