How Much Dry Suit Does a New Diver Really Need?

[ScubaFeenD]

I would not recommend doing it and I think it's a bad advice. Good fitting dry suit makes diving way easier and much more enjoyable. There is no point of buying cheaper dry suit now, as in many cases you just lose those money. I saw many people selling their first dry suits losing money and buying the new good ones anyways. It's better and cheaper to do it from the first shot. You have to be careful , do not hunt for cheapos and deals, do your research, get good undergarment and a good dry suit. Well fitting with proper positioned exhaust valve, right neck and wrist seals, right boots and tight calf areas and made of proper material. and good pockets installed from the first time. Or later you will be paying more fixing that. Id you are lucky and fit into the stock suit it will be cheaper. If you are not do not hesitate and go with the custom cut. If you get a bad dry suit you will hate it as much as you will hate diving in it. If you get a good one you will love it and will be diving more.

Did i say save money by purchasing a poorly fitting dry suit? No. My point was merely that you can get a cheaper but still great dry suit (ie White's) that fits well and almost half the cost of a personally tailored other brand (ie DUI). Both work really well, but one has the majority of mindshare (from what I can tell anyway). I would never recommend sacrificing essential components of a dry suit such as fit, placement of valves, and comfort--after all if those conditions aren't satisfied then no matter what brand it is the wrong dry suit.

I will be buying a white's most likely for this reason exactly, and then maybe one day "upgrading" to a DUI depending on how my experience with White's goes.

 

[TSandM]

I honestly have never figured out what, except for great looks, makes people buy DUI suits. They're top end expensive, and they leak as much as anybody else's suits do. Many if not most of my friends have DUI suits, and they complain every bit as much as I ever have. I dove a DUI suit in LA when I ripped my neck seal, and it was a nice suit. It fit me pretty well, and it was easy to get in and out of. My Mobby's, at $800, fit me pretty well and was even easier to get in and out of. I'm not saying DUI doesn't make nice suits, I'm just saying I don't understand why people pay such a premium for them. (When I priced them, five years ago, a custom suit -- which I would have needed because of my size and gender -- would have run me in excess of $2400 with pockets.)

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

I honestly have never figured out what, except for great looks, makes people buy DUI suits. They're top end expensive, and they leak as much as anybody else's suits do. Many if not most of my friends have DUI suits, and they complain every bit as much as I ever have. I dove a DUI suit in LA when I ripped my neck seal, and it was a nice suit. It fit me pretty well, and it was easy to get in and out of. My Mobby's, at $800, fit me pretty well and was even easier to get in and out of. I'm not saying DUI doesn't make nice suits, I'm just saying I don't understand why people pay such a premium for them. (When I priced them, five years ago, a custom suit -- which I would have needed because of my size and gender -- would have run me in excess of $2400 with pockets.)

Yes, they tend to leak ... I sure wish DUI would find a better seam glue or something.

That said, my TLS350 is hands-down the most comfortable suit I've ever owned. It feels like wearing my favorite pair of blue jeans ... which also tend to sprout holes at random intervals.

So far I've owned and worn Diving Concepts UltraFlex Pro, Northern Diver Cortex, DUI CLX450, DUI TLS350, Whites Fusion, and now the Santi eSpace. And I really like the Santi. But the TLS350 remains my all-time favorite suit. I'll put up with a few leaks for the fit and comfort I got from that suit.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[elan]

When I was calculating how much my Bare Trilam costed me with all the options installed it was not that much of a difference. So at the end I got improperly placed valve and the sales rep ordered me boots 2 sizes bigger than I need. So I'm replacing my boots and have to move the valve.

Whites, I did not purchase one, I do not like the pockets and why have all that excess material that you do not in fact need.

drdrdiver the quality of the suit and good fit is usually comes with the price as well. Unless you are lucky it is pretty much impossible to get a good fitting suit in sub 1000 range. Yeah you can get Bare Next Gen, good luck with the pockets and it's rear entry so you have to compare them with rear entry from the other guys. For many people it's not as easy to find a stock suit. Personally I see no point of spending money on Whites if you are eventually planning to buy DUI later and it is really at least 50% of the cost, just save some more now and get what you ultimately want. Many people I spoke to went through several manufactures and ended up with DUI. Though I was more or less lucky with my Bare fit by this time I put pretty much the same money I would spent on DUI custom suit with the same config. And the more we get into the details of trim and doing different skills including valves the more DUI suits make sense. Poor cut in calf area and you have to put gators, improper valve location and you have to do the funky arm out movements , and the list goes on, My friend is ready to dump his XCD2 and just eat the expense of getting an appropriate suit.

I have never tried DUI but while looking at friends CLX I see it is made better than Bare.

 

[boat sju]

Am I the only one who owns a Freedom 2 ? Much less than $1 K.

And I love it by the way.

 

[spectrum]

If the budget has your dream suit in sight floating the balance can be an option. Compnies are looking to move units and free money can be found. It may not need to be all or nothing.

Pete

 

[Gdon]

You can buy a used suit for a lot less.. for example I am selling a Typhoon ProSport Size L 1.5 years old, for $400. You can get a real nice suit like the Whites Fusion for $1300-1400 (and under $2000 for boots, undergarmets and the everything you need except the hood and gloves). Thats what I am getting, a Whites Fusion Sport. It might not hold up in heavy use in harsh enviroments (the jury is still out), but for once a week in the local quarry and 2-3 trips a year I think it will be great. And I do echo the saftey benefits of a good drysuit that is suited to you. Cold bad! Warm Good!

 

[soonerwink]

I just bought a used Harvey's drysuit for 250.00. It is a shell suit without any extras, like pockets or suspenders, but it has new seals on it. It even included a DUI thinsulate under-garmit. It fits well and all the seals seem to lie flat and seal. I haven't been able to dive it yet, but did seal of openings and filled with air to look for leaks. I figured for the price I paid, it wouldn't be too much of a risk. I had decided to just save for the suit I want, after trying them at DUI dog days in a couple of weeks. I just couldn't pass on this one though.

 

[W8less]

I dive both lam and neoprene. OP didn't indicate one over the other. There are some really good suits out there, but I think bang for the buck Apollo is a can't miss. Turn an Apollo suit inside out and look at the quality of the construction, seam seal, insides of the knee pads. It is a high quality, less than $1K suit that will keep you warm and dry and slides on an off with ease.

Yes it is neoprene and compresses at depth, yes you will probably have to carry more weight and yes the seals are neoprene not latex. Another $2,000.00 would remedy those issues.

 

[bearbear]

I dive in upstate New York from the time the ice leaves Lake Champlain (about now) until it freezes over in January and then the last two years we cut a hole in the ice and dove. I do this in my trilaminate pinnacle evolution dry suit. The suit keeps me dry but the real trick is finding the right size and weight undergarment for yourself. It is probably a good idea to rent the brand of suit and undergarment you are interested in first so you know what you are comfortable in. I absolutely agree with H2O 70 that you will most likely dive more frequently in the right dry suit and undergarment if your in colder water. Also be sure to dive with someone used to cold water diving if you have not done it much in the past or get cold water traing. Good luck and enjoy the diving.