Hey there,
I'm looking for a 5mm wetsuit suitable for 25 degrees celsius warm water. After searching a while I found that the best option would be the Scubapro Everflex. But as this wetsuit is fairly expensive and I'm only a beginner, I've also come across the Cressi Castoro 5, wich has also very good test results but costs less than half of the Everflex. My question is, would you recommend going for the more expensive one or will the Castoro do the job just as well as the Everflex?
Thanks very much for your answers,
Luka
The EverFlex 5/4 is an awesome suit. I have one that is a few years old. I believe the new ones, with the DiamondSpan lining are even warmer than the one I have (which has the older, yellow/gold colored lining). I have dived my EverFlex 5/4 in water as cold as 45F (7C), with a hood and gloves. It was definitely cold, but not unbearable for a 20-something minute dive. I did 3 dives in a day in the 5/4 (with hood and gloves), with the 3rd being 32 minutes at 49F. Again, definitely cold by the end, but not unbearable.
The suit that is best for you is going to be the one that fits you the best. When 2 suits fit you equally well, then it's going to come down to construction and seals. Glued-and-Blind-Stitched (aka GBS) seams are going to be better than flatlock stitched seams. GBS doesn't let water through. Flatlock does. The EverFlex suit has smoothskin seals at the ankles, wrists, around the neck, and on a spine pad behind the main zipper. Mine lets very little water move through the suit (which is what you want - the less, the better). Other, lesser, suits, will have lesser or no seals at some or all of the same places.
In 25C (77F) water, I would dive that multiple dives, multiple days in a row in my EverFlex 3/2 and be comfortable the whole time. I did a full week of diving in June off North Carolina. 2 dives per day, 7 days in a row. Temps ranged from 68F to 76F, but were mostly 72 - 74. I wore my EverFlex 5/4 the whole time and was still very comfy at the end of the week. That was with no hood and very thin nylon gloves the whole time.
If you are VERY cold-natured, you might need a 7mm suit for diving in 25C water. But, I would be VERY surprised if that turned out to be true. If you do find that a 5mm (or 5/4) is not warm enough by itself, I would definitely suggest trying a hood - even a thin one - before moving to a thicker suit. Even a thin hood makes a BIG difference in overall warmth.
