AaronDoesScuba
Registered
Good morning, everyone. I just completed my drysuit training course with Underwater Sports in Seattle, WA (USA). Jenn was our instructor and taught a great class. I wanted to share my experience with the DUI TLS350 Classic drysuit rental that I used during the class.
In summary: it was a great suit! I barely noticed I was wearing it because it’s so light, fit perfectly and it just worked (* see footnote).
For reference: I’m a 6’2” (188cm) male, 212lbs (96kg) with relatively trim body composition. The suit was an XL size and fit perfectly.
The TLS350 had the DUI ZipSeals. The neck was the G1 style and the main ring attached to the suit was probably a bit small for my head. My head isn’t so big, 24in (61cm), but it does have smaller heads that orbit it
. Just a little difficult to get off after the dive. I’ll try to rent a G2 seal next time, as I understand they are a bit larger diameter, though a bit stiffer. My neck is 17in (43cm) and the seal was trimmed to the 8th line.
The soft ZipSeal cuff rings have probably spoiled me. They just seemed like an extension of the soft sleeve and never got in the way. It’s hard to imagine using a stiff cuff after this. My wrists are 8in (20cm) and the seals were trimmed to the 5th ring. Zero leaks.
I had the crushed neoprene sock feet and wore boots over them. I’m a fan of this flexibility. The swiveling air inlet valve made aligning it with the low-pressure hose very easy during hose drills in the class. It had a single left shoulder vent, and while I’m new to all of this but it seemed to work perfectly. I left it almost fully open and never had a problem. No pockets on the suit. I would definitely add pockets to any suit that I purchased.
The main zipper was brass, stiff to pull, but it was possible to zip myself. I like the secondary zip cover protecting the main zipper. I also really appreciated that the top of my suit was bright green. I think it made it much easier to see in the murky water. My partner’s suit top was also bright, so I had a good idea how well the bright top contrasted underwater.
It was a beach dive with Puget Sound water temps running 54F (12C) degrees, the air temp was about the same with overcast skies and very windy surface conditions. For warmth, I had on a full 150 weight jumpsuit, light fleece top and heavy wool socks. Two 30-minute dives and I was absolutely comfortable in the water and during the surface interval. The DUI suit was so comfortable that I didn’t need to remove or adjust anything while waiting for the 2nd dive.
Afterwards, cleanup was a breeze. I think there was a pinprick hole in my right foot that as my sock was damp, but otherwise I was 99% dry inside the suit.
One trick I didn’t pick up on until the second dive was to give my suit a little bit of air as I walked out of the water. That loosened it up for walking on the beach, didn’t restrict movement as much.
10/10, would dive it again! Thanks, DUI, you make a great product. And thanks, Underwater Sports & Jenn, for the great training. I’m looking forward to more dry diving in the chilly Puget Sound waters.
Cheers to all my classmates,
Aaron
Underwater Sports
DUI TLS350 Drysuit
*I wanted to separate this note because it wasn’t the fault of the suit. During my 1st training dive in the pool, I had a ruptured neck seal. I learned how to deal with a fully flooded suit. Turns out there was an older glued repair on the neck seal that peeled open. It was easily fixed by swapping it out for a new ZipSeal. The ease of replacing the DUI seal really shined. Just a few minutes to change it. I’m a strong believer that you really only learn things when they go wrong. And wooo, I learned a few things.But that’s what training is for, and the class went on smoothly from there.
In summary: it was a great suit! I barely noticed I was wearing it because it’s so light, fit perfectly and it just worked (* see footnote).
For reference: I’m a 6’2” (188cm) male, 212lbs (96kg) with relatively trim body composition. The suit was an XL size and fit perfectly.
The TLS350 had the DUI ZipSeals. The neck was the G1 style and the main ring attached to the suit was probably a bit small for my head. My head isn’t so big, 24in (61cm), but it does have smaller heads that orbit it
. Just a little difficult to get off after the dive. I’ll try to rent a G2 seal next time, as I understand they are a bit larger diameter, though a bit stiffer. My neck is 17in (43cm) and the seal was trimmed to the 8th line.The soft ZipSeal cuff rings have probably spoiled me. They just seemed like an extension of the soft sleeve and never got in the way. It’s hard to imagine using a stiff cuff after this. My wrists are 8in (20cm) and the seals were trimmed to the 5th ring. Zero leaks.
I had the crushed neoprene sock feet and wore boots over them. I’m a fan of this flexibility. The swiveling air inlet valve made aligning it with the low-pressure hose very easy during hose drills in the class. It had a single left shoulder vent, and while I’m new to all of this but it seemed to work perfectly. I left it almost fully open and never had a problem. No pockets on the suit. I would definitely add pockets to any suit that I purchased.
The main zipper was brass, stiff to pull, but it was possible to zip myself. I like the secondary zip cover protecting the main zipper. I also really appreciated that the top of my suit was bright green. I think it made it much easier to see in the murky water. My partner’s suit top was also bright, so I had a good idea how well the bright top contrasted underwater.
It was a beach dive with Puget Sound water temps running 54F (12C) degrees, the air temp was about the same with overcast skies and very windy surface conditions. For warmth, I had on a full 150 weight jumpsuit, light fleece top and heavy wool socks. Two 30-minute dives and I was absolutely comfortable in the water and during the surface interval. The DUI suit was so comfortable that I didn’t need to remove or adjust anything while waiting for the 2nd dive.
Afterwards, cleanup was a breeze. I think there was a pinprick hole in my right foot that as my sock was damp, but otherwise I was 99% dry inside the suit.
One trick I didn’t pick up on until the second dive was to give my suit a little bit of air as I walked out of the water. That loosened it up for walking on the beach, didn’t restrict movement as much.
10/10, would dive it again! Thanks, DUI, you make a great product. And thanks, Underwater Sports & Jenn, for the great training. I’m looking forward to more dry diving in the chilly Puget Sound waters.
Cheers to all my classmates,
Aaron
Underwater Sports
DUI TLS350 Drysuit
*I wanted to separate this note because it wasn’t the fault of the suit. During my 1st training dive in the pool, I had a ruptured neck seal. I learned how to deal with a fully flooded suit. Turns out there was an older glued repair on the neck seal that peeled open. It was easily fixed by swapping it out for a new ZipSeal. The ease of replacing the DUI seal really shined. Just a few minutes to change it. I’m a strong believer that you really only learn things when they go wrong. And wooo, I learned a few things.
But that’s what training is for, and the class went on smoothly from there.
