Are DUI dry suits overrated?

[Buoyant1]

One of my regular dive buddies said he'd get a Bare if he had to do it all over again. His leaked, he sent it back, they fixed it no problem..he still claims he'd get a Bare the next time.

Are there any places in your area that has promo's by the manufacturers? DUI has the Dog days, Dive Rite has their days, I think Whites has an event here and there also.

I bought a brand new Dive Rite 905 front zip for $750. (leftover last years model) I can't complain!

 

[piikki]

Is DUI over rated? I guess it depends on who you ask. I have a custom TLS350 and it didn't cost that much. The cost was $2200.00. As far as the suit goes I love it.

I got my custom cut TLS for way cheaper than that even - with the sports package and zip seals included. 3.5k would be way too much for me to pay just to get "A DUI".

I can't complain and agree that overrating depends. (I think currently there is way more hype about Fusion - like makes one wonder can it really be that grrrreat.) For what it comes to my DUI, I have had it 3 years and just now have my first pinhole leaks somewhere in the crotch. Pretty good when the suit sees 100 dives/year. One earlier mystery leak proved to be a malfunctioning dump valve that was easily corrected.

I have heard people having problems with their suits, and I think that DUI being one of the more expensive ones gets a lot of the wrath - understandably - I would be furious if I was one of those who ordered a custom cut and it came out wrong or leaked from start. However, I have been lucky as have pretty much everyone I know who have purchased DUI locally. Suits have been great and DUI has taken care of problems. Buddy just had 1k worth of fixes done under warranty for the price of pressure test. Fixes that basically could have been called wear and tear by someone else.

I lurve my DUI but could certainly see shopping around for other stuff too. Should never fixate on one thing just because of brand.

 

[CompuDude]

Overrated? I don't think so, and a LOT of people agree.

Overpriced? There's certainly an argument to made on that front. I think the dive shop quoting $3.5k for a custom cut TLS350 is charging more than they should. I paid a LOT less than that for my CLX450, brand new.

Personally, unless a very light suit is needed for travel weight reasons, I prefer the durability of the CLX450 (or the CF200) over the TLS350. I just don't think the material is durable enough for the rough surf exits and sharp rocks and urchins that define SoCal beach diving.

 

[scuba_moron]

Is DUI over rated? I guess it depends on who you ask. I have a custom TLS350 and it didn't cost that much. The cost was $2200.00. As far as the suit goes I love it.

That's lower than the price listed on DUI's website.

 

[Teamcasa]

I know several divers that have DUI suits and they all seem to love them.
3.5k is too much for that suit. Call around, you will get better pricing.

I chose the Whites Catalyst for my custom fitted drysuit. Built tough, fits perfect and dives great. It was less then 3.5 by at least a grand.

 

[StreetDoctor]

Best price you will find is Dolphin Scuba Center - Scuba Sales, Trips, Service, and Education. out of sacramento. I just went through this a couple months ago. I got a TLS350 signature series (custom) with pee valve, zip seals, and heavy duty dry gloves for right around $2500 I believe. I got the suit in 5 weeks and have had no problems with it.

 

[RJP]

Another happy TLS-350 owner here. I use mine to penetrate deep, dark, ragged NJ wrecks (the "real" kind of wrecks, not the sanitized kind you find carefully placed next to a reef in some "pretty fishy" resort location) and have NEVER had any problem with the material's durability. I'll let others who don't actually dive one conjecture, guess, or suppose that the material "seems too light" or "feels less durable" than other suits. I can only speak from my experience of actually owning one and having done 300 or so wreck penetration dives in it.



On top of that I'll add the experience of every other TLS-350 owner I know and dive with in the same environment, including those with 1,000's of dives on their suits. Sure, some of the folks who really get down and dirty digging for artifacts, wielding hack saws and crow-bars, etc will opt for a CLX-450 or an FLX50-50, but even some of those guys/gals are found in TLS-350's.

The fact is the finish of the material is quite smooth/slick, such that if it does come in contact with some ragged edge it sort of glides right over it. I had a top-end BARE trilam suit originally, and while it "seemed" more sturdy than the DUI, the rougher material tended to snag on stuff that doesn't bother my DUI at all.

Are they a touch more expensive than other suits? Yup. Do they actually cost the prices that detractors like to quote? Not usually. People love to compare a custom cut DUI with all the options to a non-custom suit from another manufacture's standard line. If you happen to fit into in a standard size DUI suit (and most folks who are within two-standard deviations of a "normal" size will) you'll be able get a TLS-350 with the most popular options for under $2k...

DUI TLS-350 Suit for $1,650 at www.DiveSeekers.com

Give Wayne or Jason at DiveSeekers.com a call and see what they can do for you. Note they also sell BARE and Whites, so they can hook you up whichever way you want to go. Rest assured, they will NOT try to sell you a DUI if it's not the right suit for you!

 

[Clammy]

I've had my TLS350 signature for a year now. I absolutely love it. Of course I have nothing else to compare it to but I'll say that prior to getting it. I did rent several dry suits from different places. They were ALL DUIs but of various models. The issue for me was I didn't fit into standard sizes very well. I'm 5'7" but have broad shoulders and a broad back for my size as well as monster size feet. Everytime I get into my signature, it's easy to don, it fits perfectly, and even others can tell that it was custom made for me just from the look of the fit. I've had extras placed here and there. The beauty of DUI, to me, is that you can customize it any which way and any how you want. You can choose your colors and even choose it on your undergarments (signature). I don't think any other dry suit (don't quote me on this) has as many options and configurations as DUI simply because you can tell them to do whatever you want to it.

I think I paid a little over 3k but that's including my custom cut undergarment, dui weight and trim system, hood, and some other extras. That puts the drysuit at closer to a little over 2k for me.

I love mine.


(drinky drinky the kool aid!)

 

[Mtbr]

Thank you very much for the links to Dolphin and DiveSeekers.
Low $2K or less definitely has my attention on a DUI.

 

[Diver0001]

Is DUI overrated? My shop is asking $3.5k for a custom cut TLS350.
I have reservation because I've witnessed several instance of new TLS350 leakage.
This is not hearsay but from people I dive with.

About DUI: People who have them say they fit absolutely perfectly and are very comfortable, probably as a result of the light trilam. If cost is no object and comfort is your top priority then this is probably the best suit for you.

If cost is as consideration and/or actually being waterproof is important to you, then the DUI suits will disappoint you. Almost everyone I know personally who has a DUI suit says they leak. In fact, there is a joke that DUI stands for "Dry Until Immersed" and there is certainly some evidence to support that. The trilam just isn't robust enough to take any kind of punishment and there have been a lot of problems with the Apeks valves (not DUI's fault--except their choice to use them--and I'm not sure of the present status).

For a low-cost, reasonably good fitting and very robust (and DRY) trilam suit I would recommend the higher-end BARE suits or other similar designs like the Ursuit, the White's fusion etc etc. They use Si-tech valves and stronger materials to make their suits. In terms of comfort they're probably stiffer than the DUI suits but can take a lot more abuse.

R..