Opinions on Whites Fusion Tech?

[SanDiegoSidemount]

Based on your body shape comment, the shoulder fit may be a concern. Mine is a bit tight in the shoulders, but fits absolutely perfect everywhere else. Not constricting, but snug.

I could probably have squeezed into a L/XL, but I got a size up from that to make sure there's plenty of room for my chest & shoulders. Plus, I want max flexibility in terms of mobility as well as undergarment thickness. I'm hoping the "skin" will take up any slack, that's certainly something I like about the Fusion design.

Did you check out the black friday sale at DRIS? The Tech package comes with the MK2 unders.

Yup, this is what I ordered. (The same deal for Fusions has been going all month.) Hopefully I'll be receiving it next week.

 

[kmurray719]

I could probably have squeezed into a L/XL, but I got a size up from that to make sure there's plenty of room for my chest & shoulders. Plus, I want max flexibility in terms of mobility as well as undergarment thickness. I'm hoping the "skin" will take up any slack, that's certainly something I like about the Fusion design.
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Wearing a size up in the Fusion should not be a problem at all. I'm technically a S/M, but on the very top edge of the sizing. When I was wearing rental suits (Bullets) I often chose the L/XL instead for the increased mobility and ease of donning. Other than the sleeves being a tad long and there being some wrinkles in the leg material, it was never a problem. They dove exactly the same.

 

[altaskier]

I got a Fusion with both the Bullet and Sport skins. I end up using only the Sport skin all the time now. This is for diving on Lake Michigan wrecks (though I don't do penetration beyond an entry room), in quarries, Bonne Terre mine, in California, in Croatia... After 3 years and 70 dives the suit looks almost new. If I had the Tech skin I might use that but to me the Bullet skin is a bit heavy and takes a long time to dry, especially when traveling.

 

[SanDiegoSidemount]

Finally got my Fusion Tech + MK2 from DRIS, and it seems pretty sweet. The snug feeling from the stretch skin is very unusual for a drysuit, very wetsuit-like.

I'm excited to see how it feels in the water. Hopefully this will be after Christmas, weather permitting. Going to check it all out in the pool first, get my weight & trim dialed and make sure it's leak free.

Anyone have advice about the SiTech Antares dry glove setup I got as part of Whites end-of-year special? It's debatable whether the water is cold enough around here for me to bother with it, but dry gloves are totally new to me.

 

[ginge]

I just got them for my suit.
I have the Fusion with both a bullet and a sport skin. Sport for travelling and Bullet for UK dives.
Because I have the SLT wrist and neck seal option my suit was already set up for the Antares glove system but I still did a lot of research.
I spoke to the UK dealer and he sends out thousands (his words) of sets of them and he says they are good but not totally fool proof.

He also said that if someone is going to send a set back it is usually right after they receive them.

Apparently they are no good if you have very big hands and if you are not the sort of person who reads instructions and cares for their gear.

I have small hands and look after my stuff so shouldn't be a problem.
I am using them with showa barrel handling gloves and my first two dives were totally dry and comfortable.

A few pointers.

When attaching the gloves to the ring, be careful. Apparently a lot of people break the spanner rings, many of them by trying to insert the gloves from the wrong end of the ring. Follow instructions and you will be fine.
Don't get outer gloves that are too big, they should be snug over the inner glove.
Lube the joint, the kit comes with a chapstick of lube. Use it every time.
Don't get all your inner gloves and seals stuck in the tabs.
Make sure the tabs are clicked in properly, there is a recess you can push against to test that they are on properly.

I found removing them to be child's play, others have had issues, I push the drysuit stiff ring against my leg (in the long axis) and make a fist and twist my wrist. They just pop off.

One thing I fund is that I had to have a towel handy, after I had put on all my other gear (gloves last) I had wet hands and wanted to dry them before I put the dry glove system on.

I keep my gloves in an old mask box to protect the tabs and when storing them for a longer period I will be removing the stiff rings from the drysuit and leaving the two halves clicked together.

 

[SanDiegoSidemount]

Thanks for such detailed advice about the gloves!

Apparently they are no good if you have very big hands and if you are not the sort of person who reads instructions and cares for their gear.

Half of this applies to me. I have large hands, but I do take care of my gear. It does turn out to be a very tight squeeze fitting into these, especially with the full-thickness liners that come with the blue Showa gloves. I need to figure out a technique for getting them on that doesn't pop the glove off its outer ring. This has happened to me a few times in my dry-runs.

Do you use the little "equalizer" tubes under your wrist seals? How essential are they? This is one of those little items I could easily see myself losing or forgetting to install if I'm in a hurry to get in the water.

 

[jlovold]

For equalizing, as I am not very experienced with dry-gloves, although, I have 100% experience in being wet with drygloves, I used a pair of cut-off very thin woolen socks (cut off the toe-part, make a hole for the thumb, and wear it under the arm-seal.

It feels in my opinion better than latex or even silicone directly to the skin, and it takes quite some time to get really wet.
My arm was full, and the rest of the suit starts to get wet after maybe 25 mins. It was cold, but not extremly cold, even though it was a 50 min dive in 5C water, with a 20 min boatride back to shore, and I had to change to dry clothing on a quay.

 

[SanDiegoSidemount]

For equalizing, as I am not very experienced with dry-gloves, although, I have 100% experience in being wet with drygloves, I used a pair of cut-off very thin woolen socks (cut off the toe-part, make a hole for the thumb, and wear it under the arm-seal.

Hm, so you don't have any insulation on your fingers, other than the outer glove itself? What range of water temperatures?

 

[jlovold]

the sock is only for equalizing. I am of course wearing thermal gloves in addition. But it is preferable to not wear them while dressing, as they may get wet, and decrease your feel.

 

[ginge]

Yeah, I used the little tubes, it wasn't too much of a faff.
It was quite an odd sensation feeling a squeeze on your hands, adding a little squirt of air to the suit and having the squeeze go...

I have seen a lot of people say that they put the cuff of their undersuit between their wrist and the seal to let the air travel into the glove, if your gloves goes wet you could poke it back in I suppose...