Dive Rite 905 vs Pinnacle Evolution 2

[stimpy4242]

I just purchased a 905 front zip. I tried it on and it was great. The rep was actually at the shop when I was buying it and he answered tons of questions. The seams on the 905 are welded. They have the seam tape over top of it for aesthetic purposes. The original version did not have the tapes, but then he said consumers were like, WAIT its supposed to have something...regardless...It was super easy to take off the suit. I have read tons of material and people have been saying no leaks with the dive rite. If you want an awesome price on the suit call my LDS. He lists them for 1950 i think and then if you join the club you get 10% off purchases and the club is 30 bucks, so join the club then buy the suit and get it for like 1750...and if you are out of town, no tax! Ask for ken, Off The Wall Scuba and tell him phil told you to call.

 

[1amphibian]

Ok ordered my Pinnacle Evo 2 suits (one for me, one for Tracie) Will let you know how they work out.

 

[solensdotter]

Interesting thread, since I am going through exactly the same decision making process at the moment.
I intend to use the suit for wrecks & caves, so puncture resistance is a must. I know that the DR is a tough suit. Any feedback on the Pinnacle?
Look forward to your reviews, 1amphibian!

 

[ZzzKing]

Interesting thread, since I am going through exactly the same decision making process at the moment.
I intend to use the suit for wrecks & caves, so puncture resistance is a must. I know that the DR is a tough suit. Any feedback on the Pinnacle?
Look forward to your reviews, 1amphibian!

I have an Evolution 2 suit. I've only had it a couple of 2 weeks but the suit material seems really durable and the seals were significantly heavier than the other suits I looked at. I haven't had it long enough to really evaluate long term durability, though.

 

[1amphibian]

Ok we got Tracie's suit in yesterday, was worried about the fit since she is so small (4'11") and rather well built for her size.. but the suit fit her just fine. Will have to trim the neck seal a bit as she was turning colors she doesn't usually turn in her wetsuit. Not sure why my suit is not here yet, but my LDS has been on the phone to them so it shouldn't be long now. Will be taking the dry suit course next Thursday and will post a review of the new suits then.. From what I have seen so far they are high quality and well put together items, the boots and hood are nice and at no extra cost,a real bargain.

 

[Kevin Carlisle]

I have a friend that has the 905 front zip and he loves it.

I'm interested to know if anyone has tried the new front zip 905 as I am in the same position myself, the LDS sells both and it's between the two of them for me. The EVO 2 gets really good reviews except that the pockets are too small, which I am a bit concerned about. But I have not heard anyone speak up about the new Dive Rite suit..

Any reviews here folks?????

 

[stimpy4242]

I have now dove my 905 a few times and can say that it is great. With that being said let me qualify that nearly all my drysuit dives have been with the dive rescue team and we use viking suits of vulcanized rubber, which don't get contaminants in, but aren't the most comfortable suits either.

The 905 fits me nicely from a stock size F. No baggy material, the telescoping torso is awesome and crotch straps hold it in place without a problem. The boots are nicely cut large and easily accomodates a thick sock. I wear size 14 shoe typically, yet I am very comfortable in the size 13 boot. I didn't have to change my fins at all, which is a good thing as I am already in the largest fin with a size 14.

It comes stock with two pockets which is a nice advantage and I didn't have to trim the wrist seals and took one ring of the neck seal and had NO leakage problems and had a comfortable fit the entire time.

I would definitely recommend one and you can find one at my LDS Off The Wall Scuba. Join their dive club for 30 buck and get 10% of any orders. So that takes the suit price down to like 1750, don't quote me though.

 

[1amphibian]

Ok well it turns out that a mistake made at Pinnacle would have delayed my suit until mid May. So my LDS offered to sell me the 905 front zip for the same really cheap price he sold me the other Evo 2 suit for. He called to verify they had my size in stock as he knows all the folks at Dive Rite and I will have it next week. Guess I will be able to do a side by side with the two suits now since Tracie has her Evo2 and I'm getting the 905 FZ...

 

[1amphibian]

Ok I recieved my 905 and had the shop trim the neck seal for me just before we went to the pool. The suit was delivered with the hard boots and also came with a nice package with the maintainence items as well as a hood and gaiters. The sensation of diving dry was quite strange at first. I developed bad floaty feet and was head down in only 4 feet of water. We moved to the 12 foot depth and that allowed me to preform new acrobatics with flips and hanging upside down in my new suit.

Fast forward by two days and here we are at Ginnie, I have now trimmed my wrist seals because I was told that my thumbs going numb was not exactly normal. The suit on and ready to dive, we did about a 40 minute trip into the cavern and back out, playing in the basin for just a little bit. My hands felt great and when we got out, I was bone dry. The gaiters helped a lot with the feet (my suit is now getting the neoprene socks put on replacing my hard boots) and we had a few good dives on it before Tracie's cavern class on Monday.

With all that entails being the dive buddy of a person in class, My suit stood up to multiple trips into Ginnie as well as Devils system and at all times stayed completely dry. The pockets are big enough to accomodate all of the needed gear and the suit is very comfortable and fit me like a glove.

Now onto the Evolution 2 since we have one of each on our little dive team. The Evo II eval will be a bit delayed as an incident trimming the neck seal a bit too loose has caused the suit to become only semi-dry. That suit is also in for service having a new neck seal installed.

Overall I can wholeheartedly recommend the Dive Rite 905 Front Zip suit to anyone that is interested in a sleek, easy to use Tri-lam suit that will keep you totally dry.

 

[micklock]

Thanks for the good info, sounds like you got lucky to get the 905 for the evo price. I will get to try a 905 when the tec tour comes to a quarry near me next month. I've been fixing a wrist seal and a hole under my arm on my Whites drysuit the last few day's, It's 9 yrs old so that's a good excuse to get a new one. I hope a 905 will fit me nice, thats the one I would like to get.