Too Much Wetsuit for SoCal?

[JamesBon92007]

Would this be a good SoCal wetsuit?

Pinnacle Cruiser Men's 7mm Jumpsuit

My girlfriend just got the 5mm version but hasn't tried it yet. She also has the 3mm version and wore it at Catalina Island and did not get cold so she doesn't think she needs the 7mm suit. The only thing I can attribute the warmness to (other than a snug fit) is the "titanium" lining. It sounds like snake oil to me but it seems to work for my girlfriend. This particular suit (Pinnacle Cruiser) was one of my choices but I decided upon the Ocean Quest 7mm super-stretch which also advertises the titanium lining. Unfortunately I can't give a review yet as I recently had back surgery and my doctor told me not to even go in a swimming pool yet plus I might injure my back just trying it on. This has been a real test of my patience. I chose the Ocean Quest because it has great reviews (Scuba.com) and the Pinnacle does not advertise as being super-stretch and I've spent nearly five decades struggling with my old farmer john so I'm going to give the stretchy one a chance. I also chose the Ocean Quest over the Neosport X-Span because I read many posts here on SB about the neoprene separating from the nylon. I did buy the X-Span 7.5mm hood and it is a lot easier to get on than my old hood but I don't expect it to last as long (who expects anything to last 50 years any more?). Overall, my girlfriend's Pinnacle (3mm) has proven to be good quality and the size chart seemed to be dead-on and basically she loves her 3mm suit and expects the same from her new 5mm.

Most of my Southern California diving has been along the shores and in 35-40 feet of water so suit compression with a super-stretch suit would not have been a big issue. I've never had any buoyancy issues in deeper water (Catalina etc) with my old Rubatex farmer john and that was with no BC. I figure I'll start out by using a back wing with my new super-stretch suit and see how it goes before diving to 80 or 90 feet without a BC. I plan on taking along a sample of some old 1/4" Rubatex and some 7mm super-stretch just to see for my self how much it compresses at depth.

BTW I've noticed the prices on my girlfriend's Pinnacle Cruiser on Scuba.com vary quite a bit. She bought it for $141 and the next day it was $250, then it was $141 again. The price on my Ocean Quest was always the same except it went down a couple of bucks on Black Friday. Also, in case you don't already know if you pay with PayPal you can get your return shipping refunded if it doesn't fit on the first try (there are some limitations, but I used PayPal's free return shipping with Scuba.com before).

 

[sdavo]

Sounds like the Pinnacle Cruiser is a good choice. I'm going to call some local shops and see if anyone can rent me one to try it out.

 

[DerekR]

I grew up there and never was warm enough in any wetsuit. Anywhere north of the tip of Baja to Alaska it's a drysuit for me!

 

[aquacat8]

I had an 8/7/6 hood integrated excel wetsuit for Monterey and the Channel Islands that looked a lot the one you showed... it was pretty good, I still got cold but I chill easily.

 

[aquacat8]

Oh yeah I often wore a 5 mil vest, and I wore 3mil socks in 5 mil boots and 5 mil gloves. Feels terrible on the surface trapped in all that rubber, but when you descend it compresses, you can move again, and you’re glad you have it!

 

[JamesBon92007]

Sounds like the Pinnacle Cruiser is a good choice. I'm going to call some local shops and see if anyone can rent me one to try it out.

I forgot to mention that my girlfriend that doesn't get cold in a 3mm suit is from Minnesota. She keeps it so cold in the house in the summer that I have to go outside to warm up.

I guess the short answer is that 7mm is fairly standard for California and no, it's almost certainly not too much wetsuit (unless you're from Minnesota).

 

[aquacat8]

I was wondering about her... not your typical gal!

 

[JamesBon92007]

Here's a little update, for what it's worth:

I tried on my new Ocean Quest Super-Stretch 7mm and it was very easy to get on (except the arms took a little extra effort) and it fits wonderfully. Their size chart was dead-on plus it looks like it would allow for a lot of lee-way for various body shapes. It appears to be very good quality and the lack of zippers on the arms and legs was not a problem. The neck got some bad comments in the reviews and although it was noticeable I did not find it uncomfortable compared to my old Rubatex suits. I also tried it with my new 7.5mm X-Span hood that has a full bib and with it tucked in the neck was no longer an issue. My alternative choice was the Bare Reactive 7mm for $520 which has practically perfect reviews but it's hard to imagine that it's that much better than the Ocean Quest which was $178. Compared to my old Rubatex farmer john it is super-comfortable and it will be nice to actually be able to breathe on the surface and not have to get down to 20 feet or so before breathing becomes easier.

Meanwhile, my girlfriend tried her new Pinnacle Cruiser 5mm and never even got it on and is going to return it. The material is nowhere near as stretchy as my new Ocean Quest so now she is considering the Ocean Quest Super-Stretch or the Pinnacle Sirena 5mm Elastiprene. According to the Pinnacle size charts their suits should fit and according to the Ocean Quest charts theirs might be a bit too long but OQ says theirs stretches and extra 250% and Pinnacle says theirs is only 200%. Since we happen to have the same size chests etc she's going to try on my OQ and see how that goes. It will, of course, probably be too long in the men's version but might be OK in the women's suit. The Pinnacle Sirena is on sale for $265 (regularly $370) and the Ocean Quest 5mm is $140 so once again it's going to need to be significantly better for twice the price.

 

[Sam Miller III]

>>>> Miller's Rule of Wet Suits <<<<

Your first wet suit will be thick and tight

The second wet suit you purchase

Will be even be thicker and tighter
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

FYI wet suit warmth is predicated on

Thickness for insulation
Tightness to prevent water circulation

AKA
>>>> Miller's Rule of Wet Suits <<<<

SDM

 

[shucksun]

I think integrated hood wet-suits are the optimal wet-suit for SoCal. They limit water transfer better than hoodless designs and you can layer under them with skins, neoprene hooded vests, shorts, etc. On any SoCal dive you can hit a thermocline layer that is 10-15F colder than the water a few feet above it, which makes having that warm suit a value add. Three of the top brands are Aqualung, Hollis and Excel. The Excel 9-8-7 integrated hood suit is my recommendation.