Kubi or Ultima twist for new drysuit.

[Badger7]

I helped someone on a dive boat this last week work on getting smaller showa gloves refitted into their ultima glove rings, and it was fairly putzy with getting the o-rings in the right position and fitting the gloves inside out and then flipping them around. I'm sure its one of those things that becomes second nature, but I wasn't impressed. It appears the only difference between the legacy Ultimas and the new twist design is just some tabs that make removal easier, but they do seem to stay put on the dive as reported by mulitple people I know who use them.

I use Rolock 90 rings in my QCS ovals and fitting new gloves couldnt be easier, just align the plastic ring inside the glove, pop it into the glove ring with a little silicone grease to make it slide in easily and then trim the glove. The only time my Rolocks leaked was one dive where I managed to rotate one out of position, but I'm pretty sure I didn't have it turned in very far at the start of the dive either.

You're right though, compared to all the other questionably reliable dry glove systems out there, Kubis, Ultimas (and in my case Rolocks) are all very good and its totally a personal preference thing on some of the finer details. I'd be very surprised if you weren't very happy with any of the three.

 

[davehicks]

Did you make a tool to help with the pull over gloves? Or do you just manhandle them on? Ive tried doing that on my Santi Suit with Marigold gloves ... was definitely a two person job. Ive seen elsewhere that people have created a tool to roll them on easier, but i havnt figured out how.

I easily put them on by myself. It's not hard. I should make a video instructable.

1. Fold up cuff of glove half way
2. Put glove on hand
3. Pull down cuff over inside of wrist
4. Press that against your chest
5. Grab the other side of the glove and pull over the wrist ring
6. Adjust as needed

 

[davecampbell]

my wife and i have Kubis on our 4 Seaskin Novas. They've been nothing but excellent. Easy to use, no indexing required, and never had any issues. The suit side with sitech silicone wrist seals, and the glove side (using Showa 720s) have both been flawless. I have no experience with any other systems....and based on the experience so far, I likely won't need any.

 

[Brett Hatch]

I've been using the Kubis that came glued to my SeaSkin 5 years ago. No complaints here, they're great. Can't compare to any other brand, because I haven't tried any others

I don't even use the backup silicone wrist seals anymore. If I ever puncture the outer glove, I'm going to thumb the dive right away. The few minutes it will take me to reach the surface might be uncomfortable, but I won't become overweighted or hypothermic. Divers doing mandatory deco or overhead dives will have a different view on this issue, because being forced to endure a leak for a long period of time truly can become a safety issue. But a glove leak is simply not an emergency in the rec dives I do

I've only had one problem with the Kubis, which was my own error. One day, I decided to change the gloves out right before a dive. I ended up reassembling the rings incorrectly, by swapping two similar-size O-rings. D'oh! It took me the better part of an hour to get them apart again. I eventually got them apart without breaking anything, rebuilt them correctly, and did not miss my dive... and I won't be making that mistake again, that's for damn sure

Cheers, best of luck. I think you can't go wrong with the Ultima system either... both models get very high praise here on ScubaBoard

 

[Zef]

I've been using the Kubis that came glued to my SeaSkin 5 years ago. No complaints here, they're great. Can't compare to any other brand, because I haven't tried any others

I don't even use the backup silicone wrist seals anymore. If I ever puncture the outer glove, I'm going to thumb the dive right away. The few minutes it will take me to reach the surface might be uncomfortable, but I won't become overweighted or hypothermic. Divers doing mandatory deco or overhead dives will have a different view on this issue, because being forced to endure a leak for a long period of time truly can become a safety issue. But a glove leak is simply not an emergency in the rec dives I do

I've only had one problem with the Kubis, which was my own error. One day, I decided to change the gloves out right before a dive. I ended up reassembling the rings incorrectly, by swapping two similar-size O-rings. D'oh! It took me the better part of an hour to get them apart again. I eventually got them apart without breaking anything, rebuilt them correctly, and did not miss my dive... and I won't be making that mistake again, that's for damn sure

Cheers, best of luck. I think you can't go wrong with the Ultima system either... both models get very high praise here on ScubaBoard

I totally understand your rational, but since divers new to drysuits might come across this thread I just want to point out that a reason to keep seals in place is if one has plans to conduct multiple dives. If a glove is found to be compromised on the first dive, the glove can be replaced during the surface interval and one can continue with the other dives as planned...while this is still possible without wrist seals, it may cause subsequent dives to be uncomfortably wet if one does not have a spare undergarment to don between dives.

-Z