Drysuit Seal Glue?

[Bigeclipse]

All,
I will be attempting my first drysuit seal replacement for wrist seals (neck seal will follow probably next year). I am having a hard time finding which glue to use. Open to any and all suggestions. Thanks!

P.S. Not sure if this matters but it is an older BARE trilam HD from like 2006

 

[undrwater]

Dive Right In Scuba has this great glue tape that makes attaching wrist (and neck) seals very easy and neat using a heat gun. You'll need some kind of chemical cleaner as well (MEK or acetone). It should work quite well on your trilam.

Edit: I was wrong, apparently it doesn't work on trilam without some further prepwork. Here's the link:

Dry Adhesive Drysuit Tape

They may chime in here, or you can call them. They've got a bunch of knowledge.

 

[Dive Right In Scuba 2]

If you cut off your old seals and leave a "ring" of old seal our dry adhesive tape will work that way. Otherwise, we recommend coating the adhesion surface with some drysuit glue, let it dry, then apply the seal using the tape. The tape is insanely strong(Mike couldn't pull two seals apart with all of his might), but the seal can still be removed with the application of heat.

 

[tstormdiver]

Just curious,... what is the general lifespan of this tape? Looking at it for "quick fix" solution, in the event of seal failure, since my new drysuit has standard (not zip seals). I put about 150/ yr on my drysuits & so that is a lot of donning & doffing. Will it hold up to that kind of rigorous use?

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

Just curious,... what is the general lifespan of this tape? Looking at it for "quick fix" solution, in the event of seal failure, since my new drysuit has standard (not zip seals). I put about 150/ yr on my drysuits & so that is a lot of donning & doffing. Will it hold up to that kind of rigorous use?

It's not going anywhere....it's not a quick fix, it's a permanent solution when attached and prepped properly

 

[tstormdiver]

It's not going anywhere....it's not a quick fix, it's a permanent solution when attached and prepped properly

By "quick fix" I was referring to being able to repair in a day's time, when away from the shop's reapir room. Is there a cure time for the tape?

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

By "quick fix" I was referring to being able to repair in a day's time, when away from the shop's reapir room. Is there a cure time for the tape?

A couple minutes...

 

[Tbar]

The tape is a quick fix, and is also a permanent solution. Easy and quick to apply with the flexibility to re-heat and adjust. Then ready for use in a few minutes.

I would say you could use a hairdryer and get a reasonable result.

 

[EdC]

If you cut off your old seals and leave a "ring" of old seal our dry adhesive tape will work that way. Otherwise, we recommend coating the adhesion surface with some drysuit glue, let it dry, then apply the seal using the tape. The tape is insanely strong(Mike couldn't pull two seals apart with all of his might), but the seal can still be removed with the application of heat.

I know this is an old thread but I have a related question. If someone did remove all of the old seal what is the best way to readhere latex to a TLS suit?

I used a couple of coats of drysuit glue directly on the DS sleeve and then used the tape. This looked and worked great for a year, then on a dive this weekend the edges stared to peel and within 20 minutes they both fell off.

Should I glue some latex seals directly to the sleeve the first time and the latex to latex going forward?

 

[DerekR]

Sounds like the original application wasn't cleaned properly, prior to laying down a base layer of adhesive. The tape will not stick to laminate and glue wont stick well, unless the surface is properly prepared. Acetone is your friend to clean everything prior to laying down a base of glue and then activating the tape with acetone prior to applying it to the fresh surface. If you don't activate the tape, it's not going to work well, either! Skip any step and it may stick for a while, but not for long!