DUI's New Zipper - QuickZip (TM)

[Uncle Pug]

O-ring once bubbled...
ended up going with a regular shoulder dump..

I hate mine... and I am going to move it... of course then I have to plug the hole.

Not only do I not like the shoulder dump but they put the thing forward of the shoulder emblem... that means that it faces down when you are horizontal... so to exhaust you need to go vertical (DUI's preferred position of diving evidently) or do a barrel roll... which is not convenient when divng doubles.

Arrrrggggg....

Shane keeps asking me why I am divng my Andy's with a brand new CF200 sitting there in the garage.

 

[Scubaroo]

Is the new zipper only available with Special Production and Signature suits? I had a quick look at the website and couldn't see it. I'm still kicking around the idea of a FLX50/50.

 

[O-ring]

Is the new zipper only available with Special Production and Signature suits?

They told us they are making that the standard zipper, but I think they are only on special and signature at the moment.

 

[newton]

Uncle Pug once bubbled...

I hate mine... and I am going to move it... of course then I have to plug the hole.

Having done a few more drysuit dives (UP was with me on the 3rd/4th dives), I'm beginning to hate my dump as well.

Not only do I not like the shoulder dump but they put the thing forward of the shoulder emblem... that means that it faces down when you are horizontal... so to exhaust you need to go vertical (DUI's preferred position of diving evidently) or do a barrel roll... which is not convenient when divng doubles.

I can't imagine what it'd be like with doubles. I hate it diving my single tank. I find that during the last 15' of the dive, I get really floaty feet unless I go completely up-right and dump out all of the air through the shoulder valve at 30'.

I looked at getting a left cuff dump like you had on your Andy's, but I'm not sure how to keep it out of the way of my compass which I wear on my wrist. (And, I've heard recommendations of using a slate/compass setup on the left wrist, which takes up even more space).

With the addition of the Diving Concepts gloves, I have a lot less room than previously. Unfortunately, I don't dare move the shoulder valve back as far as I'd like, as I wouldn't be able to easily adjust it anymore.

*sigh*


Nate

ps. I checked with drysuitrepairs.com, and it would be around $125 + S/H to remove and replace the shoulder dump with a cuff dump. I also need to add some bellows pockets, so I suspect it'll be around $200-250 when I'm finished with the suit, and I'm still not *completely* happy with the flexibility of the suit in reaching my valves. ;-(

 

[Uncle Pug]

newton once bubbled...
I'm not sure how to keep it out of the way of my compass which I wear on my wrist.

I wear my compass on my left wrist too... with DC gloves... and the forearm dump is up high enough that I can put the compass between the dump and the rings.

I will probably do the job myself... unless the LDS that does my seals will do it cheap enough... they should... I bought the suit from them.

 

[Bob3]

Draeger cuff dumps were around $12 last time I checked, doesn't take rocket science to install one.

 

[newton]

Uncle Pug once bubbled...

the forearm dump is up high enough that I can put the compass between the dump and the rings.

I will probably do the job myself... unless the LDS that does my seals will do it cheap enough... they should... I bought the suit from them.

Hmm, sounds like it's fairly easy to do. However, how do you plug the old hole in the drysuit and make it look decent?

Also, how far up do I want to valve to be? I notice you call it a 'forearm' dump instead of a 'cuff' dump, which makes alot more sense. I don't remember exactly where your dump was, so I don't want to screwup and install it at the wrong location?

Thanks for the help!


Nate

 

[newton]

Bob3 once bubbled...
Draeger cuff dumps were around $12 last time I checked, doesn't take rocket science to install one.

Good thing, cause I'm not a rocket scientist.

Are these things adjustable? If so, how does one install a new valve, and plug the hole for the old valve?

Thanks Bob!


Nate

 

[divernva]

Still a big debate, but we had long discussions during the process of looking at suits.

Rolling a little to move air around seems fairly natural to me. So this doesn't seem like a huge issue. My understanding was that the valve should be set on auto to allow for self-venting at a certain pressure within the suit. It also made sense to me since the wing inflator/dump is in relatively the same position. Of course, I've never dove a drysuit so all this is just "thinking".

There have been recommendations of putting the dump on the right shoulder for newbies. This sounded like a "patch" or more of a stepping stone. Since I don't expect to switch suits in the near future, I thought I'd stick with the more traditional method. BTW, the benefits of the right dump would simply be ease of operation with the left hand.

I couldn't find much wrong with the forearm dump... well Andy said it may be in the way when you reach into a hole for a bug. But, if the hole is that small, the bug can't be that big. Anyway... seeing Andy demonstrate the forearm dump method really stuck in my mind... and acted as a further deterance.

QuickZip was a major gray area, but I think it's a good choice after hearing what Sweetin at EE had to say. He was an instructor at our DIR-F so his "OK" was taken with a lot of weight.

Anyway, I think I'll be pretty happy with the drysuit. Probably won't realize a benefit to the forearm until I get to dive with other folks... hopefully in the PNW someday.

Ken

 

[Scubaroo]

The QuickZip is now being shown on DUI's website, including a step-by-step donning demonstration.