Review Seaskin Nova drysuit

[rob.mwpropane]

Update! I did my first two dives in my nova on Sunday at the breakwater in Monterey, CA. It was a successful day!

The Good:

• No leaks! Seals worked great for me without needing any trimming (Sitech oval system)
• the 250 thinsulate undergarment kept me comfortably warm. Water temp 53-58 degrees F so it wasn't a cold day.
• Having the suit and undergarment down at half worked well to prevent overheating on surface interval (temp was around 70 f and sunny)
• The Expedition pocket was awesome - easy to open with 5mm gloves, but secure
• the Trilobyte eezycut tool proved helpful in trimming my hood opening
• Easy to don and doff*

The not as good:

• *Needed buddy help for the last few inches of zipper at times, especially the zipper cover
• The hood's face opening was very small and needed trimming to not push against my mask and reg
• My suit looks baggier around the knees than the other dry suits I'm seeing and it feels baggy there. I have the kevlar knee pads which may attribute to this.
• Still working on weights and buoyancy - first dive I felt overweighted so dropped 3 lbs for the second dive, which was great until the end of the dive when we were in about 20 ft of water and I had a hard time staying down even after fully dumping air from my bcd and doing the "tuck and vent" in the drysuit. I surfaced, then went back down as we swam to shore and didn't have a problem. Air pocket stuck somewhere unable to vent?
• During the surface interval, the 250 thinsulate was super hot if I didn't have it down to half. Definitely have to wait until it is go time to put it on fully.
• I used Apeks RK3 HDs + rock boots and still felt some floaty feet.

Overall: works! Was comfy, temp wise. The fit will take some getting used to, as will the buoyancy, but I think that's more a diver thing than a suit thing. Feels like it'll be a few more dives before I bring my camera out while wearing this suit.

DUI vs Seaskin
My buddy was diving with her custom DUI drysuit and had issues with leaking on the first dive and a wrist seal breaking before the second. She didn't have an extra DUI zipseal with her and the shop nearby didn't carry any so she ended up renting a wetsuit for the second dive then buying new wrist seals ($100 for a pair) afterwards. Made me glad the Seaskin nova has the replaceable seal system it has!

Refresh my non existent memory.. are you coming from another drysuit into this one or from wetsuit?

 

[stuartv]

Update! I did my first two dives in my nova on Sunday at the breakwater in Monterey, CA. It was a successful day!

The Good:

• No leaks! Seals worked great for me without needing any trimming (Sitech oval system)
• the 250 thinsulate undergarment kept me comfortably warm. Water temp 53-58 degrees F so it wasn't a cold day.
• Having the suit and undergarment down at half worked well to prevent overheating on surface interval (temp was around 70 f and sunny)
• The Expedition pocket was awesome - easy to open with 5mm gloves, but secure
• the Trilobyte eezycut tool proved helpful in trimming my hood opening
• Easy to don and doff*

The not as good:

• *Needed buddy help for the last few inches of zipper at times, especially the zipper cover
• The hood's face opening was very small and needed trimming to not push against my mask and reg
• My suit looks baggier around the knees than the other dry suits I'm seeing and it feels baggy there. I have the kevlar knee pads which may attribute to this.
• Still working on weights and buoyancy - first dive I felt overweighted so dropped 3 lbs for the second dive, which was great until the end of the dive when we were in about 20 ft of water and I had a hard time staying down even after fully dumping air from my bcd and doing the "tuck and vent" in the drysuit. I surfaced, then went back down as we swam to shore and didn't have a problem. Air pocket stuck somewhere unable to vent?
• During the surface interval, the 250 thinsulate was super hot if I didn't have it down to half. Definitely have to wait until it is go time to put it on fully.
• I used Apeks RK3 HDs + rock boots and still felt some floaty feet.

Overall: works! Was comfy, temp wise. The fit will take some getting used to, as will the buoyancy, but I think that's more a diver thing than a suit thing. Feels like it'll be a few more dives before I bring my camera out while wearing this suit.

DUI vs Seaskin
My buddy was diving with her custom DUI drysuit and had issues with leaking on the first dive and a wrist seal breaking before the second. She didn't have an extra DUI zipseal with her and the shop nearby didn't carry any so she ended up renting a wetsuit for the second dive then buying new wrist seals ($100 for a pair) afterwards. Made me glad the Seaskin nova has the replaceable seal system it has!

Congratulations!

My Seaskin hood also needs substantial trimming to open up the face area. I guess they make the opening small to accommodate various size of faces and letting each person customize their own fit.

Personally, I have never gotten around to bothering, so I've had my Seaskin hood for a while but never used it. My Waterproof H1 (no skirt) and Bare Ultrawarmth (no skirt) hoods have both been very good performers.

As the suit material breaks in, it should get easier to manage the last bit of zipper. But, also, do lube the zipper liberally. If it's plastic, a small blob inside and out on the dock end (where the pull is when the zipper is closed), as well as a dot on the teeth on both sides every 10cm or so. Then work the zipper open and closed a few times.

Managing the air inside and getting it all out when you're trying to hold a shallow stop is certainly an acquired skill. That same skill will likely help tame your floaty feet, at least somewhat.

 

[Bernhelm]

Refresh my non existent memory.. are you coming from another drysuit into this one or from wetsuit?

This is my first drysuit - I'm used to diving in an 8/7 Aqualung Solafx Semidry.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

This is my first drysuit - I'm used to diving in an 8/7 Aqualung Solafx Semidry.

Awesome.. welcome. There's some growing pains but by dive 10-15 you'll be light years beyond where you are now.

 

[MrVegas]

I'm thinking about ordering a Seaskin for a new suit. I guess I had a few questions for those who have done it before:

1. What size pocket would you recommend? I don't need to carry tons of stuff, but want them big enough for a backup mask at least.
2. How long are they currently taking to get to the U.S.? (Don't necessarily have to have it until beginning of next season in March or April.)
3. I currently have Sci-Tech valves on my suit. I assume the Apeks also take the standard inflator hose, but just wanted to check.
4. Any concerns with combining colors and stitching\gluing? Maybe a weird question. I guess I am asking if getting black\blue as opposed to all black increases the odds of have a seam somewhere that will leak. (I assume not -- but I would like to maximize the odds of actually staying all dry.)

Thanks!

 

[rob.mwpropane]

I'm thinking about ordering a Seaskin for a new suit. I guess I had a few questions for those who have done it before:

1. What size pocket would you recommend? I don't need to carry tons of stuff, but want them big enough for a backup mask at least.

No one ever wished they had smaller pockets. I opted for zippers as opposed to velcro.

2. How long are they currently taking to get to the U.S.? (Don't necessarily have to have it until beginning of next season in March or April.)

Figure 3 months

3. I currently have Sci-Tech valves on my suit. I assume the Apeks also take the standard inflator hose, but just wanted to check.

I have been told stick with Si-tech. Tried and true, and you can add heat at a later date (I think a little easier as opposed to Apeks?)

4. Any concerns with combining colors and stitching\gluing? Maybe a weird question. I guess I am asking if getting black\blue as opposed to all black increases the odds of have a seam somewhere that will leak. (I assume not -- but I would like to maximize the odds of actually staying all dry.)

Thanks!

The suit, afaik, would be built the same way, seams in the same spot... so colors don't really matter. I got all black because I don't really like the shade of blue they offer, but that's all personal.

****I have not actually received my suit yet, but I have read this entire thread and have had numerous conversations with people who have had them and what they would change, etc.

 

[stuartv]

I'm thinking about ordering a Seaskin for a new suit. I guess I had a few questions for those who have done it before:

1. What size pocket would you recommend? I don't need to carry tons of stuff, but want them big enough for a backup mask at least.
2. How long are they currently taking to get to the U.S.? (Don't necessarily have to have it until beginning of next season in March or April.)
3. I currently have Sci-Tech valves on my suit. I assume the Apeks also take the standard inflator hose, but just wanted to check.
4. Any concerns with combining colors and stitching\gluing? Maybe a weird question. I guess I am asking if getting black\blue as opposed to all black increases the odds of have a seam somewhere that will leak. (I assume not -- but I would like to maximize the odds of actually staying all dry.)

Thanks!

I go back and forth on pockets. I have zippered pockets on both my Seaskin suits. I really like them and am happy I have zippers. But, I have, very occasionally, wished they were bigger. They are more than big enough to hold my backup mask and wet notes in one pocket. But, they are not really big enough for a reel and SMB/lift bag. I can cram a 6' SMB and a 200' or less reel in one, but I'd have to have to take it out and then put it back in that pocket under water. Not that that is something you'd normally do.

They have much bigger pockets with a velcro flap. As much as I prefer zippered pockets, were I to order another suit, I'm not sure which way I would go. If I did get velcro flap pockets, then I would get the biggest ones they offer.

I think Si Tech and Apeks valves do not have the same size nipple on the inflator. That said, Seaskin offers an option for a different size nipple on the Apeks valve. I do not know, but it may be that that option is to give you the same size nipple as Si Tech.

Personally, I already Si Tech valves on the suit before my 1st Seaskin, so I ordered Si Tech on both my Seaskins, to be sure my reg setup would work on any of my suits with no issues.

Plus, Apeks has a low profile and a high profile dump valve. Seaskin offers both. The low profile one has a reputation for leaking. If it was totally reliable, I think they would not still offer the high profile one. I have at least one friend that got the low-pro and ended up changing to the other because of leaking. That is another reason (to ME) to go with the Si Tech valves. They just have one dump valve. It is pretty low profile, and it doesn't (generally) leak.

Lastly, as Rob mentioned, if you have a Si Tech inflator valve, the hole in the suit will be exactly the right size in case you decide to change it to a Si Tech Vega valve later, to run electricity into your suit for a heated garment. You CAN change from an Apeks inflator to a Vega valve, but it's not AS simple. Not to mention that possibility of then also needing to change your drysuit inflator hose to accommodate a different inflator nipple size.

I cannot think of ANY reason that mixing colors would make any difference to seams leaking.

 

[admikar]

Nipple size is the same, it's shape that is different. One requires you to pull sleeve on inflator to connect, the other you just push. I have Apeks valves with "normal" nipple. Not sure, but I think you can use "pull" inflator on normal nipple, but not the opposite.
Had low profile Apeks on my old suit, never had any issues with leaking. About 20 dives on my new suit and still dry (if you don't count condensation, I sweat like a pig)

 

[Boarderguy]

166 pages and only a handful of pictures... lots of good info for my suit that I'll order this weekend.

Black w/ red sleeves, zip cover, pockets
Ykk
2 zipped pockets
Neo socks
Si tech valves, DIR location
Telescope torso
Trigon or LM unbalanced pee valve (undecided)
Quick neck
Warm neck Standard
Kubi
Comfort patch
Crotch, back & shoulder reinforced
Wide brace
No logo
Bag / mat
1 trilobite
BFK mounts on inner calf
150 & 250 undies
Can't think of anything else atm...

 

[admikar]

Only thing I really don't like so far is inner compartment in expedition pockets. For some reason, Seaskin didn't put any draining holes on it.
Also, I found out if I put my computer really close to QCS rings and cinch it down it will leak.
Overall, happy with my purchase.