Sewing neoprene

[starrlamia]

Anyone ever make their own wetsuit? Im an avid sewer and have 2 sewing machines and a serger so was just toying with the idea of making a suit, or jacket or something but was wondering if anyone had done so before and had any tips or ideas? Not something I will be doing for a while but popped into my brain

 

[davetowz]

WETSUIT AND DRYSUIT MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR by Steven Lindblom
Best reference there is for your question. Sheet neoprene is available online..google is your friend.

 

[Akimbo]

Homemade suits were standard fare in the 1950s and very early 60s before Nylon lining was available. Quality wetsuits have their butt-seams glued together even today.

Special industrial sewing machines have been developed for blind stitching one side of thick foam Neoprene on the fabric coated side(s). It is actually become difficult to purchase foam Neoprene sheet in small quantities. It is entirely possible to make a high quality wetsuit without any stitching at all.

 

[starrlamia]

WETSUIT AND DRYSUIT MAINTENANCE AND REPAIR by Steven Lindblom
Best reference there is for your question. Sheet neoprene is available online..google is your friend.

I did google and didnt exactly find that much, thank you for the link.

Akimbo- thanks! Is blind stitching secure enough? My machines wont do a blind stitch so I would have to do it by hand, i could only do an overlock or flatlock stitch on the seams. Which glue is used in suits with no stitching? Thanks!

 

[Akimbo]

There are several brands of wetsuit cement sold at most any dive shop for repairs. Most are contact cements thinned with Toluene. Done well, butt seams can be quite strong making stitching more cosmetic than structural.

I can glue a strong joint, but really suck at tailoring. I admire anyone with the skill to make that “just right” fit required of a wetsuit. I doubt I could make a decent fitting T-shirt without several tries.

 

[Tom Smedley]

I made my own wetsuit, hood, and accessories years ago. Unless the neoprene that you have is lycra backed there is little need to sew except maybe to bartack at stress points. You use cement in which you apply the cement to both edges and come back at a designated time later and stick the edges together. It's rally fun if you can find the neoprene the glue is readily available. Finding the pattern is yet another problem... I don't think they sell them at Hancock Fabrics....

 

[Sam Miller III]

This post verifies a need for a historical correct dive book

FYI
The wet suit was accidentially discovered in a swimming pool in San Diego.
I was declared "Top Secret" by the NDC--the Koren War was in full swing

It was released to the civilian market in mid 1950s
EDCO made the first commerical wet suit
Soon most of the local dive shops began making wet suits

Neoprene (rubber) sheets were WW11 surplus,
Purchased from Kirkhoff rubber company-
Pay the gate guard $1.00 go to the pile and help your self
(I suspect the guard pocketed the $$$$ as a bonus)

Glue was Black Magic

The pattern was to lie down and trace around your body
Cut the sheet with a rolling pizza cutter
Coat the edges with Black Magic and press together
let dry for about 5 minutes


The first nylon lined wet suit was introduced in 1961
US Divers "non terfoam"- white lined- Failure! Urine staining
Parkways -(early Wet suit manufacture), 'NyloPreme' -light blue lined

The Abalone divers of the 13 Street fleet in Newport Beach, Cal. Discovered a local seamstress who for a very reasonable price would whip stich the nylon of the suits together.
The Abalone divers dove very negative, they used 3/8 arms and 1/2 inch body wet suits. It was common practice to force a hose into the wet suit and use their their bodies as lift bags at the end of the day..Often the seams would split..but not after being stiched.

Many local serious divers had their suits stiched--(including me)
Newport was about five miles from US Divers and Voit.
Many employees were LA Co UW instrs,who wore custom stiched suits
The stiching of the suit was investigated and accepted by US Divers

First commerical blind stiched nylon lined wet suits introduced in 1966.
The commerical sewing machine was specially made in Europe--$$$$
US Divers "Super Marine" Black linded with EZ Hooks
White Stag "Permaseam" blind stiched and taped
(Chuck Smiley was the world's best Wet suit maker!--been gone for 20 years)

So yes you can make your own wet suit and you can hand sew it with a blind stich-It has been done many many times in the past-
Note you live in Canada-- If you live near SCUBA 2000 suggest that you visit Alex and discuss wet suits with him.

Tommy, great to see you are back! We should resume the divers flag "discussion."
SDM

the sun is bright; the weather is warm ---I am off to the beach.........

 

[DA Aquamaster]

As noted above bar tacking the stress points is adequate. Although the traditional use is to cover the blind stiching on the inside, you can use a seam tape as well to reinforce the seam.

A good seam done with quality neoprene cement will tear at the adjoining neoprene rather than at the glued seam - it's stronger than it looks. You do not want pin holes through the neoprene as it both weakens the material and the leaks make the suit colder.

 

[Akimbo]

Another technique that Dick Long at DUI used when they made wetsuits was to dramatically increase the glue surface area/seam length at high stress points. Their Cloverleaf crotch design was the best I have seen. They would sometimes end their seams with a large radius at wrists and ankles which also worked very well. The photo is of the bottom of a leg seam on my freediving suit using this method.



This put the tension in-line with the seam rather than pulling it apart when donning and doffing.

 

[Akimbo]

Sam: Your post has reminded me of something that has been a curiosity of mine for years. I have read many times that Hugh Bradner is credited with inventing the Wetsuit, starting the project in 1951. The attached photo from Cousteau’s Silent World seems to credit Frédéric Dumas with developing what appears to be a shorty wetsuit. My impression is that the photo is from the late 1940s, maybe late or post war.

The caption reads in part: My jacket is the foam-rubber “mid-season” dress Dumas designed for chilly work.

I haven’t researched the text to try to find what year the photo may have been taken. It is also possible that this photo only appears in my Harper & Brothers 1953 edition and not in the first edition (Time, Inc 1950 copyright???).

It may be that there was some “prior art”, or simply a case of concurrent discovery — not that it diminishes Dr. Bradner’s work in any way. Patents weren’t involved so the answer may be lost to history. Maybe somebody out there has some insights buried in subsequent patents relating to wetsuits or inventor’s notebooks?