Seal vs. Santi vs. Fourth Element

[Jens Bölte]

I had the chance to see some drysuits at the Boot show in January this year. I looked at Seal, Fourth Element and Santi drysuits. The advice was of varying quality. At the Seal stand they just told me to take my measurements and send them the measurements. The nearest dealer is relatively far away by German standards. Fourth Element was better in that they explained the benefits of the suit and took the photo for the measurements. Santi was the best in terms of advice. I even tried on two suits of different sizes and they took some measurements. The Santi fit quite well without any adjustments. I do not know how much better a made-to-measure suit (Seal, Fourth Element) will fit.
My LDS can order all three brands but has no experience with Seal. So at the moment I am leaning towards a Santi or a Fourth Element, but I would love to get your opinion on these suits. What are the pros and cons based on your experience. I use the suit here in the lake, sometimes in the sea and more often in caves/mines, nothing too tight. So I look forward to your comments.

Thanks in advance Jens

 

[hedonist222]

Why not the Avatar 102?

 

[Jens Bölte]

Why not the Avatar 102?

The standard sizes do not fit me. I need some size adjustments for a proper fit. Santi sze M fits quite ok, but the torso is too short, arms too long, chest too wide, biceps too wide.

Best wishes Jens

 

[Sascha314]

I am right now waiting for my Santi. They change up to 5 sizes each up to 5cm for no cost. Thats at least true for the official shops.

As they have lots of generic size combos you should be able to get the proper size with it.
Originally I also wanted to look for a cheaper alternative ... but size matters.
The shop/person where I bought this and the size was measured was actually I believe at Boot / SANTI.
Its my first, so pretty hard for me to judge whats right. I feel comfortable with my LDS and also it suits to the diving activities I may want to pursue. So no real comparisson, but just make a comment to the proper fit possibilities with santi

 

[DiveLikeAMuppet]

Ask about warranty repairs with Santi - do you have to send the suit back to Poland, local service centre, what’s the turnaround time? I have few horror stories (with batteries, not a drysuit) and wouldn’t buy a Santi product again.

 

[Jens Bölte]

Ask about warranty repairs with Santi - do you have to send the suit back to Poland, local service centre, what’s the turnaround time? I have few horror stories (with batteries, not a drysuit) and wouldn’t buy a Santi product again.

The shop I want to buy one of the suits from is a Santi and Fourth Element dealer. The shop can order Seal suits, but has never done so before. Seal suits do not seem to be very popular in Germany. I haven't seen a diver with a Seal suit in Germany. On my last holiday in Mexico I saw a few divers with Seal suits, more with Santi, none with Fourth Element.

Best wishes Jens

 

[DiveLikeAMuppet]

The shop I want to buy one of the suits from is a Santi and Fourth Element dealer. The shop can order Seal suits, but has never done so before. Seal suits do not seem to be very popular in Germany. I haven't seen a diver with a Seal suit in Germany. On my last holiday in Mexico I saw a few divers with Seal suits, more with Santi, none with Fourth Element.

Best wishes Jens

Just ask how they handle warranty - if your zip breaks 1 week in (Santi uses plastic) - can they repair it locally or does your suit need to go to Poland for few weeks? If it goes to Poland, how long does service take? Same for Fourth Element and Seal. Decide based on that - dive gear breaks all the time.

But I just might be spoiled in the UK, we have Otter and Othree locally (and few others) so repairs are usually not a big deal.

 

[Jens Bölte]

Just ask how they handle warranty - if your zip breaks 1 week in (Santi uses plastic) - can they repair it locally or does your suit need to go to Poland for few weeks? If it goes to Poland, how long does service take? Same for Fourth Element and Seal. Decide based on that - dive gear breaks all the time.

But I just might be spoiled in the UK, we have Otter and Othree locally (and few others) so repairs are usually not a big deal.

That is a fair point. The shop offers repairs and is a Santi service center.

Best wishes Jens

 

[Wibble]

Love my Santi Elite+, now, and it is by far and away the best quality drysuit I've seen.

It was a MTM suit, measured by the supplier. The first one was too wide across the shoulders and Santi made another new suit for me which fits perfectly. This was good customer service.

Looked at and passed over Fourth Element as not in the same league as Santi. Especially in the quality, pockets and drygloves.

 

[JMBL]

Owner of a Santi E-Space for several years now. Very satisfied with it, but it only proves my experience was good, hard to make a rule out of one example. Anyway...

@Jens Bölte "I do not know how much better a made-to-measure suit" => all depending of your shape, if you're "standard" or not. I'm not, so I chose a made-to-measure suit and do not regret it. For reference sake, I'm closer to this guy, than the average diver.

@DiveLikeAMuppet "if your zip breaks 1 week in (Santi uses plastic)" : my suit was fitted with a metal zipper, and has been fitted with a new metal one about a year ago. In both occurrence, I was given the choice, so you're either mistaken (it happens, no harm in that) or Santi changed its policy very recently.

As far as repairs are concerned, when you're a Santi owner (in France at least), you've got the choice to send it back to Poland, or use the services of a local accredited LDS. There are several in the E.U.