Suggestions for new wetsuit

[stuartv]

Right, but it's the undergarments that make the buoyancy of the dry suit. I guess I could try it again with less underwear, but this seems like a good solution. Especially since I'm only using the suit in 6 feet of cold water, I'm not worried too much about compression!

Yeah, that was my point. If the water is warm enough to dive a 5mm wetsuit comfortably, then with a 3mm compressed neoprene drysuit, you should need very little in the way of undergarments. So, very little extra weight.

But, you got a suit that you're happy with and that's all that matters. And, yeah, at 6 feet it's probably not going to compress and lose its warmth any time too soon.

 

[stuartv]

I'm a massive fan of Waterproof as a brand for wetsuits. I've had a W4 semi-dry for years, but know their W50 5mm is also a great suit. They're made in Sweden and designed for the cold water diving around the Baltic, are well fitted and, as I said, last for ages. I think they're quite expensive in the US though (because of import duties), but still well worth it.

I agree. The WP suits seem like they are made with a neoprene that is not very stretchy. That means that it seems like they resist compression and stay warm at depth and for a lot longer. The downside to not being stretchy is that one suit doesn't fit as broad a range of bodies. I guess that is why WP seems to make more different sizes than any other manufacturer.

If I had a hookup to buy WP suits for a decent discount, I would have tried one by now, for sure.

 

[Gary_Ward]

When I worked in Egypt we used to wear drysuits. I had the Scubapro Everdry 4, which was a 4mm compressed neoprene. It was the oddest thing, as during the winter/spring months, whilst air temperature is up into the 30's (centigrade) the water was in the low 20's... which means that after 3+ dives a day you just could not get warm. Under the suit? Bathing shorts, and once back on the boat we gotta get out of it quickly....