My fusion - 100 dives later

[jridg]

Back in the summer of 2008 I was unhappy with my drysuit - it was a bit overlarge, it was a thick, heavy trilam suit which I simply did not enjoy wearing. The bubble moved LOT, my feet would float, it was nearly impossible to clean the interior. Sure, it worked, I stayed dry, never had any seal issues, but it simply was not enjoyable to dive.

I began doing some research on newer suits and discovered the fusion by Whites. I read some reviews, found out where it was carried locally and bought one within a couple of days.

Here's what I got:
- Fusion Tech drysuit
- Mk 2 thermals with the jacket
- EVO 3 boots
- backpack/storage bag

This was September 2008 and I LOVED it from day one. I carefully trimmed the seals, dove the suit and was seriously happy.

THE FIRST DRAWBACK:
For me, this is actually the ONLY drawback on this suit - the neck seal is a tapered seal. After four dives, the neck seal stretched just a little and began my 'wet' dives. When I say wet, I mean I had water down the front of my shirt following each dive. I contacted Whites and Justin figured it out right away. I sent it back to Whites along with my neck measurement and they replaced the seal with a non-tapered seal that I did not have to trim - been dry ever since!

CUSTOMER SERVICE:
As I mentioned above, I did have to send the suit back to Whites for the neck seal replacement. They turned it around quickly for me and I was very pleased with the service and responsiveness of the team.

UPGRADES:
After I returned home to SoCal from seven months in Florida (Yes I dove the drysuit in winter in FL) I ordered the Limited Edition Tech skin - This was simple to install following the video instructions from the Whites site. The LE tech skin is a great upgrade in my opinion over the standard tech skin. I really like the idea of all neoprene on the suit and it has held up very well. A short while later I installed a pee valve which I ordered from Dive Right In Scuba - Mike was VERY helpful in ensuring I installed the valve correctly - and it was VERY simple. It is certainly nerve-wracking to cut holes in your drysuit on purpose - but it was not a big deal in the end - you simply must be careful! I love the pee-valve as well, not sure why it took me so long to add this one! I am very close to getting a bullet skin at this time - I will certainly review that when I do get it.

REPAIRS:
I recently had to replace a wrist seal on my suit. The original seal was degrading somewhat and I didn't want to chance a torn seal during a dive trip, so i went ahead and replaced it. Once again DRIS hooked me up. They sent me a pair of bottle-type wrist seals which were sized for my wrist (measuring was simple and no trimming required if you get the right size!) I followed Mike's instructions and 45 minutes later (actually a little less) I had installed a new wrist seal on the suit. Dove it yesterday - no leaks! The heat tape seal installation process is quite simple.

Benefits of the fusion:
-bubble doesn't travel like other suits - easy to move around without messing up your trim.
- range of motion is fantastic. It really is like wearing a 3mil wetsuit when it comes to moving around.
- you can easily turn the suit inside out for cleaning. the core air dries very quickly.
- all of the options make it exceedingly versatile.
- it is simple to repair - you can do this in most cases!

OVERALL:
As you can guess, I still love the suit 100 dives later. I have done wreck penetrations, reef dives, muck dives searching for megalodon teeth, FL Springs dives, and kelp dives with this suit. I have gathered sea urchins and hunted lobsters. It has held up perfectly. I dive my fusion with standard wet suit boots, I have never worn my EVO-3s. I just don't feel like I need them. The MK2 undergarment is perfect for local SoCal conditions - coldest to date has been 52 degrees with no chills.

So yes, I still love the fusion - looking forward to the next hundred and more dives in this suit!

 

[TSandM]

Jim, I'm with you almost a hundred percent. I've had my Fusion for a little over two years, which is about 350 dives, and I'm still very happy with the suit. I have the Sport skin and have really seen little reason to change it. I use X-shorts for pockets, which are good pockets and don't sag. I do shore diving and boat diving and cave diving, and I have had two tiny holes in the suit, both of which were satisfactorily patched with Gorilla tape.

I have two issues with the suit: One, the arms and legs on mine were not cut well to accomodate the MK3 undergarment (this, I understand, has been changed). And two, the sock and overboot system never worked well for me -- the sock was way too big and ended up with folds and lumps inside the shoe, and boots which were sturdy and stayed on were too big for my fins. I changed the socks out for Turbosoles, which lost me some of the advantages of the sock (easy turning the suit inside out) but solved a bunch of other issues.

I'm really happy with my Fusion, and there are days when I toy with buying another one, just to get the larger cut arms and legs.

 

[Rainer]

Lynne, who did you have add the Turbosoles and how much was that "fix"?

 

[Dogfish Doug]

Hey guys, thanks for the great reviews. This shows us that we are indeed headed in the right direction. You are actually helping us, help you. With your feedback we can continue to evolve and bring to you the most comfortable, hence enjoyable suit on the market today. All feedback be it good or bad has imput into our operations, so thanks again.

P.S jridg, it was great to meet you at the demo days, stay in touch.
Doug.

 

[TSandM]

I don't know what the Turbosole conversion cost. I had the neck seal and wrist seals replaced and the Turbosoles put on at the same time -- IIRC, the total cost was around $400. I had it done at EE, and they aren't cheap, but the work that was done was awesome -- every single thing they did looked like it came from the factory. Any major dry suit work I need done in the future will be done by Doug Mudry.

 

[sffrenchman]

For me, this is actually the ONLY drawback on this suit - the neck seal is a tapered seal. After four dives, the neck seal stretched just a little and began my 'wet' dives. When I say wet, I mean I had water down the front of my shirt following each dive.

I don't think that I have ever had a completely dry dive with this suit. DRIS is checking it for leaks. If everything checks out, I will have them change the neck seal for a non-tapered one and see if it helps.

Thanks for posting your experience.

 

[jridg]

I don't think that I have ever had a completely dry dive with this suit. DRIS is checking it for leaks. If everything checks out, I will have them change the neck seal for a non-tapered one and see if it helps.

Thanks for posting your experience.

The contact area on the tapered seal is quite small. When I had the seal changed to non-tapered, the contact area is much larger and it solved my issues immediately.

 

[TSandM]

Wow -- in 350 dives, the only wet dives I've had have been at the end of the lifetime on a seal, except for the two pinhole punctures (one of which I STILL don't understand). This has been a very satisfactorily dry suit.

 

[elan]

How does the inner plastic stand below freezing temps ? Say 0 - minus 10 F

 

[jridg]

How does the inner plastic stand below freezing temps ? Say 0 - minus 10 F

I will have to defer to the people who have dove the suit in cold conditions. I would hazard a guess that it does just fine given they are made in BC....