Fusion Owners

[Vlane]

I'm looking at the Fusion to be my first dry suit but the only thing I haven't heard much about is the suit's durability. For those of you who have a Fusion, about how many dives do you have on it and how is it holding up?

If I do get the suit I plan on getting the tech skin within a year or tow, so please let me know if you have that as well.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I have had my Fusion for about a year and a half with probably 100 hours in caves, lots of time in restrictions, climbing in and out of rocky sinks, etc, numerous dives in wrecks and probably 100-120 dives total. I have yet to put a hole in my Fusion. I have the tech skin.

It does not look durable but it is very durable - more so than any other drysuit I have owned including trilams and neoprene drysuits.

 

[newmanl]

I used to dive a Fitzright neoprene suit - in over 8 years and easily 600 dives I never had a drop of water in it.

I bought a Fusion (with tech skin) this summer and started getting a wet right foot after about 30 dives. Yesterday was the worst soaking I've ever had in a drysuit - not happy at the moment with the durability - and I'm very easy on my gear.

 

[JanK]

Never mind

 

[Brandon]

I have the LTD Skin Fusion - not at all impressed with the durability of the skin - specifically the stitching. The stitching on both of the cuff hems has come undone, and the stitching on the right pocket (that I never carry anything in), is starting to come undone as well. It looks like the thread used to sew these areas can't handle the stretchiness of the suit material.

Suit only has a few dozen dives on it, always rinsed with freshwater and hung to dry after each dive - it's not a maintenance issue. The problem isn't bad enough yet for me to want to send it back to White's as a warranty repair.

The actual bilam material and the skin itself appear plenty durable and are offering no problems. If the stitching issue gets worse, I'll pull the skin off and have a local seamstress repair it. It's not the end of the world, just another minor annoyance - I do like the suit quite a bit.

-B

 

[SteveR1952]

Mine is on order. I understand the Tech skin LTD Ed. line is down due to a bad sewing machine. Maybe this was the cause of your poor sewing.

I am getting mine next week with the Lycra skin and then they will send me the Ltd. Ed. when it is made. As least I can get some dive training done before my Channel Island trip.

Will follow this tread to see what other issues develop.

 

[TSandM]

I got my Fusion about the same time DAA got his. I've put a couple hundred dives on it, including crawling around in the bottom of Florida caves, and crawling in and out of the Mexican ones. I've had one real hole in the suit, and that appeared to be due to the water exit procedure on a charter boat, where we were washed up on a perforated metal swim step and got up on our knees to have our fins pulled. It was quickly patched.

I have the Lycra skin, and have had one small hole in it.

My only real kvetch with the suit is the pocket situation.

 

[CJM]

Im deciding between the Fusion and a DUI myself. Curious to see more feedback on the Fusion. So far I'm leaning on DUI

 

[Underwater Ogre]

I have a Fusion with sport skin, approx. 50 dives on it. If you ask anyone that knows me I am very hard on everything I touch. If it wont break give me a few minutes with it. I was a bit skeptical about the suit, but I have been thrashed in surf, crawled up barnacle and oyster covered rocks, crawled around wrecks and haven't put a hole in it yet. The lycra is holding up well, I think because its stretchy so it doesn't tear. I figure I am 200 dives away from replacing the sport skin with a tech skin.
Its the most comfortable suit I have ever used and I would have a difficult time comparing the mobility in it to anything but a 2mm wetsuit.
My buddies still laugh at how it looks, but they have to have something to entertain themselves. I think they all secretly want one, but cant now they have made fun of it so much.

Good luck,
U/O

 

[HenrikBP]

... and the stitching on the right pocket (that I never carry anything in), is starting to come undone as well.

I have a related issue with my LE skin; the pocket material is stretching at the stitching holes, and it looks like the "perforation" will go sometime soon.

I got the suit in June and have so far only carried wetnotes in one pocket and small SMB and spool in the other. I have 20+ dives in the suit so far.

Other than that stitching, the skin looks like new.

I'm not thrilled with how the pockets "work". Not as much the sagging - which I don't find is too bad - but then as said, I don't hardly carry anything in them. I'm more bothered by the floppyness of them. Underwater I find it tricky to get the pockets opened and stuff out of them and trickier still to get anything back into the pockets. I think it would help if *some* of the panels of the pockets were made from stiffer/sturdier cordura. I think that could be done while still retaining enough stretch.

Henrik