Drysuit for both short and wide woman with a large bust and hips?

[rgugler]

I'm just getting back into diving and looking to get a used drysuit. They are expensive to rent and I doubt I'd fit the rentals well anyway. I'm in the PNW and did a dive in a 2 piece 7mm wetsuit and while doable, there were certainly very chilly times. I went through my air much faster than my dive buddies in dry suits.

I'm 5'3" and currently around 190 pounds. Working to get rid of the extra gained during the quarantine times, but realistically would still be around 160-170 then. I did my drysuit cert way back in 2012 and haven't used one since, but I remember being lent an awesome Whites suit that was basically a big bag with a stretchy suit underneath. I can't remember the sizing or how much I weighed at the time. Other than Whites and Aqualung, what other suits are like that, and what is the best way to figure out sizing for cases like that? Are there other brands that are good for short and wide women?

 

[GF99/99]

I don't know what your price range is but Santi has a good reputation for very good custom fit made to measure option. They offer very detailed instructions and youtube videos on how to take all the measurements that are then sent to them and then they will custom build the suit to as per your measurements.

 

[Marie13]

I’m built like you. You’re going to need a custom suit. There’s no way around needing custom. If something fits me in the torso, arms and legs are way too long.

I love my DUI FLX Extreme, but it’s pricey.

 

[davecampbell]

Seaskin.....made to measure, great value.

 

[kodiak81]

I'm just getting back into diving and looking to get a used drysuit. They are expensive to rent and I doubt I'd fit the rentals well anyway. I'm in the PNW and did a dive in a 2 piece 7mm wetsuit and while doable, there were certainly very chilly times. I went through my air much faster than my dive buddies in dry suits.

I'm 5'3" and currently around 190 pounds. Working to get rid of the extra gained during the quarantine times, but realistically would still be around 160-170 then. I did my drysuit cert way back in 2012 and haven't used one since, but I remember being lent an awesome Whites suit that was basically a big bag with a stretchy suit underneath. I can't remember the sizing or how much I weighed at the time. Other than Whites and Aqualung, what other suits are like that, and what is the best way to figure out sizing for cases like that? Are there other brands that are good for short and wide women?

+3 votes for Seaskin made to measure suits. My GF and her friend are both same height as you and both are incredibly happy with their drysuits.

 

[mdwalter]

I see you are looking for a used dry suit to fit you, but the only suggestions you've been given so far are to order a custom (i.e. new) dry suit from <various manufacturers who make custom suits>. That may be the route you have to take, and it will certainly be the way to get a suit that fits you perfectly, but let me take a crack at some things you might try to find a used suit that will fit you or can be made to fit you. Do you feel really lucky or do you have a lot of dedication and patience for this process?

If so, you could try to find someone close to your size who has a drysuit but is ready to upgrade to a new custome suit such as the ones the others have mentioned here. Then you talk that person into selling you their old suit (the hard part may be convincing them they don't need to keep their old suit as backup). Now, if you do luck into a suit this way that's pretty close to right, but not quite, you can look into having a few alterations made. For example, if the body is OK but the legs or arms are too long, it is possible to have them cut down and get new boots/socks and/or seals/gloves put on. A used suit may already need the ends of the limbs replaced anyway so it shouldn't cost any more to get them right-sized at the same time.

Similarly, you could scout around for someone who used to be your size and has the suit to prove it, but has since gained or lost enough weight that their suit will never fit them again. Here the hard part may be convincing the owner that they'll never fit in it again (rather than that they don't need it as backup). Same stuff about resizing as above applies.

Or, maybe you're lucky enough to come across someone your size/shape who has quit diving (or given up cold water diving) and will no longer need a dry suit at all. Again, same as above.

Failing any of that (which unfortunately is likely) you really are down to a custom suit. This seems to be the way to go for a lot of women of all shapes and sizes, much more so than for men. This is because, at least in my opinion, while men come in all sizes, women also have many more shapes as well as sizes. However, dry suit manufacturers (and wetsuit manufacturers too for that matter) don't seem to realize that (or just can't accommodate that in their standard sizing) and make womens suits like they make mens suits - in one or two shapes but many sizes. The standard sizing seems to fit 60 - 90% of men but maybe 10 - 20% of women. So the rest need custom sewn suits.

 

[Zef]

Go custom and save yourself the hassle, heartache, and the money. Custom made to measure drysuits are not that much more expensive than off the rack suits. My wife is short and round, she purchased a used drysuit from Marie13 who made a similar recommendation above....it was a great suit and would have been a great deal if it fit properly but sadly it didn't. After lots of frustration, some tears, and swallowing the expense, we purchased a custom made to measure suit that my wife was/is super happy with. We were expecting to swallow the cost of the suit that didn't fit but luckily we were able to find that one in a million buyer that knew what they were looking for and had the right morphology, and was looking for a spare drysuit. We were able to recoup our expense, but it took nearly 2 years for that person to materialize.

If we had a time machine that would allow us to do things over, we would definitely have gone custom/made to measure from the start.

Best of luck.

-Z

 

[Rich1280]

My wife is a curvy build, 5'5, all bum and boobs hourglass who lifts. She swears by made to measure for this kind of thing. Essentially, her explanation was there are just too many variables as to where the curves may be with women compared to men, so any thing unisex won't generally fit. Even some female cut suits won't fit because the manufacturers have a certain shape in mind when they build the suit, and that might not be where you need it. For example she recently got a MTM Santi, and even that isn't quite right in some areas. They had to check the arm measurements because apparently she has the same size bicep as a large male suit, which was off the scale on their ladies suits.

Have a look at anyone you know who may be a similar shape and has a well cut drysuit for them, then ask where they got it and start there maybe. Good luck, a well fitting drysuit really helps.

Rich