Help! Drysuit leaking around neck seal!

[Tobagoman]

Help! My neck seal is leaking. I think I cut the latex seal down one ring too many. It fits comfortable around the neck now, but everytime I look up (which seems to happen alot when I'm working with students) I get a gush of water down the front of my neck that soaks my chest! I don't want to have to send this out for new seal to be put in and be without if for a while.

I was thinking that maybe someone out there had an old latex seal that they were going to get rid of that I could purchase cheaply and use as an auxillory seal over the existing neck seal to extend it up my neck a bit.

I have a muscular neck which causes channels to form whenever I look up or turn my head.

Any other ideas would be appreciated!!

Thanks.

 

[jlyle]

I'm afraid that the best solution is to replace the neck seal. I did see someone use a neoprene seal as a neck dam under their latex seal on a rental, but as I recall it wasn't that "dry."

 

[Dryglove]

Never tried this myself but check it out
http://www.apollosportsusa.com/drysuit.html#Bioseal

 

[Tobagoman]

Never tried this myself but check it out
http://www.apollosportsusa.com/drysuit.html#Bioseal

Thanks,
I'll give that a try if I can't find a piece of latex to use the same way, except over the existing seal.

 

[mempilot]

Buy a new seal and replace it yourself. It's not that hard to do. Do a search on replacing seals. There's a lot of info on it here.

 

[Tobagoman]

I'm leary about just replacing the seal, it fits great now and holds air and keeps out water, except when I have to look up and my neck tendons stand out. I was hoping another piece of latex over top the existing seal and extending higher would stop this. Someone else out there has had to run into this problem also.

 

[mempilot]

I trimmed mine one ring to far and it leaked when I craned. I replaced it, trimmed it a little more snug, and it's now mostly dry. It seems to tight above water, but below and after the first dive, it feels comfortable. Latex seals will never be 100% dry. The tendons and veins will create small gaps when flexed.

 

[Bob3]

If you tuck the seal down inside your suit, you should be able to get by with a looser fit.
New neckseals are around $28, though you *might* be able to get by with a wrap of unlined neoprene seam tape on the critter. That'll run you around $4-$5.
I have a suit here that needs a new neckseal, the old one has been trimmed too much.
Lay yours flat & give me the "across the top" measurement as well as your own neck measurement, maybe it'll work out for you.

 

[Tobagoman]

If you tuck the seal down inside your suit, you should be able to get by with a looser fit.
New neckseals are around $28, though you *might* be able to get by with a wrap of unlined neoprene seam tape on the critter. That'll run you around $4-$5.
I have a suit here that needs a new neckseal, the old one has been trimmed too much.
Lay yours flat & give me the "across the top" measurement as well as your own neck measurement, maybe it'll work out for you.

My neck is 15". I will have to get the across the top measurement for you when I get home this evening. Thanks!!!

 

[Paco]

I'm leary about just replacing the seal, it fits great now and holds air and keeps out water, except when I have to look up and my neck tendons stand out. I was hoping another piece of latex over top the existing seal and extending higher would stop this. Someone else out there has had to run into this problem also.

My latex seal on my nex-gen has leaked on occasion, but as I've learned to turn with my shoulders and torso, rather than whipping my neck around as I did before, it has remained almost always dry. The other thing I do (though I'm not sure if if made a difference) is I tuck the collar of my underwear (CT 200) inside itself before I pull the seal over my head.