Santi vs DUI: a new drysuit choice

[Lemna]

I went to the website, Steve, and I can't for the life of me find any information about what that stuff is made of. Is it fleece-based, Hollofil, or Thinsulate, and can it be washed?

As a side note, I wish undergarment designers would realize that the ability to reach one's car keys without having to remove the entire suit is a very nice feature. Putting the pockets where O'Three has done requires getting at least the top of the suit off for many designs.

It's a fleece called Polarpro. I agree on the car key pocket: Whites got it wrong as well on their Thermal Fusion. Santi undersuits are much better designed in this regard.

 

[HenrikBP]

As a date point: I spent most of the first year of DUI ownership shipping my FLX suit back and forth to DUI to fix mistakes made in the manufacturing. And now 2 years into ownership the stitching is going on the cover zipper. Just disappointing.

As a side note, I wish undergarment designers would realize that the ability to reach one's car keys without having to remove the entire suit is a very nice feature. Putting the pockets where O'Three has done requires getting at least the top of the suit off for many designs.

I agree. I also wonder about the placement of the hole for routing the P-valve hose. How would you go about running the hose from the valve through a hole at the top of the thigh of the undies ...??? I guess it depends on whether you route "up" or "down". I and most people I know route "up", in which case the hole in the undies should be at waist level. I realize on the PPB+ you could just leave the bottom of the front zipper open and route "up" that way.

 

[sffrenchman]

I have a Santi elite and I am very happy with it. Very well made, rugged, well designed pockets, great boots, no leak so far. Would highly recommend it.

 

[OceanEdge Outfitters]

I knew you would like your SANTI Drysuit

My first dry suit was a Whites, then came a couple DUI TLS's, test dives in a Flex Extreme and a Fusion. I now a own a Santi.
When I priced a DUI Flex Extreme with all the options that the Santi comes stock with I was within a few dollars.
I'll just say my Santi is a very comfortable suit to dive.

Hi Scott,

We are very happy to here that your new SANTI E.Motion is very comfortable, thanks for sharing!

Don't forget to register for the SANTI Stay Dry Club:



Stay DRY, Dive SANTI!

 

[Xaryo]

How does each Santi model ( e. Lite, e . Motion...) compares to other known models and brand in term of material?

 

[beester]

I own 2 drysuits.

DUI CF200: Used to be my main suit. Has about 230 dives on it and still going strong. Only recently replaced the seals, the zip is still ok. I'm using it at the moment for North Sea wreckdiving and shore entries where I'll be in touch during entry and exit with alot of sharp stuff (rocks, oysters). Only real problem so far has been that I had leaks on the socks where the heel and front rub against the rockboot (fixed with aquaseal), and in the beginning the deflator valve leaked (also solved).

SANTI E-MOTION: Got it last november 15. Have done about 25 dives on it. Primary use is quaries, caves, etc. I'm sure it's less durable than the CF200, but man what a flexibility. The cut is very nice, it's very light, the zipper is unbelievable, the pockets are as I want them (big enough, already mounted bungees, no D-ring), flex-soles. Very happy and dry.

In my circles I see alot of DUI and SANTI dry-suits, some Waterproof, Bare, etc. Most people have only experience with 1 suit, maybe 2 (like me). These things are expensive and last a longtime, so we are all a bit biased, me too . However I know that SANTI does listen to customers. They've been trying to establish their brand and at least in Europe it's becoming a succes. I think because they listen to customers. I know that the fit of their espace wasn't that good in the beginning and the standard boots on it resembled the ill-fitting dry-suit boots we all know and hate. But they changed that, came up with the flex-soles. The pockets on the e-lite where in the beginning not so durable, if I look at my pockets on the e-motion I notice they already changed that, they are know improved with the same material the e-lite is made of.

So they listen to their customer-base, the people using it... instead of the marketeers. That's good in my book!

Obviously there are alot of good suits in different price-ranges. And depending on your needs some will match better than others, but at least for me the E-motion is a good fit .

 

[Ulfhedinn]

I would purchase a Santi Hands down... except I'm a little frustrated with the price markup in the states. I have a friend in both Poland and Ireland and both have told me they can purchase the Elite for $2650 American dollars custom made? So why does it cost $3450 Custom made in the states?

 

[rjack321]

I would purchase a Santi Hands down... except I'm a little frustrated with the price markup in the states. I have a friend in both Poland and Ireland and both have told me they can purchase the Elite for $2650 American dollars custom made? So why does it cost $3450 Custom made in the states?

Because we're not in the EU, there's a big ocean to ship them over, and people are buying them at that price...

 

[Xaryo]

What is the difference between the E. Lite and E. motion.

It is not very clear from the website. (Or I'm not looking at the right place)

 

[Dsix36]

What is the difference between the E. Lite and E. motion.

It is not very clear from the website. (Or I'm not looking at the right place)

It looks to me that the E Lite is made out of thicker stuff and is heavier duty than the E Motion.