so you tell the op to go to a LDS try the suit on and get fitted correctly THEN order online??? Not very nice of you..like a cheap date you would use/abuse and not call back.. tell the LDS that is what you plan to do BEFORE wasting any of their time..And people wonder why some LDS now charge a fee for trying on gear..
Visit your local dive shop, try the suits on, discusss pricing, order from your LOCAL DIVE SHOP... Honestly most LDS will work with you on pricing, don't be afraid to ask, in many cases the more you spend the more you save. Just don't use your LDS like a walmart changing room...
I agree that an LDS with a knowledgeable staff can help the customer select an appropriately sized drysuit. Under certain circumstances, the shop may be able to offer an in-water demo of the drysuit. That kind of experience would be invaluable. Moreover, store employees could also help educate the customer about trimming neck/wrist seals and maintaining the suit. Unfortunately, not all brick-and-mortar dive shops are very helpful.
Several years ago, when I was shopping around for my first drysuit, I visited 4 different dive shops in my area (San Diego, CA) to educate myself on brands/models/pricing. Two of those shops didn't have drysuits in my size to try on. The suit would have to be ordered only after I committed to purchasing it. The other two shops couldn't even quote me a firm price on the DUI suits I tried on -- presumably this gave them more wiggle room on price negotiations after they had gauged my interest/budget. It was clear that the store employees were working off commission because I was getting the hard "up sell." According to the employees, I had a difficult-to-fit body type (which was news to me since I'm a "medium" in the vast majority of brands) and a stock "medium" wouldn't fit me. I was strongly advised to order the Signature DUI Series in order to have the customized sizing that my difficult-to-fit body type required. The DUI brand was described as the "Cadillac" of drysuits, the "best of the best." I was discouraged from getting the shoulder-entry lower-priced DUI offering (TLS SE) because it "doesn't work as well" and "we don't sell many of those." I was advised to spend a "little" more to really get something I want (pockets, p-valve, front-entry, two-tone color, etc.). The employees, who by the way had zero drysuit diving experience, gave me the impression that I needed to spend $3,000+ on a drysuit in order to get one that fit. I ended up ordering a stock Bare drysuit package online for $750 (including undergarments, tax, shipping). That drysuit system has served me well for hundreds of local dives. I'm very happy with the purchase.
San Diego is home base for DUI. Many of my friends in the local dive community have DUI suits and are happy with them. In the past few years, I've discovered that a medium DUI suit fits me quite well. If the dive shop employees had been more honest/accommodating/accurate with sizing issues, I probably would have ended up with a DUI TLS SE.
This was just my personal experience with purchasing a drysuit in a brick-and-mortar dive shop. It wasn't very pleasant. I felt like I was on a used car lot. The online purchasing experience was much more straightforward and honest, in my opinion.
