custom wetsuits

[vr]

For an informative article about wetsuits with no hype, check out http://diverlink.com/gear/aboutwetsuits.htm

Everybody says they use the best neoprene. It looks like the truth is very different, though.

 

[alison]

Ladydiver,

I ordered the Atlan suit through a shop in Ottawa by completing a form and sending in what felt like a thousand measurements. I have no idea about taking an order by phone as they seemed to want this form filled out - faxing sounds like a logical solution to a long distance order. It took a couple of weeks to get to me but part of that was the fact that I bought it in June - the height of the dive season.

As for colours my choices were limited to two (black with an accent colour of black or blue) because of the design I chose but when I looked at the catalogue recently that seems to have changed. I also had a choice of different types of linings ("sharkskin" or "fuzzy" with or without titanium) which was nice.

The best thing I can say about it though is that it fits. I'm short and wide and I love not having to struggle in or out of it, especially handy on a boat rocking in the wake of a laker in the Great Lakes. As well, because it fits so well, it's the warmest suit I've ever had - I was very comfortable in water of 56F, even on a second dive.

I hope this is of some use to you. Happy diving.

 

[DivingGal]

Like Alison, I bought my custom through my shop here in Ottawa. Went through the 1001 measurements, and got my suit within 4-6 weeks (in the height of dive season it could be longer). I love it!

Although limited in colour selection for some of their models, they do have quite a number of styles to choose from. I bought a Titanium, fleece lined suit for those "warm" dives in the early spring and late fall.

 

[SubMariner]

Talk about a timely subject! Pearce & I have been looking at this lately. We each have a pair of custom suits that were made in Canada in 1995 by a company called Mountain Dreams (XLR8), who unfortunately no longer seem to be in business.

They are both 3mm (1/8") suits. One we've been using the most for that we use for training in the pool (and tropical diving. They've been patched a couple of times in um... er... interesting places. :devilish: The other we kept as "good" suits and I'd be surprised if there were more than 5 dives on them. They all have custom features like 1/4" shin pads, slate pockets, ankle zippers, etc. Each suit cost us the princely sum of $250 CDN.

Given that time & tide weight for no man or woman [pun intended] we were looking to get another suit apiece; those pool suits are really starting to look beat up and are fitting a leeetle TOO snugly. So I contacted Liquidfit. Maybe she misunderstood the type of suit we were looking for, but the prices wound up being OVER $500 per suit!!!

Meanwhile, I know Wetware make a great show of rubatex neoprene. Well, our company uses neoprene in a lot of our products, and to be honest, there has been no noticeable difference in compression between manufacturers. (At one time we used Rubatex, but they had a protracted strike, which left us looking for another supplier.)

In addition, their customer service leaves something to be desired. We asked them if they did wetsuit repairs on products other than theirs. They said yes. We sent them the suits. We expected to pay for shipping, and we did. But then there was all sorts of problems getting them BACK, even though we told them we'd pay for expedited shipping via FedEx. (Apparently, UPS picks up THERE & that's all there is to it.) In addition, the repair on one of the suits was so badly done as to make the suit unusable. So back it went. Not only did they NOT apologize for the mistake, but they made US pay for the shipping! :fire:

Ok... kvetch over... what was the topic again.

~SubMariner~

 

[rcohn]

SubMariner.

I'd be interested in hearing more about your experiences with different neoprenes. I've seen the tests at Wetwear showing different compressions (probably using the cheapest neoprenes) and read the articles. Only Rubatex publishes test results on their products, all others are a mystery.

I know I've had very poor luck with 3 mm suits from O'Neil and Performance (at least the Performance has a cheap price). The neoprene quickly looses significant thickness with diving. Different color panels have noticeably different thicknesses after use. Also, the Yamamoto neoprene in my freediving suit is much softer (and much more comfortable) than the Rubatex, it's hard to imagine there is no difference in compression.

My wife has a custom 5 mm suit from Wetwear. The suit fits great and held up well during our trip to Fiji, although she did less dives than I did. The only problem was they were a bit late and rushed the suit to her so that it would arrive by the promised date, charging her $50 for overnight shipping in the process without informing her.

For the record, I have a 7 mm Deep Thought custom suit (that I'm satisfied with) which is Rubatex as well, so there are other choices.

Ralph

 

[Dee]

I think there may have been a miscommunication with LiquidFit. I got my full 3mm with ankle/wrist sippers, spine pad and kevlar knee pads and a 3mm sleeveless shorty for way less than that.

I used both pieces for the first time this weekend. Water temps were 48 degrees and I stayed toasty. My suit has their Platinum lining which feels really weird at first. But it works so well that my swim suit was dry when I got through. The only water I had in the suit was a bit up to my knees and my elbows, which I figure came from the zippers.

Everyone has their own story, huh?

 

[Warhammer]

Submariner, I'd say there has been a breakdown in the comm somewhere between you and Carolyn at Liquidfit. I recently ordered 2 suits from them and didn't pay no where near $500 for both of them. She has been known to give discounts to board members as well, well for that "other board" anyway. But I can't say much about their longlivitivity (is that even a word?), as I just got these. Dee says the provide awesome warmth. Did you see her post to me about them here?

 

[SubMariner]

She indicated that the cost was $427; with the discount $362. However, she didn't make it clear whether this was for ONE or TWO suits, so I emailed her back & am awaiting a response.

~SubMariner~

 

[SubMariner]

I was informed that the pricing I mentioned was PER SUIT.

IMHO this is excessive, so we are looking elsewhere. I'll let you know who we come up with.

~SubMariner~

 

[pinkladydi]

I have out grown my custom Harvey's suit which was a great fit & it also was a good choice at the time , I had the spine pad, zippers at wrist & ankles w/ backing at all zippers. [it's for sale] I just decided to go to a MOBBY's dry suit ,it offers SO MUCH FREEDOM as well as warmth, I thought I couldn't do the tight neck thing so I tried someone else's suit for 1 dive & I was hooked. consider trying a rental suit even in a pool before you buy a neoprene girdle [aka wet suit].