Best way of changing latex wrists on a drysuit?

[Maike]

HI,

I need to change the cuffs/ latex wrists on my drysuit. I have got hold of a spare pair.
Is there anyone who can recommend a good way of doing this?
Cheers

 

[Jafo123]

Get the dive shop to do it. Then there's no guessing if it's done right or not. Yea, I have heard of guys changing them but I don't think I'm that talented.

 

[dave4868]

Almost anyone can do it.

Here are a couple sites to start with:

OS Systems Drysuit Repair

NRS - Gasket Repair Instructions

Search ScubaBoard and you will find good posts with pictorial step-by-step instructions.

Read the info in those two links. They may answer all your questions.

If not, just holler!

Dave C

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Wrist seals are pretty simple.

In a nutshell:

1. Remove the old tape and seal (heat with a hair dryer helps)

2. Fit a suitable plug in the sleave to keep the cuff tight (plastic drinking glass of suitable size, etc).

3. Place the new seal so that it properly overlaps the cuff like the old seal did (the plug will keep it in place)

4. Roll the new seal back so that it butts up against the edge of the cuff.

5. Lightly sand the portion of the seal rolled back on the plug and clena the matring surfaces

6. Apply three coats of glue on both the rolled back portion of the seal and the cuff where it will overlap with 10 minutes between the first 2 coats and 5 minutes between the third.

7. Then roll the seal back onto the glued portion of the cuff and go over it firmly with a roller (small diameter smooth sided can, pop can, etc) to remove any air bubbles and ensure proper adhesion.

8. If you like, apply glue to the nylon tape you removed in step one and to the seal and reapply the tape over the portion of the seal on the cuff. It adds some abrasion reistance to what is the high point of the seal.

9. Let it dry and remove the plug.

DUI makes a really good glue for this application but it has a limited shelf life. Ordinary rubber cement believe it or not also works fine, especially if you back it up with the nylon tape.

It is actually something you can do in the field during a 2-3 hour surface interval.

Neck seals on the other hand are a little harder to do as you canno use a plug to support them underneath and under tension like the wrist seal.

 

[Bob3]

A person with the hand-eye coordination needed to post a message here has the necessary skills needed to swap out a set of cuffs!!!
In addition to the handy checklist compliments of DA Aquamaster, the proper surface prep cannot be overemphasized.
That means degrease -> sand/scuff -> degrease again w/ a clean rag.
New cuffs frequently have silicone mould release agents still on them. Lack of thorough surface prep is the fastest and most assured way to mess up any glue job.

No discussion of suit repair is complete without mentioning the Airspeed Press book "WETSUIT AND DRYSUIT MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR"
By Steven Lindblom

I have a downloadable slideshow at: http://comdive.com/cuffs.zip
Do a "right click, save as".
It's a zipped self-unpacking exe file made back when the internet was all dialup so compressing to a small file size was pretty important.

 

[TSandM]

If you're interested in doing your own dry suit work, I second the recommendation for the Airspeed Press dry suit book. It has tons of good information in it.

I was not successful in getting the old seals off Peter's suit, despite using a hair dryer and solvent. I ended up gluing the new seals to the remnants of the old seal, after it was trimmed off flush with the suit. It worked okay, although there is obviously a limit to the number of times one can do that.

 

[dannobee]

DUI has this tutorial:

http://www.dui-online.com/pdf/drysuit_repair_outline.pdf


Bob's instructions are really good also.

 

[texdiveguy]

I was not successful in getting the old seals off Peter's suit, despite using a hair dryer and solvent. I ended up gluing the new seals to the remnants of the old seal, after it was trimmed off flush with the suit. It worked okay, although there is obviously a limit to the number of times one can do that.

Yep sorta like reshingling your roof several times over the existing roofing!!

 

[Maike]

Thanks a lot!

Just new to this site, so really appreciate the good feedback

Will have a go on this, as need the drysuit after 4 years warm waters and wetsuits

 

[Brewski]

DUI has this tutorial:

http://www.dui-online.com/pdf/drysuit_repair_outline.pdf


Bob's instructions are really good also.

Thanks Danno, I was thinking about the same file. you beat me to it.

After reading this a lot of the dive shop voodoo vanishes.