man! it's cold!

[OCdiving Deb]

a friend can get me a good O'neil 7mm for a good price, but they are soooo dang hard to get in and out of! i really like the idea of ease wiht regards to the henderson.

-dan

You may also want to try the Pinnacle Elite. My husband wanted ease and comfort but also warmth. He almost bought the HH but went with the Pinnacle Elite instead.

I recently bought a Pinnacle Elite myself and find it much easier to put on than my old wetsuit. I just need to adjust the wrist and leg chimneys 'cause I'm short.

Hoods and gloves? ABSOLUTELY!!! I wear a hooded vest even most of the summer due to upwelling and thermoclines.

 

[saintsfan]

The oneal semi dry j-suit is quite a bit easier to get into than other oneals,it has an attached vest and hood, very warm. You can pull the sleeves down and leave just the vest on. The only thing I don't like about is that you have to add a few lbs of weight because of the extra material and the fact that little if any water gets in so you will have some air pockets. The price is a small deterrent at around $400 but its a lot less than a dry suit.

 

[pasley]

Hooded vest is the way to go. The bib on a hood always bunches up when you tuck it in and then water funnels down it. If you go wiht a hooded vest, get a zipper in it to help get it on an off. For the wetsuit, a 7 mil is a must. Zippers in both ankles and wrist will help. A plastic shopping bag on the feet and hands will (I am told) help the suit to gulide on. Me, I use a solution of hair conditioner and water in a spray bottle. Liberally spray leggs and arms and inside the suit too. A good suit should fit like a second skin and that mean skin tight fit and a fight to get it on an off.

I m on the thin side (72" 142 lbs) and so get cold easy. 7 mm is a must. I also have a 7 mm spring suit to wear over the suit in the coldest part of the winter. I dive 20 lbs of weights (24 with spring suit).

 

[deputydan1]

thanks again, everyone.

wondering...would a 5mm suit, with a 5/3mm hooded vest be equal to a 7mm in warmth???

that way i could use the 5mm in hawaii, and add the hooded vest for So Cal waters...

-dan

 

[divinman]

thanks again, everyone.

wondering...would a 5mm suit, with a 5/3mm hooded vest be equal to a 7mm in warmth???

-dan

That is still only leaving 5mm on your arms and legs and if you aren't active (read: Finning hard) your legs will get cold and my elbows start to ache when they get cold. I guess it depends how much you plan on diving in the winter here. For a one tank dive to moderate depths you would most likely be fine but doing multiple dives per day or diving even one or two dives at depth where neoprene compression will really mash the suit will leave you shaking and wishing for a thicker suit. I read somewhere that a 7mm suit is compressed to about 4mm at 100ft. Now if you were only using 5mm to start with.....


Just a thought. I totally understand trying to get the best of a single suit for both climates but man it's hard to have a good time when you are shaking and shivering and all you can think is F@#$ it's cold.

BTW when not diving dry, I dive an O'Neal J-type full 7mm with built in 5mm core warming vest. Its not the easiest suit to get into but it sure is warm.

Terry

 

[ShakaZulu]

Ok, this suit has stretch around the ankles for easy donning of the suit. Very little water get's in around the front chest zipper, and the hood is integrated, so you don't have any water running down your back. I used to be cold at 55, until I got this one. XCEL Titanium Polar Quad Density, has 8mm around the chest area. Nice...........

http://www.xcelwetsuits.com/home.html

 

[So Cal Divin]

Hey Dan

You might want to check this guy out $150 for a custom wetsuit from Greece to your door. In camo too !!!
http://www.diveskin.gr/diveskinen.htm
Check out this post and you'll see this guy is 5 star , top notch, bend over backwards, unbelievable customer service, price, quality and on and on.
http://spearboard.com/forum/showthread.php?s=&threadid=8496
Don't believe me check it out for yourself.
If not I have a TOASTY WARM Parkway 7mm semi dry used half a dozen times I'll sell you for $150. Or it's going on ebay.

Jeff

 

[RonDawg]

I use a BARE Arctic one-piece 7mm suit (hoodless) with a matching 7mm hooded vest. For water temps above 60F, I use just the one-piece with a separate hood.

For Monterey I also wore the matching hooded vest. It was a bit chilly, but not so much so that it affected my dive. While the double 7mm layers would require a lot of weight, it was offset by the fact that I was diving with a steel tank (I believe it was an 85). I only needed 20 lbs in my integrated BC, the same as when I use a single 7mm with an Al 80.

The Bare Arctic suits have zippers at the ankles and wrists to make them easier to don and remove, though on my last shore dive some sand has caused one of the zippers to get stuck :11: They also have wrist/ankle seals to reduce water sloshing and thus keep you warmer.

As far as the gloves and hood, I always wear gloves as my hands get cold real easily, and as someone has pointed out CA is the land (sea?) of the thermocline so hoods are always a good idea. However, when temps were unusually warm in Catalina recently I was very tempted to omit the hood.

I too plan on more tropical diving (I was in Hawaii last March, and an April '05 trip is in the works) so there's really no alternative but to have two different suits; what's necessary in CA would be too hot for HI, and what's tolerable for HI would still be too cold for CA except in conditions we had last summer off Catalina. I have a ScubaPro 3mm one piece that I bought on closeout from a Waikiki dive shop.

 

[montyb]

I have a henderson 1/4" two piece that I had been using for some time, diving in and around San Diego - it was somewhat adequate but I was always cold - nothing I couldn't stand but after 45 min at 53 degree's would shivver for 1/2 of the SI. waiting for next dive. I picked up a like new 7 mm Fathom Farmer John plus step in and could not believe the difference. Did three dives a few weeks ago Yukon, Ruby E, Kelp beds and was truly comfortable. Downside - I had to add 6 lbs went from 16 lbs. with the henderson to 22 for the fathom. But it was worth it. I also wear a henderson hot skin underneath so it really isn't that much trouble getting into. When I get back to surface take jacket off, pull farmer john and skin down to waist and put fleece jacket on. Only problem is like everyone else said - its hard to put it back on - not so much physical hard but its a cold, wet, suit. Up side - Only hurts for a few minutes
montyb

 

[SoCalOffshore]

I would look into the Pinnacle 7 mm with the merino wool lining. this is probably the warmest suit out there and can be had with an integrated hood. My wife has one and she is prone to getting cold and this suit keeps her real warm. I am going to get one as soon as my custom suit gets old. Good luck.