Review Seaskin Nova drysuit

[Boarderguy]

Honestly my only real complaint is the zipper length and the lack of pull tab on the outer zipper.

I took some 550 cord and made my own pull tabs. There is no way I could reach those damn things myself AND manipulate them open or closed. I believe the style is a cobra braid and is very simple to do. I tied mine on directly to the zip pulls, but you can do yours with a small loop that you can then thread through the pull after making it. For the dry zip I braided over their pathetic little pull and when I close the zip cover I just tuck that braid up and under it. They are both super easy to grab and a simple shoulder shrug/flip gets them to where I can grab it.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Finally got it wet. So here goes my review...
The good:

made to measure. The suit fits. In places it almost fits too well. If I gain any weight on the legs I worry it will get too tight. I still feel the telescopic portion is huge. Under water I don't notice it though.

Price: the price for me was about the same as my entry level bare suit with no frills. My suit has most of the options.

Colors: I love the color mix. It stands out and I got lots of compliments. I got called Captain America and Superman. Its nice not to be just in black

Options: there are almost too many options. I got a good selection of them. Some of them are kubi with replaceable seals, two Velcro expedition pockets, replaceable neck seal, pee valve, knee/but/shoulder reinforcements, extra wide braces, socks. I am sure there are more. A base suit would have been nice but with all the customization you truly can make the suit your own.

Socks: I love socks. The boots on my bare suit were huge. With socks I am able to wear shoes/boots and tighten them down. No more floating feet.


The bad
I don't like the entry zipper. It seems smaller than my bare suit and is a bit of a squeeze. This may be me being nit picky but I just feel its a tad to short.
The outer zip does not have a pull tab. This is a small thing but I literally can't get a grip on the zipper when it is fully open. The main zipper has a small leather pull on it. Wish the outer zipper had it.

Pee valve: I haven't hooked it up to my...but the hose is uncomfortable. They changed from the rubber hose to a different harder hose and it doesn't flex well when stored. I think they did it to avoid having it collapse but it is uncomfortable to me.

Options: I know I said this was a good thing, but there are almost too many options. And trying to figure out the difference was a pain. Seaskin did a great job trying to explain it, but it's almost like buy a suit and then on the next change the things you want.

Computer straps: the computer straps aren't long enough. With my perdix I can't get both straps through the retaining straps built into the suit. Just wish they where longer

Overall this suit is a dream. It fits well and I am not an off the shelf shape. Big in the center and short everywhere else. The socks really are a game changer for me. The color options are amazing. Honestly my only real complaint is the zipper length and the lack of pull tab on the outer zipper. The other BAD stuff are little complaints that would make it more perfect.
Please note the look on my face is cause I missed the first dive. Got all suited up and my lips started going numb. Had to trim my neck seal. Also had the left seal pop off getting dressed so didn't get a chance to burp the suit until I was in the water.

In regards to the zipper pull I bought some on Amazon for pretty cheap. All kinds of different ones. Someone on here had posted a picture with a ball pull tab, he said via pm that it came with his suit. Maybe they're supposed to come that way and the last guy on the line forgets?.. idk.

As for getting into the suit.. it is tight, or at least it seemed that way in the beginning. I'm almost certain there's a bit of a break in period where the suit becomes less stiff. I remember thinking they made the cut too small, but after being really careful and taking my time it doesn't feel that way anymore. Now I can suit up in about 5 minutes no problem.. down from probably 15 or so. It just slips right on and my zipper protector brace is still in tact and I haven't lost any weight (or if I did I found it again pretty quickly).

Congrats... it's an awesome suit. I get a little flack for it being an inexpensive suit, but I don't mind. I like being the underdog, lol.. and I give it just as good to the more "expensive" (overpriced) suit guys, lol. All in good fun!!

 

[berndo]

I get a little flack for it being an inexpensive suit, but I don't mind. I like being the underdog, lol.. and I give it just as good to the more "expensive" (overpriced) suit guys, lol. All in good fun!!

Seaskin aren't really 'cheap' suits. They're likely more expensive than Santi and many others, as making stuff in Poland is cheaper than making stuff in the UK.
Santi sells to a distributer (or at least used to) and than to a store and both make money too. You get a good price because you're cutting out the middle man.

BTW: Santi's used to be 1000 bucks and people used to call them the cheap DUI knock-offs from Poland. As they got more popular they, they raised the prices step by step.

When you're getting flag, you can tell the people the they just paid people a couple of grand to open a box, help fill out the order and facebook marketing... the suits are basically they same price.

 

[admikar]

Seaskin aren't really 'cheap' suits. They're likely more expensive than Santi and many others, as making stuff in Poland is cheaper than making stuff in the UK.
Santi sells to a distributer (or at least used to) and than to a store and both make money too. You get a good price because you're cutting out the middle man.

BTW: Santi's used to be 1000 bucks and people used to call them the cheap DUI knock-offs from Poland. As they got more popular they, they raised to prices step by step.

When you're getting flag, you can tell the people the they just paid people a couple of grand to open a box, help fill out the order and facebook marketing... the suits are basically they same price.

I am definitely stealing this to show whenever Santi guys start giving me grief.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Seaskin aren't really 'cheap' suits. They're likely more expensive than Santi and many others, as making stuff in Poland is cheaper than making stuff in the UK.
Santi sells to a distributer (or at least used to) and than to a store and both make money too. You get a good price because you're cutting out the middle man.

BTW: Santi's used to be 1000 bucks and people used to call them the cheap DUI knock-offs from Poland. As they got more popular they, they raised to prices step by step.

When you're getting flag, you can tell the people the they just paid people a couple of grand to open a box, help fill out the order and facebook marketing... the suits are basically they same price.

I have a buddy who has a brand new Santi. We're both secretly hoping the others falls apart so we know who made the better choice, LOL.

His does look like they took more time on the different seams and the overall craftsmanship. I don't see $2000 more, but it looks to be of higher quality. I do envy his nice duffel bag. That thing is sweet (still not $2k sweet).

That's just my observation with my novice eye. He jokes all the time that the fancy bag and nice dive boots were "free". We're both dry.. so only time will tell.

I love my suit. I love the fact that I'll get it dirty and actually dive it as opposed to trying to keep it squeaky clean. It's a tool that works very well for the job it was built for.

 

[stuartv]

I would just tie some thin bungee through the zipper to pull it with.

 

[JoeTPhilly]

What should one wear when getting measured? I saw the video and the guy had on pants. It seems the fit of the pants could mess up the measurements. I was thinking of just wearing a thin base layer. What did you all wear?

 

[Td9984]

I can't remember if I wore t-shirt and jeans or t-shirt and sweatpants the only place that it really mattered much was the crotch to floor measurement and that specifically tells you how to do it it's not the most comfortable measurement ever if I remember correctly it involved taking a credit card placing it between the legs and shoving the credit card up i as far up as you can get it

 

[Boarderguy]

What should one wear when getting measured? I saw the video and the guy had on pants. It seems the fit of the pants could mess up the measurements. I was thinking of just wearing a thin base layer. What did you all wear?

The measuring instructions tell your what to wear. A normal pair of loose fitting jeans (not the hipster little girl skin tight style) and a normal t-shirt is what I remember. Don't pull any measurement tight, just make sure it isn't drooping.

 

[JoeTPhilly]

The measuring instructions tell your what to wear. A normal pair of loose fitting jeans (not the hipster little girl skin tight style) and a normal t-shirt is what I remember. Don't pull any measurement tight, just make sure it isn't drooping.

Thanks. I saw the guy wearing jeans in the video and thought it was kind of odd but I guess that is the way to go. I wear loose jeans so it is going to add some room to the suit and was worried.