I've had my Seaskin Nova (trilam) drysuit for about a year and a half now. It is awesome. I decided I wanted to have another that could serve a different primary mission and also be a backup to my Nova. So, I ordered a Seaskin Ultra (compressed neoprene) at the beginning of November and received it at the beginning of January. I finally got it in the water this past weekend.
Dry Suits from Seaskin Custom Drysuits home page - Seaskin Custom Diving Suits
The primary purpose for having this suit is for diving in water temps that are not cold enough to need dry gloves. If it's cold enough to need dry gloves, I will wear my trilam and also have plenty of room underneath for thick undergarments. If it's warm enough to not need dry gloves, then I figure a compressed neoprene suit will also let me get away with minimal undergarments. I.e. I wanted to be able to use it like a wetsuit, but be dry and warmer.
I ordered this suit with less options than my trilam. No replaceable seals. But, it has neoprene seals at the neck and wrist. I got zippered thigh pockets, Kevlar knee pads, Si Tech valves, a Trigon pee valve, and custom name/flag patch on the suit and the storage bag. I also ordered it with the velcro flap to cover the main zipper, and 2 Trilobite pouches sewn to the forearms to always have a cutting device in reach of either hand. Still with trauma shears on my belt, of course. I stuck with the standard attached boots, for simplicity. Total cost was a bit under USD$900, with shipping from the UK.
I did 2 dives on Saturday. Each about 35 minutes, in water that was 50 degrees. Air temps were also in the low 50s. Max depth was 60 feet, but mostly in the 20 - 30 range. For both dives, I wore the Seaskin Tech base layer, with thin, ankle high wool socks, Bare Ultrawarmth 7mm drysuit hood, and Bare Ultrawarmth 3mm wet gloves. For the first dive, I wore thin Smartwool shirt and leggings, and expedition weight wool socks. I got pretty cold. For the second dive, I wore my Seaskin 150gsm undersuit with the Seaskin 150gsm socks. Then, I was warm, except for my hands.
The suit fits me perfectly. As did my Nova, when I got it. For both suits, I had my (now ex) g/f measure me. I was careful to read everything and watch their videos and the measuring process went smoothly and has now given me perfect results twice. For the second suit, I was concerned that I might have gotten a little "bigger" (unfortunately) since my first suit. Thus redoing the measurements.
The things I was most nervous about were the sizing of the attached boots, and the neoprene seals.
I wear size 10.5 (US) shoes, so I consulted the Internet and ordered size 44/45. The boots fit me perfectly. With my Seaskin 150gsm socks on, they are very snug. Not uncomfortably so, at all. Just right.
I wasn't too worried about the neo neck seal. But, I was really not sure how well wrist seals would work with long sleeved undergarments on underneath and nothing more that smoothskin neoprene on the inside to seal the wrists. The inside of the ends of the sleeves looks just the same as the inside of the sleeves in my wetsuits. Well, my faith in Seaskin has been rewarded. My base layer and undergarment sleeves pulled up my arm a bit as the suit sleeves went on, but not far. It seemed like there was only an inch or a bit more of the sleeve's seal that was directly against my skin. But, it worked just fine. I stayed completely dry through both my dives.
I had a Bare XCS2 Tech drysuit in the past. That is also compressed neoprene. I sold it because it did not fit me THAT well. And it had latex seals and no pockets. The neoprene on the Ultra seems like it might be a little more squishy and stretchy than the Bare was. I'm taking that as a good thing. Seaskin says the Ultra is only 3mm thick. So, even if it does compress some at depth, it's not going to be any kind of issue, I don't think.
The zipper is metal and across the back. I would definitely have preferred a plastic zipper across the front. But, I have asked Seaskin more than once and they just say they've tried it and it doesn't work well on a neo suit, so they won't do it. Oh, well. I will say that donning and doffing a suit like this is easier - as long as you have someone to zip and unzip you. And as long as you are not too big around the shoulders to fit through the opening that the zipper creates. I'm 6'1", and about 245. I carry most of my weight in my upper body. It does seem like someone much bigger than me might have trouble getting the suit opening up and down past the shoulder area - especially in really thick undies. That is, unless that have different lengths of zipper they can use, of course. I don't know about that one way or the other.
In the water, it seemed just a bit more foot-light than my Nova. I suspect that is the difference between attached boots, in this suit, which would hold more air, versus attached socks on my Nova. But, I didn't have any trouble staying in trim. I was using my Hollis F1 fins, which are 2# negative (per pair) in fresh water. I do think fins like that are a necessity for me and this suit.
Otherwise, the suit felt great in the water. It felt kind of like diving in a wetsuit. Only warmer. I never did have any feeling of a bubble running around in the suit that I was trying to manage. But, I normally only ever put enough air in my suit to take off the squeeze, and use my wing for buoyancy. It did feel like the dump valve worked really well. I was able to dump air from the suit very easily, any time, just with a little roll to lift my left shoulder. I did order the suit with Si Tech valves all around.
With only the thin wool on, I used the same weight I have used in the past with my Nova and 150gsm undies - which is to say 4# added to my rEvo CCR. After I switched to the 150gsm suit, I added 4# more to the rEvo. I didn't do any kind of formal weight check. I could just barely get down with the thin wool, so I figured 4# was a safe guesstimate after going to the thicker undies and it seemed to work just fine.
Some pictures:
Dry Suits from Seaskin Custom Drysuits home page - Seaskin Custom Diving Suits
The primary purpose for having this suit is for diving in water temps that are not cold enough to need dry gloves. If it's cold enough to need dry gloves, I will wear my trilam and also have plenty of room underneath for thick undergarments. If it's warm enough to not need dry gloves, then I figure a compressed neoprene suit will also let me get away with minimal undergarments. I.e. I wanted to be able to use it like a wetsuit, but be dry and warmer.
I ordered this suit with less options than my trilam. No replaceable seals. But, it has neoprene seals at the neck and wrist. I got zippered thigh pockets, Kevlar knee pads, Si Tech valves, a Trigon pee valve, and custom name/flag patch on the suit and the storage bag. I also ordered it with the velcro flap to cover the main zipper, and 2 Trilobite pouches sewn to the forearms to always have a cutting device in reach of either hand. Still with trauma shears on my belt, of course. I stuck with the standard attached boots, for simplicity. Total cost was a bit under USD$900, with shipping from the UK.
I did 2 dives on Saturday. Each about 35 minutes, in water that was 50 degrees. Air temps were also in the low 50s. Max depth was 60 feet, but mostly in the 20 - 30 range. For both dives, I wore the Seaskin Tech base layer, with thin, ankle high wool socks, Bare Ultrawarmth 7mm drysuit hood, and Bare Ultrawarmth 3mm wet gloves. For the first dive, I wore thin Smartwool shirt and leggings, and expedition weight wool socks. I got pretty cold. For the second dive, I wore my Seaskin 150gsm undersuit with the Seaskin 150gsm socks. Then, I was warm, except for my hands.
The suit fits me perfectly. As did my Nova, when I got it. For both suits, I had my (now ex) g/f measure me. I was careful to read everything and watch their videos and the measuring process went smoothly and has now given me perfect results twice. For the second suit, I was concerned that I might have gotten a little "bigger" (unfortunately) since my first suit. Thus redoing the measurements.
The things I was most nervous about were the sizing of the attached boots, and the neoprene seals.
I wear size 10.5 (US) shoes, so I consulted the Internet and ordered size 44/45. The boots fit me perfectly. With my Seaskin 150gsm socks on, they are very snug. Not uncomfortably so, at all. Just right.
I wasn't too worried about the neo neck seal. But, I was really not sure how well wrist seals would work with long sleeved undergarments on underneath and nothing more that smoothskin neoprene on the inside to seal the wrists. The inside of the ends of the sleeves looks just the same as the inside of the sleeves in my wetsuits. Well, my faith in Seaskin has been rewarded. My base layer and undergarment sleeves pulled up my arm a bit as the suit sleeves went on, but not far. It seemed like there was only an inch or a bit more of the sleeve's seal that was directly against my skin. But, it worked just fine. I stayed completely dry through both my dives.
I had a Bare XCS2 Tech drysuit in the past. That is also compressed neoprene. I sold it because it did not fit me THAT well. And it had latex seals and no pockets. The neoprene on the Ultra seems like it might be a little more squishy and stretchy than the Bare was. I'm taking that as a good thing. Seaskin says the Ultra is only 3mm thick. So, even if it does compress some at depth, it's not going to be any kind of issue, I don't think.
The zipper is metal and across the back. I would definitely have preferred a plastic zipper across the front. But, I have asked Seaskin more than once and they just say they've tried it and it doesn't work well on a neo suit, so they won't do it. Oh, well. I will say that donning and doffing a suit like this is easier - as long as you have someone to zip and unzip you. And as long as you are not too big around the shoulders to fit through the opening that the zipper creates. I'm 6'1", and about 245. I carry most of my weight in my upper body. It does seem like someone much bigger than me might have trouble getting the suit opening up and down past the shoulder area - especially in really thick undies. That is, unless that have different lengths of zipper they can use, of course. I don't know about that one way or the other.
In the water, it seemed just a bit more foot-light than my Nova. I suspect that is the difference between attached boots, in this suit, which would hold more air, versus attached socks on my Nova. But, I didn't have any trouble staying in trim. I was using my Hollis F1 fins, which are 2# negative (per pair) in fresh water. I do think fins like that are a necessity for me and this suit.
Otherwise, the suit felt great in the water. It felt kind of like diving in a wetsuit. Only warmer. I never did have any feeling of a bubble running around in the suit that I was trying to manage. But, I normally only ever put enough air in my suit to take off the squeeze, and use my wing for buoyancy. It did feel like the dump valve worked really well. I was able to dump air from the suit very easily, any time, just with a little roll to lift my left shoulder. I did order the suit with Si Tech valves all around.
With only the thin wool on, I used the same weight I have used in the past with my Nova and 150gsm undies - which is to say 4# added to my rEvo CCR. After I switched to the 150gsm suit, I added 4# more to the rEvo. I didn't do any kind of formal weight check. I could just barely get down with the thin wool, so I figured 4# was a safe guesstimate after going to the thicker undies and it seemed to work just fine.
Some pictures:
