Merino, really?

[marinediva]

Yes, it's warm. Good quality too. I use one of their suits. But wool it aint. This is just shear nonsense.

aRE YOU KIdding??????

I wonder if you also think milk comes from a carton as well?????

Merino Wool comes from a sheep.

The merino sheep

The merino sheep was originally bred in Spain, it was imported into Australia in 1796 by the Governor of NSW. By 1810 there were over 5000 merino sheep in Aust.

Due to its inherent natural qualities, Australian Merino is an extremely versatile and technically dynamic natural fibre. Offering superior performance, comfort and quality, it features a high level of UV protection and insulates against heat and cold with natural breathability.
Superfine Australian Merino fibre provides an elasticity that allows for total mobility and stretch, creating exceptional levels of comfort as it responds to the body's movements. The Australian Merino fibre has a unique structure that gives it an inbuilt resistance to sunlight, water, acid and mildew. Enhancing durability, it is also water repellent, and fire and static resistant.

As the driest continent on earth, Australia has a unique topography and climate. Merino sheep have adapted to this environment, developing fleece perfectly suited to Australian conditions. Refined over time, wool's natural attributes enhance every garment in which it features.

Australian Merino is a completely natural fibre. Reared on open grassland, the Merino sheep enjoys a largely carefree existence. Over time, its fleece has evolved to become one of the most effective forms of all-weather protection known to man.

Biodegradable: Merino wool takes only a few years to decompose. In contrast, most synthetics, like the ubiquitous plastic bag, are extremely slow to degrade. Merino's natural qualities make it possible to create garments that are exceptionally durable, while remaining kind to the environment.

Sustainable: Every year Merino sheep produce new fleece, making Merino wool a completely renewable fibre source. Australian woolgrowers work actively to improve efficiency and care for natural resources, working towards the sustainability of the Australian wool industry for generations to come.

Origins of Australian Merino
Australian wool was first exported to Britain for commercial sale in 1807. Since then, Australia has grown to become the world’s largest wool producer. Australian Merino sheep now graze one quarter of the country and produce approximately 400 million kilograms of fleece, worth around AUD $2.8 billion annually.

Merinos are known to have a thick, fine fleece that is highly suitable for spinning and weaving into a fine fibre that is mainly used in clothing.
www.sheep101.info/breedsA.html

this is a clip of a half merino sheep being clipped
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4jOBQg94zGo

 

[meesier42]

that's just stupid, your using some stupid reading and semantics to claim that, call Pinnacle or even Scott at Zeagle, its absolutely a Merino Wool layer, the TM part refers to their branding of the Merino Elastiprene or Merino Evolution garments and suits. And the tag on the garments reads Wool as the content.

To answer the OP, yes the Merino suits are warmest suits I have ever used for their thickness. I really like the 3mm Seal (Merino lined) for diving in anything from 68F-82F for even extended dives. Not to mention the fact that my Seal now is nearly 5 years old, with at least 150 dives, and still smells (and for the most part looks) new.

 

[vlkr]

can't add anything new but can tell you that i have a pinnacle seal with merino and it is by far the best of my 3 suits.

 

[Blue Sparkle]

When they say it's not to be confused with wool from a normal sheep, I think they are just reinforcing that Merino wool (from a Merino sheep, which is not the usual type) is not itchy/scratchy like some "normal" wool can be.

Wool has got somewhat of a bad rap over the years when it's actually an amazing thing. So I think they realize they have to educate people somewhat in order for them to appreciate (or re-appreciate) wool. I believe that's what they are trying to do.

B.

 

[waterman14]

I would like to take a moment to clarify what Merino does and how it does it when applied to wetsuits and wetsuit accessories.

If you think back to your Open Water scuba class, you learned how wetsuits work: They trap water inside and your body warms the water. Water, being an excellent insulator, helps keep you from losing all of your body heat as nature tries to create an equilibrium between the temperature of the water and the items in it (just as an ice cube melts in a cup of coffee and the coffee gets a little cooler and the ice cube gets a lot warmer). The rubber of the suit also provides a layer of insulation.

This is true, but it leaves out a major factor: That the water in your suit will tend to leak out and more water will seep in from the outside so that you are constantly warming an ever-changing body of water.

Merino works mainly because it absorbs and holds more than 30% more water than a traditional nylon lined wetsuit, and more than 50% more water than a smoothskin lined suit.

The fact is that, as water is drawn across the fibers of the Merino during the absorption process, a measureable amount of heat is released. This heat, while measureable, is very small, so I will not go into it in detail here, but it does exist.

The important factor is that additional water that is trapped inside the suit. Just as a thicker layer of rubber makes for a warmer suit (think how much warmer a 7mm suit is than a 3mm suit), a thicker layer of water is a better insulator than a thin one. Obviously, a bathtub full of boiling water stays hot longer and cools to room temperature a lot later than a cup of coffee at the same temperature does; and the coffee will reach room temperature far after a thimble full of water would. Exactly in the same sense, a 30% greater body of water, trapped inside your suit, will also cool to equilibrium with the ocean at a slower rate than the 30% smaller body of water would.

Additionally, because the amount of water trapped inside the suit is greater, the tendency to leak out to the ocean is less, which means that the body-warmed water is more likely to stay inside the suit and less likely to leak out into the ocean to be replaced by colder ambient water. This intensifies the effect of the insulation because the cooling effect is not linear. (In other words, you lose body heat faster when the differential between your body and the ocean is a factor of 45 degrees than you do when the differential is less. Therefore, if there is a larger body of near-body-temperature water trapped inside your suit between you and the ocean, it will insulate better than it would if cold water was consistently replacing a portion of the internal layer of water.)

Studies conducted at the British Textile Technology Group laboratories in London, England in 2003 concluded that a neoprene garment (specifically a wetsuit) of a given thickness insulates 35% better when layered with Pinnacle's Merino lining system than when lined with a standard nylon lining. That means that, whether you are diving in a 3mm suit or an 8mm suit or anything in between, you would have to add 35% more rubber to get the same insulating protection from the same wetsuit if you took out the Merino lining and replaced it with a traditional or high-stretch non-plush wetsuit lining.

In preliminary studies conducted at SGS for the new European CE standards that will go into effect shortly, the thinnest non-Merino lined wetsuit to achieve an A rating was 8mm thick. A 6.5mm Merino lined suit achieved the same rating.

It is important to note that there are other factors that contribute to a wetsuits thermal capacity and performance, such as rubber density and resistance to compression, fit, sealing systems, zippers, and more, but it is safe to say that, if all other factors remain constant, it has been scientifically proven that a Merino lined wetsuit will be a better insulator.

It has also been anecdotally attested to by thousands of divers on this message board and other, and on beaches and boats around the world.

There are also other reasons to discuss Merino, such as its comfort, the way that it helps a suit slide onto a diver's body, that it is a natural renewable resource (as opposed to the petrochemical nylon linings), etc., but I've probably already written far more than anyone wants to read!

 

[boat sju]

George,

These guys won't be happy until you answer this question specifically: Does your "Merino" originate with a sheep?

 

[ScottZeagle]

George,

These guys won't be happy until you answer this question specifically: Does your "Merino" originate with a sheep?

The answer is YES.

 

[waterman14]

More specifically, it originates with a Merino sheep from the South Island of New Zealand.

There are various types of sheep, each with its own resulting wool. Merino sheep in general are known to grow a finer hair, which produces a softer and more absorbent wool fiber. Among Merino sheep, those that live in the Alpine Mountains on the Southern Island of New Zealand live in one of the harshest environments on Earth, which produces an even softer and more absorbent wool. New Zealand Merino really is the best of the best.

Our patented Merino lining system is almost totally made of pure New Zealand Merino wool. There is a certain percentage of Lycra woven into it in a proprietary manner to allow the fabric to have more stretch, and there is some loosely woven nylon in it to stop the stretching before the fabric tears.

 

[ScottZeagle]

I will tell you guys this - there are VERY few people who know and understand Merino wool in suits better than George.

If he tells you something, you can take it to the bank!!!

 

[coldwaterlloyd]

I have to chip in here , I dive Merino suits by Pinnacle and they work in every regard mentioned . There is little water flow and the water trapped gets very toasty fast .
I find I need to add a little more lead to my ballast than I would on a non merino suit .
It is definitely worth it just for the ease of donning off and on . Nice suits , I would like to try the new Black Ice drysuit up here in the Pacific Northwest . I am never warm enough in our frigid waters !