DUI Dry Suits and Zip Seals

[timhernandez]

After a Fall season of diving wet in the Great Lakes, I have decided to take the 'plunge' and get a Dry Suit.

I like the DUI suits quite a lot and they seem to have an excellent reputation for quality.
In doing my research through a LDS, I have come upon these new 'Zip Seals' that DUI is offering on their suits.

My question is:

"Does anyone have any experience, or opinions on/with these new seals?"

Thanks in advance for the advice, I have learned more about SCUBA in the last few months on this board than in the previous year.


-Tim

 

[Soggy]

My first question is, why do you need the zip seals? My impression is that they are designed to be used in circumstances where seals need to be changed frequently and quickly, such as a rental or training drysuit. For a personal suit, they are just yet another failure point.

Second question is why are you set on DUI? There are a lot of other manufacturers out there that make quality suits for a lot less money such as Bare and Andy's.

 

[loosebits]

One of my friends just got ZipSeals installed on his CF200, I would not call them a failure point. I saw his suit at the shop before he came by and picked it up and I think the seals would rip before the zip-lock let them go. He got them because he doesn't want to have to miss a dive if a seal goes. If you've got money to burn, I say go for it but don't add them to your suit at the expense of other options such as a p-valve or pockets.

 

[theskull]

Yes, you can buy cheaper suits---and you will get a cheap suit. Go ahead and splurge on this most important gear item and get one that will be a pleasure to dive!

The zip seals are the way to go. About to send my suit back to have them installed. (A testament to DUI service--they are doing the retro installs free for anyone who has had their suit less than a year!) The seals are the failure point, on any dry suit. And with the zip you can replace them yourself in minutes, good as new, instead of sending the suit in or leaving it with a local shop for a couple weeks. Added benefit is you can get a pair of dry gloves that will zip into the wrists in place of the seals and have truly DRY gloves.

theskull

 

[Boogie711]

I don't buy it.

Has anyone priced out what it costs to repair/replace a drysuit zipper versus changing a wrist seal?

Not even in the same zipcode, much less the same ball park. No thanks - My DUI and I are going with as few zippers as we can get.

 

[Soggy]

theskull once bubbled...
Yes, you can buy cheaper suits---and you will get a cheap suit.

Do you have any facts to back that up? My Bare ATR-HD is so tough that I was unable to *intentionally* put a hole in it with a grommet tool. It took me 10 minutes to cut a hole with an exacto knife. Have you dived any other suits? Mine cost $1500 less than an equivalent DUI suit....I could buy a second one for that cost.

As for wrist seals...Bring a roll of duct tape with you if you are that worried about ripping seals. You have to be pretty tough on them and can patch almost anything up for a single dive. They only are like $20 a piece and can be replaced yourself.

 

[Tavi]

theskull once bubbled...
................ (A testament to DUI service--they are doing the retro installs free for anyone who has had their suit less than a year!) ............

theskull

Where does it say free?? It says special price!!!
Look Here

 

[loosebits]

Just out of curiosity, how can you spend $1500 less than an equivalent DUI. I'm assuming a TLS350 would be equivalent and I'm sure you could get it custom fit for aound $1500. Are you comparing MSRP of DUI vs what you paid for a Bare?

 

[theskull]

Sorry, I was incomplete. . . on 1-year old suits they will DO the retrofit installs for free. . . but you still must pay for the materials. . . hence, special price. Thought y'all would have enough sense to know that the replacement PARTS wouldn't be free. Too many semanticians around here. ut:

The zip seal is NOT a zipper. And dry suit zippers don't fail that often, anyway. The zip seal is more like a heavy-duty ziploc bag seal--easy to operate, but very secure. And the neck seal is a double-zip since stress is applied in 2 directions at that point.

Yes, I have dived other suits. . . only an idiot would make a claim that one was better than some others without any experience. May as well get ahead of your game and say here that DUI is not necessarily far superior to ALL suits. But I did specify that it would be more of a pleasure to dive than a CHEAP suit--and I stand behind that. I have not dived a BARE suit--did you really buy a NEW dry suit for $500? I have dived $500 dry suits before and it was like diving in a laundry sack compared to the fit and flexibility of the DUI.

Soggy--have you dived the DUI suits? I wasn't a believer until I got a chance to try them out, either. A lot of money for sure, but I love to dive that suit!

True, the zip seal is a minor convenience. But it is a convenience, and it is a convenience added to an already excellent product. I wouldn't buy the suit because of the zip seals, but I would sure pay the small extra fee for them if already sold on the product. I wouldn't get cheap at the last minute and do without a pocket, either.

theskull

 

[Soggy]

loosebits once bubbled...
Just out of curiosity, how can you spend $1500 less than an equivalent DUI. I'm assuming a TLS350 would be equivalent and I'm sure you could get it custom fit for aound $1500. Are you comparing MSRP of DUI vs what you paid for a Bare?

I suppose it wasn't quite a fair comparison, but a Signature series DUI TLS350 is MSRP of over $2300. A custom Bare ATR-HD retails for around $1600 and if ordered from Canada, can be bought for around $900 US.

Let's start over. I wasn't trying to attack DUI suits. They are excellent. There just tends to be an overabundance of "DUI is the only suit to dive." I was just trying to show that there are other excellent options out there. The Bare material is darn near bulletproof and it comes with a bunch of standard options such as kevlar knee pads, gaitors, zipper protector, and a pocket.

There are several excellent drysuits on the market. DUI is one of them.

The zip seals seem like a gimmick, not necessary, and possibly add another failure point and yet another thing to check pre-dive. If you are concerned about your seals, I'd recommend a good set of drygloves which protect the seal and also serve to keep you warmer as well.