Semi-dry suit questions

[Sas]

Hi

I was planning on getting a 7mm semi-dry suit as I dive in Melbourne and it gets to about 8C in winter and was wondering what are good brands. I was thinking a Beauchat one as a few people I dive with recommend them so was wondering what people thought? Also, how much should I expect to pay for a really decent semi-dry suit of that thickness? I am prepared to get a really good one as I have been told 'don't skimp on the wetsuit!' by a few experienced divers I know.

Thanks,
Sarah

 

[almitywife]

as you are a melbourne diver, i would suggest skip the wetsuit and go straight to a drysuit - trust me, a warm diver is a diver happy to do multiple dives in winter!

otherwise, a sydney manufacture is Seatec Product Catalogue and he has an EXCELLENT name in the sydney dive industry, he makes great semidrys!

cheers

 

[astrofunk]

I dove an Xcel 7/8/9 mm semi-dry for several years year-round in Northern California (more like 50 degrees F / 10 degrees C, but sometimes as cold as 8 C). I think it set me back about $400 US. It was a great suit (I still use it for freediving), but I still gotta say, the comfort it afforded me was NOTHING like what I now get out of a drysuit. So I'm going to second almitywife: if you're going to be diving a lot, go for a drysuit sooner rather than later.

best,
steve

 

[Sas]

I am diving in 20C water at the moment in a 5mm wetsuit without a hood and I overheat so I didn't think a drysuit would be necessary? My dives never really go more than 40-60mins and I doubt they will for a fair while given my newbie air consumption. A few people I know regularly dive in Melbourne and Sydney in winter and say a drysuit is not required as I tolerate the cold well (spent a lot of time swimming off the West coast of Ireland in bathers as a child!) and don't spend that long diving... They all use 7mm semi-dry suits.

Anyway, if it is a bad idea to put off getting a drysuit I am open to suggestion but I would still like to get a wetsuit for my current diving.

Thanks for suggestions so far

 

[DiverDave65]

Love my Tilos 7/5 semi-dry...great price and works like a champ!!

 

[aMc10]

Hi Sas, I did Portsea hole a couple of weeks ago in a rented 7mm, no hood or gloves and I was a bit chilly - temp was 17. I do tend to feel the cold, though. Personally, I'm going to skip the wetsuit for diving locally and go straight for a drysuit. On the other hand, I've got a couple of mates from NZ who are diving in temps similar to ours and they're both quite happy with their semi-drys (one of them feels the cold even worse than me!)

Is it an option for you to rent one to try it out first?

 

[Gombessa]

Amen on the drysuit.

If you dive once every other month, you can make do with a semi-dry or two-piece 7mm. But if you dive more than that, it's well worth the extra money to go dry. And with the $4-500 you'll pay for a good semi-dry, you can cover more than a third the cost of a great drysuit.

Since you're in the 0-24 dive range, I say give it until 25-30 dives to make sure it's something you want to make such an investment in. But if it is, you won't regret it!

 

[Tigerman]

If you wanna dive 8c water Id definetly go for a drysuit. Adjusting the undergarment there is no problem diving 20+ celcius water dry either, just dont don the suit before the rest of the gear

 

[Sas]

Hmm given what people here are saying I might consider getting a drysuit in a few months then if I start feeling the cold. It is not a hassle financially for me to get a drysuit in two or three months (it is at the moment tho!), but I would like a suit very soon as I am getting a few specialties done and have a lot of dives planned. I hate using borrowed wetsuits!

I spoke to the guy at my local LDS and he is going to put together a deal with a few bits of equipment and some courses. They do stock the Beauchat 7mm, so might go with that one as I have heard very good things about it for Melbourne diving. Will try it out and see how I like the fit.