NexGen suit weak in the knees?

[SoCalSwami]

I am in need of some advise. I bought a used Bare Nex-Gen from craigslist for $250 and you'll never guess, it leaks.

Should I keep the suit and repair it, or return it back to the seller (craigslist) who agreed to take it back since he promised no leaks.

I will attempt to post a picture of the interior of the suit after leak testing. It shows several leaks around the perimeter of the knee-pads.

The biggest question for me is whether the aquaseal will hold up on a high-mobility area like the knees? The repairs seem straight forward and I planned to DIY. How long could I expect the aquaseal to last in the knees (50 dives)?

The seals and valves are in good condition, and it fits well, so I am leaning towards keeping it. Am I nuts?

Anyone else seen their Bare suit go weak in the knees?

 

[covediver]

I have dozens of dives on my Nexgen and never had it leak from the knees.

With that many leaks and a guy willing to take it back, personally, I would not keep it.

 

[Jchoby]

I had the same issues. Aquaseal seems to be working a year later. However, $250 for a Nexgen know to be leaking suit may make me think....I got one new for $600

 

[jeckyll]

Mine leaks on my right knee (a bit).

 

[SteveAD]

That many patches in the knees area makes it look like the previous owner liked crawling thru broken glass.

 

[Bubbletrubble]

Oh, man. It's too bad that the seller didn't tell you about the multiple leaks beforehand. At least the guy is willing to take it back.

OK, it's clear that the Bare Nex-Gen material isn't "bomb-proof." To make all of those holes, I'm not so sure that the guy had to pull a Die Hard and crawl/walk over a bunch of broken glass. My girlfriend had one small leak near the perimeter of her kneepad. It was caused from gearing up on rock-strewn concrete at Catalina. She likes to get into her gear by herself, so she'll setup the BC/BPW with tank upright, sit down and scoot into the straps, roll onto her knees, then get up and tighten down everything. I'm sure that during the kneeling process is when the puncture occurred. Those kneepads seem really flimsy.

Aquaseal can very easily repair a small puncture. But with multiple punctures...
Hmmm. I have to wonder what else the seller didn't tell you about. Maybe you should just return the suit and buy a used rental Bare Nex-Gen Pro from Divetank.com for under $500, which comes with a 6 month warranty to cover leaks, valve problems, zipper issues.

How long did you submerge the suit in order to reveal the leaks? The reason I ask is that if it was after a 1 hr dive, then the leaks are quite small, but if it was after submerging the affected part of the suit in a bucket of water for 15 seconds, then the holes are larger.

Doing multiple Aquaseal repairs to a used drysuit might be difficult...almost as difficult as this Japanese game show video clip on YouTube: YouTube - Human Tetris 3

I hope that the video clip makes you laugh.

Good luck.

 

[SoCalSwami]

I finally decided to return the suit. Just too many issues to deal with.
Thanks for the advice.

The seller was WAY cool to accept it back, he could easily have said go fly a kite. So there is a relatively happy ending. The bad news is I'm back to diving wet.

How long did you submerge the suit in order to reveal the leaks?

Total elapse time was 1 minute to see water start leaking. The picture was taken at about 8 minute mark.

Doing multiple Aquaseal repairs to a used drysuit might be difficult...almost as difficult as this Japanese game show video clip on YouTube: YouTube - Human Tetris 3

I hope that the video clip makes you laugh.

I will admit I laughed pretty hard; the half-body cut-out at the top of the wall was the best. Thanks for the pick-me up Bubbletrubble.

 

[jsf35]

I have found that the old saying "You get what you pay for" should apply double when you are talking about drysuits. A dive buddy of mine has bought cheap used drysuits since he started diving dry. He is on his third. On each one he has had to replace the wrist and neck seals. Two had zipper leaks start after less than 30 dives on them. He has re-valved one suit with two new valves. So far he has probably spent the same that a new suit would have cost. Most dives he ends up wet or damp.
I'm sure there are good deals out there. Fit is the most important followed by suit quality. If the suit was a low-end suit new, then I would avoid buying one used. Especially if it was used as a rental suit.
Good luck in your search.

Scott

 

[diver 85]

That thing looks bad, does it have a cancer???...........

 

[SoCalSwami]

I have found that the old saying "You get what you pay for" should apply double when you are talking about drysuits.
Scott

I am starting to see the advantage of buying new (or factory close-out DUI like new). Why spend hours searching and gamble on a drysuit that could double as a spagetti collander? Bite the bullet, buy new and sell in 7 to 10 years for half what you paid and buy new again.

One nice thing about buying and returning my CL Nexgen suit; the $250 became seed money for my "drysuit fund envelope" which sits in my desk drawer and has grown to about $485 in just a few weeks. I've never been one to save, but I will have to admit this is working out nicely.