Pinnacle Drysuit?

[DoItRite]

DoItRite, I think I know who you are, so don't read anything personal into this.

Here is an LDS retailer. Recommending a suit they sell, but do not own, and have not had in the water. Now this gentleman may well be as honest as a saint, and probably is, but it sets off alarms in a buyer's mind.

Now here is something I don't understand. I can walk into a Porsche dealership and look at Porsches. I can walk into a Ferrari, or Lambroghini dealership and look at their wares. I can even walk into a DUI dealer and see their suits despite the fact they cost twice as much if not more. But I cannot walk into the Pinnacle dealer near me, and expect to see even ONE Pinnacle drysuit. Does that strike anyone else as odd?

To be fair, the Pinnacle representive posting here has contacted me privately with some very encouraging news about seeing one of the drysuits locally. I will most certainly take him up on that offer. I hope the suit is as nice as everyone is saying. If it is, I'll buy one this fall.

But the LDS/Customer is put in an awkward positon. The dealer doesn't want to put a $1k+ product on the shelf that won't sell. The customer doesn't want to order a $1k+ product that s/he can't look over first. Something of a catch-22.

I agree with you that it isn't the best way for consumers to see a product. For the most part, in this area, drysuit sales and promotion come from tesimonials. My opinions about the Pinnacle suit come based on my knowlege of the company that is making them. I have been trying to get 2 of Pinnacle's newest drysuits for a while now, for just that reason. (Granted, one is for a person at the store who rarely dives and definitely doesn't need a drysuit.) But, at least you would be able to see the suits. We've been a Dive Rite dealer for a while and I never once tried to get a Dive Rite suit in the store. Frankly, I've never wanted to have a drysuit hanging on the racks. The previous store I worked at was a DUI dealer. We sold 5 custom suits and decided that we would stock 2 TLS suits. No one so much as blinked at them. We decided to rent them out. Two guys from New England called, wanted to rent them. They did so, but never dove them because the water was too warm. Thus, that shop spent nearly 2 grand for nothing more than decorations. However, when I spoke with Pinnacle about the Evolution 2, I was impressed enough to get them in. I've had a couple of long conversations with the people at Pinnacle about the suits over the last handful of months and I am confident that they've made a product that they are proud of. Plus, I am comfortable that if their were a problem with the suit, they would stand behind it completely. Hope that clears things up. Also as for the question about DIR- my SN is a tongue in cheek satire of DIR. There are some things about Dive Rite that seem to get on the nerves of DIR people. If I had a philosophy, I'd call it Doing it Mostly Right (DIMmeR), Doing What Works (DW2), Doing it Better (DIBs), or simply I'm Going To Die Because I'm Not DIR And Never Will Be (IGTDBINDANWB)

 

[PerroneFord]

LOL!!!

Good to see you have a sense of humor. Much needed around here sometimes! I have absolutely no qualms about the fact the Pinnacle suit will be well made. I own some pinnacle neoprene, and am very pleased with it. My TRUE concern comes in the cut. I would be characterized as "husky". It's not that I have a huge belly, I never have. But I am very broad in the shoulders and chest, and through the hips. Many suits wet and dry seem to be cut to accomodate a different build.

I was VERY interested when I saw Rick Murcar and Curt Bowen, and seeing what they were wearing. They are both stocky, muscular men who don't fit the common mold. So we'll have to see how the Pinnacle is cut.

I do understand about getting "decorations" into the shop, but to be honest, can those suits not be sent back to the manufactuer as "new" or "demo" and the shop recoup most of their investment? Hell, even if you EBay it, it's not like the shop is just going to eat $2k on a DUI.

 

[WaterDawg]

can those suits not be sent back to the manufactuer as "new" or "demo" and the shop recoup most of their investment? Hell, even if you EBay it, it's not like the shop is just going to eat $2k on a DUI.

Few manufacturers will let you do that, some just on a promotional basis, We had some soft pack BC's that we wanted to trade for another size and we were SOL. Can you sell it on EBAY? Only if they say you can in the original dealer agreement.

 

[PerroneFord]

Well, if they won't take it back, who gives a crap what they say?

See, I could never run a dive shop. If the manufactuer gives me stuff to sell for them and I don't have to front the money, then they can dictate how I sell it. If I have to pay dealer cost and put it in my shop, then I'll sell it how I please. If they don't like it, they can pound sand.

 

[DoItRite]

Well, the problem is that once you say "f--k you" to a manufacturer, they stop giving you dealer pricing. There are companies that I absolutely love dealing with and companies that I can't stand. Pinnacle and Dive Rite (and I've worked at 2 stores that pretty much cover all the brands) are really good to work with and I'll never intentionally do anything to piss them off. As for a "husky" cut, I know how you are built and I know a guy (we call him "Tiny") and he has to have a custom suit (had to cut the sleeves out of his undergarment if I remember correctly). Most people like a custom suit anyway (I'm pretty much a standard Large, but I still went custom).

 

[DoItRite]

I just realized I was logged in on my old account... this is DoItRite

 

[PerroneFord]

Ok,

So does Pinnacle do a custom Evo2? And should I dare ask how much that is gonna be?

 

[seahep]

I have just recently purchased the Pinnacle Evolution. My wife and I went into our LDS to purchase Bare Nex Gen's. (first time purchasing dry) Well off the rack sizes wouldn't fit my wife so she went with a custom fit Bare HD. I on the other hand was going to stay with the Nex Gen. The owner however suggested I look at the Pinnacle Dry Suit, (I've never heard of them), he ended up ordering one that was my size and another one just for show in the shop. He stated that when they got to the shop if I didn't like it I didn't have to buy it, as he was convinced they would sell anyway. Once it arrived I was blown away by the way it looked and the way it was constructed, it felt almost bullet proof, I was just hopeing it would fit. It did and I bought it. I've dived with it just once so far (wow what an experience), and loved the suit (skill level needs some work). The suspenders are a little tight, but other then that, the pocket seems large enough for anything that I would ever put in it, it comes with a D ring attached to the left leg as well as a little knife pocket. It's a sweet lookin suit that performs alot better then I do in it. (for now)
So if there is a shop or customer looking for a fairly inexpensive, well built, excellent warrenteed suit to dive dry, I would stongly recommend the Pinnacle Evolution.

 

[PerroneFord]

Did you buy an Evolution or ane Evolution 2? Is it back-zip or front-zip.

 

[seahep]

Did you buy an Evolution or ane Evolution 2? Is it back-zip or front-zip.

I got the Evolution rear entry, at the time my LDS didn't have anything else as an option from Pinnacle. I always dive with a buddy so self donning wasn't a priority.