Overweight diver equipment
- Thread starter Hittiske
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Try different brands. As an overweight person myself I can tell you that sizing is completely different between brands. Some brands treat "2xl" as a really tall but otherwise fit person. Others treat it as a normal height person who is overweight.
For example, "BARE" is a company that doesn't make stuff for overweight people. I bought a custom sized suit from them, and the BARE person who was going to actually make the suit called the shop I ordered through to argue that the sizes "couldn't possibly be that of a human being". Eventually the shop talked bare into cutting the suit to the dimensions as measured and it fit perfectly.
Most shops only sell one or two brands of a particular product so that means you'll have to try different shops if you want to shop "in person."
For example, "BARE" is a company that doesn't make stuff for overweight people. I bought a custom sized suit from them, and the BARE person who was going to actually make the suit called the shop I ordered through to argue that the sizes "couldn't possibly be that of a human being". Eventually the shop talked bare into cutting the suit to the dimensions as measured and it fit perfectly.
Most shops only sell one or two brands of a particular product so that means you'll have to try different shops if you want to shop "in person."
Scroll down and use the dealer locator. It says you can enter a Canadian postal code, so I assume they have Canadian local shops. In the US, buying on the site still goes through a local shop.
Oh, sorry. My confusion. I doubt they have U.K. distribution.
Custom wetsuits are well worth the extra money for any diver who is not near all the 50 percentile anthropometric curves. I have only used custom wetsuits since Dick Long of DUI (a dive shop then) built my first one in 1970. I can't think of a better investment to enjoy the sport.
This is counterintuitive, but I can't recommend an unlined wetsuit more, which is the norm in freediving suits. Nylon lined wetsuits are considerably more difficult to put on when your skin and the suit are very dry -- rarely the case in the tropics. You have to use a spray bottle with a highly dilute mix of hair conditioner or liquid soap to lubricate unlined suits but they slide many times more easily than a lined suit under the best conditions.
They are also more flexible and warmer. You would think that unlined (Nylon on the outside only) would be more delicate. In practice, they are not because there is less stress when donning due to the suit lube and doff due to the greater flexibility.
This is counterintuitive, but I can't recommend an unlined wetsuit more, which is the norm in freediving suits. Nylon lined wetsuits are considerably more difficult to put on when your skin and the suit are very dry -- rarely the case in the tropics. You have to use a spray bottle with a highly dilute mix of hair conditioner or liquid soap to lubricate unlined suits but they slide many times more easily than a lined suit under the best conditions.
They are also more flexible and warmer. You would think that unlined (Nylon on the outside only) would be more delicate. In practice, they are not because there is less stress when donning due to the suit lube and doff due to the greater flexibility.
@JackD342 beat me to the punch: Try different brands of boots. This'll sound weird, but the best, longest lasting boots I got were intended for (apparently) hopping around rivers. (But they looked like dive boots to me.) I got them from LL Bean because I thought I could test their "lifetime warranty" by destroying them in a couple years' hard diving as I do most wetsuit boots. They lasted 17 years. (In fact, I still have them but rarely use them anymore.) They were also a really comfortable fit, moreso than most boots. Unfortunately, LL Bean no longer makes or markets them as far as I can tell.
So try different manufacturers: The variance in quality and fit is high in my experience.
Don't know if you can get Bare wetsuits in the UK, but if you can you might give them a try.
So try different manufacturers: The variance in quality and fit is high in my experience.
Don't know if you can get Bare wetsuits in the UK, but if you can you might give them a try.
Are Converse Chuck Taylors available in the U.K.?
I know some folks use them for drysuits, maybe they can be okay for wetsuit too, but probably not cold water. But add a 3mm neoprene sock, and you cover part of the spectrum.
I know some folks use them for drysuits, maybe they can be okay for wetsuit too, but probably not cold water. But add a 3mm neoprene sock, and you cover part of the spectrum.
I think you guys might have this thread confused with another. She's looking for a wetsuit, not booties. She is in the UK.
Damselfish
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