Drysuit choice

[GF99/99]

And about the othree 90-90? Anyone

First off full disclaimer I have no experience with SF tech (but I will say they do look like very nice suits) and the only dry suits I have lots of experience with are Santi and O'Three additionally I do have an affiliation with O'Three, but that being said I will always give a full honest review.

I am a pretty big fan of O'three they make very high quality dry suits and wetsuits. My self and about 4 other friends use the 90 Ninety. We all have the regular trilam but they offer 2 other options to have the lower half or the entire suit made of a much tougher material. Personally I found the tougher material to be a little too heavy duty. It is very similar to the Santi Enduro material. I opted for the regular just to have the balance between mobility and durability.

I also regularly dive a Santi E Lite + suite and I would say the 90 Ninty is very comparable. So for comfort and mobility it is about as good as it gets for a dry suite.

For durability well you mentioned cave, I would say it is not less durable than any other regular trilam vs sharp limestone scenarios. I am not going to say the 90 Nintey is amazing and does not required the occasional repair. But I am also not going to say it gets any more holes than any other equivalent suits like a Santi E Motion or E Lite. I get the occasional hole in my Santi suit and I get the occasional hole in my O'three its just part of cave diving. If you are worried about durability then I would say go with the heavy duty material.

Couple friends and I got the green light from our misses so will be Mexico next month for a "boys cave trip" we all dive 90 Ninty's so I can give you an update later if we had to repair a leak or two between 3 of us smashing out long CCR cave dives for a month.

The one thing I will say that really sets O'Three apart is there customer service. They remind me a lot of Shearwater (be for they got really big/popular and bought out). O'three is very much like a large family and super customer service based. They will go out of there way for you. I can not say the same for Santi, I am actually very surprised for such a popular company there customer service is almost non existent and they push everything back on there dealers. Also remember O'thee suits are 100% fitted to you and the guys and gals at O'three will help you out with the measurements to send them. You will actually get to speak to a real person and they will genuinely help you to make sure you get the best fitting suit. Same with after sales support as well. Additionally if I am not mistaken in the listed price on top of a fully custom fit suit you also get your choice of what kind of seal you want (Si-tech neck and Kubi wrist/gloves) type of boots, type of dry gloves, pee valve, zipper and direction the zipper goes, pockets, etc. A lot of other companies charge extra for all this. Also if there is something custom specific you want O'Three will work with you.

Now the only down side is O'Three is they are located in the UK but then again most of your other suit manufactures are located in the UK/EU as well so you will have the same logistics issues.

 

[JDalts]

A little late to this one - but I would add another recommendation for the Othree 90/90.

The ordering process was superb, customer service genuinely fantastic in a day and age of "sell as much as quickly as possible" O3 are a 5* company.

The suit itself, despite me choosing the regular tri-lam material is perfect for what I need - in comparison to some of my dive buddies with ROHO, Northern Diver and Seaskin suits - the Othree has a much higher quality and durability feel.

It's been used on 4 dives so far, 2 quarries and one day boat diving with the seals (it survived being bitten!) - it's comfortable, easy on and off (although the first 10cm of zip take a knack) and gives me superb flexibility. I went for their undergarments too and after YEARS of being cold and wet in my previous old second hand drysuits, those 2 factors are off my mind so I can enjoy UK diving again

 

[sergedewit]

I am one of those people ;-)

@evandroairton, if you're serious about cave/wreck diving, SF Tech is for you.

Go with a PRO model - all Kevlar.

If you travel a lot, go with TNT Pro. It is light and dries fast.

If you like diving in colder waters, prefer fewer layers, and do not travel often then neoprene PRO will be good.

I have neoprene PRO and have used it in tropical waters and the Great Lakes. It is a bit heavier than the TNT model and it takes longer to dry, but I love the neoprene quality and will get another SF Tech suit soon.

You must decide if you want a dry glove system before ordering a suit. Adding a dry-glove system to a suit made with typical wrist seals may require some sleeve geometry alteration, as sleeves with wrist seals have more taper than sleeves with dry-gloves.

The suits are very much cave cut - read close to the body. You may want to add an extra layer when measuring if you like suits on a roomier side. If you want more info, please PM me. Cheers!

Hi Mr V, I am Serge from Belgium, I am going to order the SF Tech TNT Pro, but I want to know which undersuit you are wearing, where I dive in Netherlands and Belgium the water is in winter between 4 and 15 degrees, right now I have a fourth element Arctic undersuit with J2 baselayer and a X core vest for really cold water. The TNT pro is twice as warm as a normal trilaminate drysuit but I wanted to know if that's true and if I need to buy another undersuit or fourth element arctic will do just fine, or too warm? What's your opinion? What do you wear underneath?

Thanks
Serge

 

[mr_v]

Hi Mr V, I am Serge from Belgium, I am going to order the SF Tech TNT Pro, but I want to know which undersuit you are wearing, where I dive in Netherlands and Belgium the water is in winter between 4 and 15 degrees, right now I have a fourth element Arctic undersuit with J2 baselayer and a X core vest for really cold water. The TNT pro is twice as warm as a normal trilaminate drysuit but I wanted to know if that's true and if I need to buy another undersuit or fourth element arctic will do just fine, or too warm? What's your opinion? What do you wear underneath?

Thanks
Serge

Serge, I dive in Great Lakes where water temperature is close to 4C. I can't comment on TNT - it may be warm, but I dive the Neoprene Pro version. When it comes to undersuits, fabric and fit matter.

In general, there are several fabric suppliers that make suitable material for undersuits. Polartec is one example. Many brands use Polartec fabric in garments that provide insulation and warmth. See more info here. SF Tech undersuits and Fourth Element use Polartec.

When running heat, I prefer SF Tech undersuits as it is designed for heating elements. However, the undersuit is quite tight on me and is a pain in the neck to take off, especially if I sweat a bit. I am thinking of going up a size in SF Tech undersuit so it is more comfortable.

Without heat, I use Fourth Element Arctic. It is more spacious and I can use an extra layer under it. However, extra layers means more buoyancy which means I must carry more weight.

Some divers wear SF Tech dry suits with Weezle Undersuits. If you purchase Weezle, make sure that whoever measures you for SF Tech dry suit is okay with measuring you over Weezle, as Weezle is bulkly and fluffy and measuring may be less precise. Weezle also may lose some fluffiness over time.

Finally, consider how you dive. If you dive with DPVs, you may not move much so you want a suit that will keep you warm. If you kick then sacrificing more bulk for the sake of mobility is an option. That's why I have multiple undersuits. In some cases I mix and match - I'll dive with thick pants but a thinner top so that I don't get oveheated while kicking.

Cheers~