Product Review: BARE XCS2 "Tech Dry" Drysuit

[Deep South Divers]

Yeah, Halcyon (exclusive US importer and repair facility for SANTI suits) mirrored your sentiments... Which frankly has me a bit worried. DUI doesn't like them either, and refuses to put them on their CF200, which is the classic crushed neoprene suit... And a mainstay in commercial diving. It's also the reason why I bought an XCS2 and not a CF200 this last time.

...So I hear your sentiments a lot... It's just been counter to what I've found, and I wish I knew why.

I will tell you that I only put maybe 150 dives on a suit equipped with a TiZip... After that, the manufacturers all recommended the YKK plastic zip (which appear to me to be identical except for the zipper pull and the top end under the fabric). I've never personally seen an issue with either.

To the best of my knowledge, all my guys equipped with drysuits also have YKK's.

 

[ScubaSteve858]

Bare suit. Installed new from factory, replaced under warranty from Bare (twice).....

I could list others from my boat as well, but the above reference is my personal experience on a suit that was babied (stored well, not used on the aggressive dives, and taken care of well).

Im not alone. The plastic zippers are hit or miss and MANY, MANY repair places are stating so at this point. I have 2 other suits, including one with a metal zipper that is 5 years old and when I was shopping around for a replacement...2 VERY well respected repair places told me to stay away from plastic. One of these two was singing plastics praises 2 years prior.

Look - my sample size is only my boat and me....so I know that there are others out there with more experience.....but with that being said - Im done with them....and so are many others up this way.

I think the number one cause of leaks and frustration with plastic zips is improper lubrication. I'm not saying this is the case with you, but I will share my experience in hopes it helps you or someone else. When I first got my Bare with YKK plastic ZIP it was dry for the first couple of dive then started leaking on my hip by zipper dock. I was lubricating it as I had watched on you tube instead of reading the directions. I rubbed that wax all over the zipper and put it thick around the dock. After talking to the BARE suit techs they advised me to wipe all of the wax/lube I could off and start by applying a very small amount of the provided zipper lube (chapstick looking stuff) to the dock and make sure to store closed. I have not had a leak since. I only lube the dock once every couple of months and dive once a week. The trick to plastic zips is the opposite of metal ones. MINIMAL LUBE NEEDED. I have over 40 dives now always dry...

 

[Deep South Divers]

Good point, ScubaSteve!

My YKK plastic zips always come with a little tube of silicone. I don't use the Chapstik stuff... Just a drop of silicone "gel" in the very center crotch of the dock every 10 dives or so. I then use my finger to smear it around on the raised edges of the dock... Basically everywhere the rubber dock touches the zipper head. No more, no less. I keep mine wet and shiny... When it starts to look a little dry and dull, I'll add just enough silicone to make it wet and shiny again... Kinda like you'd do for any o-ring.

Other than that, the zipper requires no lubricant.

Daily I rinse my suit while I'm wearing it, since I'm usually diving saltwater. I'll spend extra time rinsing the exhaust valve to make sure salt crystals don't form. It then gets doffed and thrown into a bin in the back of my truck.

When I get home I hang it on a drysuit hanger to dry overnight in the garage. Generally it's dry in the morning, even though I'm in Georgia, where the humidity is 5000%.

Before I throw it back in the bin for the day's diving, I'll hit the neck seal (latex) with the talc bag that every BARE drysuit comes with. I talc both sides liberally and don't worry about getting talc everywhere. Takes all of 4 or 5 seconds, and prevents neck seal failure. I kinda just pat it and smear it around. I don't use wrist seals, so they're not there to worry about.

As I throw it back in the bin, I look to make sure my dock is shiny. That simple. If it's not, I'll add a drop of goo to it.

No leaks. No neck seal failure. A breeze to get in and out of. Simple.

 

[rick00001967]

is it true the front zip version is no longer avail ? i wonder if it is due to the pending release of the Sentry ?