Drysuits

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dgrow

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Messages
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Location
Atlanta, GA
# of dives
100 - 199
All:

I'm finally preparing to buy a drysuit this fall. I've been looking at drysuits from White's diving and from DUI. I'd appreciate any opinions on these. I typically like to buy the best equipment. If there are any other manufacturers that are best of breed, I'd appreciate those as well. Any tips or pointers are always appreciated!

DG

"You don't have to out swim the shark...you just have to out swim your dive buddy!"
:)
 
How do you define "best"? If you mean most expensive I would say DUI. Have a look at Bare suits, they give you a lot of bang for the buck and are well constructed. Whites makes a good suit but I would not purchase one from them again due to customer service issues. If you do purchase a Whites I would suggest a shop that will stand up for you if there are issues and has some clout with Whites because they will not deal directly with the consumer. I would suggest the Bare trilam tech dry, or try HOG (made by USIA)
 
The only way to make a good decision on a dry suit is to try them. The differences in suit materials and designs can be huge depending on the type of suit you buy. DUI has demos around the country and I would suggest you attend one to try a suit. You're going to spend a lot of money for a quality dry suit and you want to get the suit that works best for you. For example, I prefer a DUI crushed neoprene suit while my wife prefers a TLS.
 
You're talking about dry suits from two different worlds. Right now, Dive Right In Scuba is selling the Fusion Sport (Whites) for $1399; you will add at least a thousand dollars to that to buy a DUI suit, unless you buy used.

I've been diving Fusions for five years. They have a lot going for them -- they are inexpensive, do not require a custom fit for anybody, and are very hard to damage, at least in such a way as to make them leak. They have some downsides, the worst being that they can be difficult to get on over thick undergarments. You have to come up with a good strategy for footwear, which is easy if the socks fit your feet, and a bit more challenging if they are significantly oversized. The suits are VERY easy to dive (but I liked them better when they had SiTech valves on them). Customer service, back when Whites was Whites, was very responsive and good, but I'm hearing some different things nowadays. The SiTech user-replaceable seals are very handy, although the neck ring is a bit of a problem if you are very small-framed, because it makes it hard to reach across your body (or behind you).

DUIs seem to be hit or miss. I don't own one, but I know a lot of people who do. If you are not an off-the-rack size, you will need a custom cut, and that's expensive, and sometimes it works and sometimes it doesn't. Sometimes you send the suit back to California a couple of times before they get it right. They do eventually get it right, it seems, but that's really annoying in a near $3000 suit. The laminate suits often seem plagued with leaks, although the crushed neoprene doesn't.

If you are interested in looking at a suit in the top-end, expensive range, consider looking at a Santi. They seem to do a pretty good job of measuring and constructing suits that fit out of the gate, and I hear fewer complaints about leakage. (I will confess to recently having been made an extremely good deal on a Santi suit, which was custom, and fits like a glove. The jury is out on leakage until I get a few hundred dives on it :) )
 
TSandM, how do you like diving a shell suit after diving the Fusion for so long?
 
Another knock on DUI (at least to me) is that they turn a $10 pair of Atlas dry gloves into a $110 ​item with their custom zip seal.
 
I have had good luck with my HOG drysuit, I have had it for 6-8 months and have had no problems or leaks. It comes with pockets, you can choose different boots and with adding a pee valve it was still a little less than the Whites. You also send in your measurements to get a more customized suit. I think they just put together different size parts of the suit that fit you best, but I am not really sure.
 
As much as I despise drysuits, I recently bought a Whites Fusion Bullet. Couldn't pass the deal I got up. This suit dives like no other drysuit I have worn......and that's not a bad thing. I am very impressed with the design and function of the Fusion, as its easy to dive and doesn't act like a sail in strong currents.
 
I recently treated myself with an Aqualung Giant, haven't had the opportunity to dive it yet, but it's a nice fit and I like the idea of having something thicker than the paperthin trilaminate between you and the water.
 
The DUI Flx Extreme is a great option if you want both comfort and durability :).
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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