Bare NexGen Zipper Life

[Sintax604]

Until now, I've been very happy with my Bare NexGen. It was the most affordable suit I could find which appeared to be of good quality (the material is pretty much bombproof). HOWEVER, I am now about to replace the zipper for the second time in 2.5 years.

My first zipper failed at dive 50.
I baby'ed the heck out of my next zipper and it just failed in exactly the same spot (left shoulder) with only 180 dives on it.

I'm curious to know if these zippers/suits are just crap or have I been unusually unlucky/uncareful? I don't want to pay the $350 to replace it again if I'm just going to have to do it again after another 150 dives.

How long has your NexGen zipper lasted?

 

[Aqua-Andy]

Mine lasted around 50 dives. I think what was happening was when I put it in the bag with my undergarments, hood and gloves, it was a tight fit and the zipper was getting bent or kinked ware the arms wrap around the suit. Now it goes in a bag of its own and I make sure nothing goes on top of it.

 

[Sintax604]

I just got back from dropping my suit off at Bare. When I mentioned that this was my second zipper replacement in 2 years, they offered to install a new style of zipper. It's called a T-Zip and is made of plastic and supposedly very flexible. This zipper is used on the suits they produce for the local commercial diving school and apparently they are getting 1500 dives out of them!

I'm super stoked to try it out and will post a review.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

I just got back from dropping my suit off at Bare. When I mentioned that this was my second zipper replacement in 2 years, they offered to install a new style of zipper. It's called a T-Zip and is made of plastic and supposedly very flexible. This zipper is used on the suits they produce for the local commercial diving school and apparently they are getting 1500 dives out of them!

@Sintax604: I'm approaching 300 dives on my original Bare Nex-Gen zipper. There is one trouble spot where the fabric between two teeth may fail in the future, but I think this constitutes normal wear and tear considering how much use the suit has seen. I'm not sure how many more dives I'll be able to do before I'm forced to replace it. It could be 30 more dives...or it could be another 100+.

Maintenance-wise, I've done little more than lube it before putting it away (unzipped) in-between dives. I was able to use a lighter to seal up stretches of the central fabric material which began to fray. However, near the ends of the zipper I wasn't able to use the lighter, so there's quite a bit of fraying there. Fortunately, this issue hasn't impacted performance of the zipper at all.

My girlfriend had her Bare Nex-Gen zipper fail about 30 dives after she checked the drysuit into the cargo hold for the ferry ride over to Catalina Island. We think one of the baggage handlers inadvertently placed something really heavy directly on top of the drysuit bag, which stressed the zipper at the eventual failure point. Since then, we've insisted on hand-carrying our drysuits. During transportation to/from dive sites and on road trips up/down the CA coast, the drysuits live inside a rigid Rubbermaid box which provides a great deal of protection to the suit and zipper.

I'm very interested in the performance and durability of the Ti-Zip German-made zippers. I look forward to reading your review.

Was the cost for Ti-Zip installation about the same as replacement with a zipper similar to the original YKK one?

 

[sibermike7]

I think that it was the Ti zip German zippers that I saw at DEMA last year. I spent quite a bit of time with them checking them out and almost got one for my drysuit to use as a "convenience" zipper. They seemed like a good thing, but a plastic zipper??? I eagerly await the results.

 

[Sintax604]

Bubbletrouble: I treat my suit exactly as you do, although I use the bag it came with for transportation. I am pretty sure my first zipper was killed (50 dives) during a dive/camping trip where something got tossed on top of it accidentally.
I dove my newly broken zipper last night and marked the broken spot with some duct tape. I had a buddy watch that spot as I donned, doffed and moved around in my gear. Nothing I did moved that spot at all, and in fact the zipper didn't leak throughout the entire hour of the dive. This leads me to conclude that storage/transportation was the cause of this breakage as well.

I really like your idea of the rubbermade container and will put it to use when I get my suit back. Additionally the NexGens that Bare makes for the diving college have an outer neoprene flap that covers and protects the zipper. I think I will install one ASAP.

Oh, and I actually didn't even ask about the price of the new zipper, I was just so pleased that they had a better option for me. I'll post the cost in 7-10 days when I have to shell out the cash.

 

[Sintax604]

I just picked up my suit for Bare/Fitzwright. I was told 7-10 business days for the zipper replacement, it took 8 days.

The cost for the new Ti-Zip was $259+HST. It came with a small tube of wax from Germany. It's not available here so they advised me to use McNett ZipTech when it runs out. They also re-glued the Bare emblem around my inflater valve at no charge.

The zipper appears to be quite flexible and is completely flat - the teeth point towards each other instead of sticking up like the brass one does. It looks like this zipper can not break the way my last two did so that makes me happy. I'm a bit concerned about the durability of the plastic but I'll keep it well waxed and see what happens.

On a side note, they charge $79 to replace a neck seal. That will be my next expense, unless I try and do it myself...

 

[Slamfire]

I think Seasoft uses these zippers in their drysuits too. I haven't seen them myself or used them, but when I asked a friend his opinions about them he said that they leak more than he is willing to tolerate. The official tizip website does mention the leaking and the separating:
TIZIP waterproof zippers click on SuperSeal details.

When bent, curved or twisted underwater the SuperSeal may allow a little water permeation. This is not a zipper malfunction or the beginning of an increasing problem. The amount of water permeation is never enough to harm the diver or make him feel uncomfortable. Provided installation and lubrication is done correctly, the SuperSeal zipper’s advantages of durability, forgiveness and wearing comfort speak in its favour. However if there is no tolerance in terms of water permeation a metal zipper is still superior.

 

[Sintax604]

Well, that sucks.
Thanks for the info Slamfire. I think even with that additional info (I can't believe I didn't think to look it up) I would still have gone with the TiZip. I don't mind getting a bit moist if it means I don't have to replace my zipper every year.

I'll report back on the degree of "permeation" as soon as I get a chance to take it out.

 

[Slamfire]

I'll report back on the degree of "permeation" as soon as I get a chance to take it out.

Please do. I was thinking about using them when it came time to replace the zipper in my shoulder entry suit. The features that called my attention were the all plastic construction, durability, and I understand they are easier to zip to the point where it is more feasible to turn shoulder entry suits into a self donning suits. Apparently it is not as susceptible to damage by having the zippers teeth bite into the undergarment. A second opinion on the matter would be welcome.

I know there are techniques to self zip shoulder entries, but I've never wanted to risk having the zipper bite into the undergarment.