Bare 7mm Arctic SGS Fullsuit with hood

[smolderinglime]

I recently bought the SGS suit with the 7mm SGS hood vest combo. It's a size 18, the biggest they have for women. I'm 5'11.5" and around 160 pounds. The women's suits get wider as they get taller. I tried on the fullsuit and it has a a lot of room around the stomach and some on the thighs, I got in a warm shower (because that's what they advise me to do) and I didn't notice the suit really getting any more snug. Now, I know SGS suits are supposed to be warmer and form to the body. So, I'm wondering if having a little excess room around the stomach could be too much in cold ocean water (Monterey, CA)? I thought maybe after I put my weight belt and vest on it would be okay. I just don't know how much room is too much.

 

[Divedoggie]

Its tough to say without seeing you in it, but the suit should be snug everywhere. If its too loose, cold water will work its way in and move around in your core area(which is the most important to keep warm)and you will be uncomfortable.

I have the same suit for men, and its great, but its snug everywhere.
You may be able to have it altered. You may have to look around the threads to find someone who knows about alteration.

Another possibility is a drysuit. www.divetank.com has a women's D6 for sale for $699 plus an additional 10 to 15 percent off with phone orders. Thats around $550. That suit needs to fit your height, but you can get away with space in the torso since its a dry suit.
When the water is cold enough for a 7mm with a 7mm hooded vest, I personally use my drysuit!

 

[spectrum]

The magic of the SGS is that it clings to your skin and realy halts water (heat) movement. That being the case you won't reap that benefit of that design with extra space in there. Cinching things up with your gear will help but for your diving confort I'd get it taken in, especially since it's something you are lucky enought to have local resources for. Many of us are not "of the rack" folks especially with something as unforgiving as a wetsuit so this is nothing unusual.

Pete

 

[terrasmak]

I had to get my last suit altered a little , i had a little bit of room not much in the stomach area and it just filled and flushed all thru the dive . So if its baggy in that area , i bet you will freeze