Need wetsuit thickness advice

[MookieMoose]

I might check out those Bare suits, my preferred LDS is a dealer. If I want Henderson, I have to go to another LDS that I really dont like as much, and but these Bare suits seem cheaper. Are the Bare suits of similar quality to Henderson suits?

Bare make some of the best wetsuits out there - MUCH higher quality than Henderson. Bare suits are made in Canada, and built for Canadian conditions. I have a Bare 7mm hood-integrated semi-dry, and I have been relatively confortable in it in water as cold as 44 (7 C). I have also worn the same suit in the Bahamas in Feb. It was warm, I didn't wear the hood, and kept the zipper part way open, but it worked.

I would suggest that if you want to dive the great lakes in a wetsuit, you need a good, well-fitting, warm (thick) suit that will be overkill for the tropics. You might want to think about renting a suit in Coz...

Cam

 

[Furner]

Does Bare offer a custom-fit program? That will be the core of a 'well-fitting' suit for me.

 

[Groundhog246]

I've no idea if Bare does custom suit. Don't see it on their web site http://www.bare-wetsuits.com but you could try emailing them. I dive a bare Supra 7mm one piece semi dry and love it. Also have a 7mm sleeveless jacket (had a hooded one switched to non hooded jacket) and a Mares 3mm one piece. Between the 3 pieces, full heavy hood, 3mm beanie and 5mm and 3mm gloves, I can mix and match for almost any temp.

The better your suit fits, the more comfy you'll be, especially in cold water. And the more comfy and warm you are, the more you'll enjoy diving, thus you'll probably dive more. I'd recommend good exposure protection as the first major purchase. I know more than one diver who wears a 6.5mm to 7mm suit in the tropics. Look around the forums on the boards and you'll see the Forida and Texas divers putting away their thick wetsuits and pulling out drysuits when the water temps DIP belwo 70F.

 

[jkennedy]

For Carribean diving a three mill is more than enough. I have a Scuba Pro shortie 2.5 mil and it is all I need year round. I think I'm having a Brac attack.........