DUI TLS350 and "foot protection"

[fjpatrum]

Thanks all, for the comments. I'll see if I can wear my wetsuit booties for now and hopefully get something less floaty if I have a problem with them. My concern is I already wear an XL fin with my wetsuit booties. If I have to go larger any suggestions? I've never seen XXL fins, though they must be out there for people with really large feet.

Spectrum, no I haven't had an instructor led dry suit course but I've read the manual (nothing in there about footwear) and I plan on either taking a course or having an experienced mentor show me the ropes.

 

[nimoh]

Did you change out the cotton laces with parachute cord?

I thought about it, and then thought that there would still be some leftover after tightening, and it needs to be secured as well. I'm sure if I put more thought or research into it, I could come up with something. DUI's velcro system for securing the laces works pretty well, I just find the boots too restrictive. However, since I have been turned on to wetsuit booties, I have pretty much abandoned the chucks anyway.

 

[spectrum]

So far when lacing my rock boots I have been making big bows (4-6" / side) and tucking them and any excess length down into the boot against the sock right up front. It seems to work better than wrapping laces around the ankle and messing with the Velcro tab out back.

I'm not familiar with parachute cord. What advantage does it have over conventional round laces?

Pete

 

[nimoh]

So far when lacing my rock boots I have been making big bows (4-6" / side) and tucking them and any excess length down into the boot against the sock right up front. It seems to work better than wrapping laces around the ankle and messing with the Velcro tab out back.

I'm not familiar with parachute cord. What advantage does it have over conventional round laces?

Pete

I could definitely see where the velcro wouldn't work with big bows, when I lace up my rockboots, I use a cinch (don't know exactly what it is called) to tension the laces and then once around the ankle to the velcro, and the laces are cut so that it matches up perfectly to the velcro tab.

 

[kathydee]

+1 for neoprene booties for the ankle flexibility - you'll probably need a couple sizes larger than you normal wear. Depending on water temperature you might need several layers of socks to stay warm (I wear 2 hiking socks + liner in 48-52F) - so make sure to allow space for the insultion. Zip-up over the ankles boots work well. Just take your suit & socks to a dive shop to find the right size boot.

Not sure which type of fins you are using? It's possible with some, such as Jet Fins, to simply swap the length of the spring strap to expand the foot pocket. Not sure if that will work for your foot size. Rock boots require a larger foot pocket than do neoprene boots. I swapped to Jet fins when starting to dive dry, as they are heavy enough to counter any floation.

 

[boat sju]

I'm not familiar with parachute cord. What advantage does it have over conventional round laces?
Pete

Pete,

Actually, we're probably talking about the same thing. Just waterproof boot laces. They hold up better than the cotton laces that come with CT's. I just double or triple knot them to take up slack.

I'm not sure how I got in the habit of referring to it as parachute cord myself.

boat

 

[spectrum]

I'lll let you know, I bought 100' on ebay just for chuckles.

 

[boat sju]

I'lll let you know, I bought 100' on ebay just for chuckles.

That's it - if you buy 100ft of it on-line, then it's parachute cord. If you buy it in a package at Walmart, it's boot laces.

 

[fjpatrum]

Thanks again, everyone, for the advice. I tried my suit on this past weekend with my wetsuit booties and, while not optimum, they'll work for this weekend and give me some time to research better options and new fins that will fit larger footwear. The drysuit socks also weren't as tight as I remembered but I certainly won't be wearing thick wool socks inside the suit. I'll post back after I dive it all to give my impressions and probably ask more advice.

 

[Peter_C]

The drysuit socks also weren't as tight as I remembered but I certainly won't be wearing thick wool socks inside the suit. I'll post back after I dive it all to give my impressions and probably ask more advice.

Yikes! I wear super thick socks, then DUI 400g booties. Any less and my feet would get cold.

My Chucks are two sizes larger, and I ripped the in soles out of the them to allow more room. So far I have been happy with the Chucks and they are cheap. Haven't had any issues with the laces, and I just tie double knots.