What mil should my first wetsuit be (midwest US)?

[broncobowsher]

... hope that your buddy doesn't S fold the bib material while helping you.

Had that happen once, coldest dive I ever had. Got a hooded vest to prevent that from ever happening again. And that sits unused once I got going on a drysuit.

 

[Marie13]

Why the 2 piece? They have a larger water transfer than the semi-dry do. All those seams and zippers make for a cold dive. In addition you'd have to buy a separate hood and hope that your buddy doesn't S fold the bib material while helping you.

He’s a Spartan. ‘Nuff said.

 

[boat sju]

Why the 2 piece? They have a larger water transfer than the semi-dry do. All those seams and zippers make for a cold dive. In addition you'd have to buy a separate hood and hope that your buddy doesn't S fold the bib material while helping you.

Because it puts 14 mil on your core. I'm not sure about the larger water transfer part. I've seen 39 degrees in Grand Traverse Bay in June. 42 in a deep inland lake near Detroit in the summer. That was unexpected and miserable.

I might try to go with a drysuit hood if I had to do it all over. I agree the bibs can be a PITA but they do help with reducing the water transfer.

 

[Tracerbullet]

I have a 7mm Henderson and I don’t feel it is bulky at all. Maybe someday I’ll get to a dry suit but for now
I‘m comfy, temperature wise quarry diving Pa.

 

[Boarderguy]

Because it puts 14 mil on your core. I'm not sure about the larger water transfer part. I've seen 39 degrees in Grand Traverse Bay in June. 42 in a deep inland lake near Detroit in the summer. That was unexpected and miserable.

I might try to go with a drysuit hood if I had to do it all over. I agree the bibs can be a PITA but they do help with reducing the water transfer.

I started diving in 7mm farmer John suits and they are significantly cooler than a semi-dry because of the reduced seams and openings. The 14mm on your core is nice, but not having cold water entering whenever a seam is moved makes for a nice dive. When I take my gloves off and then break the seal on my wrist the water is steaming. Night and day difference compared to the farmer John

 

[Seaweed Doc]

Drysuit is the right answer. I would recommend a non-PADI class, they teach an odd technique of using the drysuit to control buoyancy and they are about the only one that does it that way. There is already plenty of info on this board about it, use the search feature if you want to learn more.

If it has to be a wetsuit, given the location I would say a 7mm would be the most appropriate. They suck. There are some newer super stretchy materials on some of the higher end suits that are a little less sucky, but still not great. And by the time you are looking at one of those suits, you are really close to a drysuit. A drysuit will do the widest range of temperatures with the greatest comfort. The other week I was in my local lake. 100° air temps, 80° surface temp, 55° bottom temp. That is Arizona in July, not Ohio.

You will also want the drysuit if you want more than a few months of diving season.

PADI doesn't teach using the dry suit for buoyancy control per se. The online/textbook materials say that shell dry suit divers often use the suit for buoyancy control and the neoprene suit divers use the BCD primarily. I teach the students to use whichever they're comfortable with, if the suit allows it.

Not up to PADI standards today, but 30 years ago I had buddies that dove without BCD's at all, relying on their suit for all buoyancy control. It's not all that unusual to use the suit for buoyancy control where I dive.

There was a weird standard (not PADI, I think it was AAUS) at one point that was specific about using the dry suit for control. I can't recall if it required or prohibited it, but the concern was that one might get one's hand trapped against the inflator if the BCD inflated as you added air to the dry suit. That could lead to runaway inflation of the suit. This is the old days of BCD inflation generally being over the chest, not on the back. I was diving wetsuits back then, so didn't pay much attention beyond thinking "that's stupid, I can't see it ever happening."

And now that I've gone totally off-topic, here's some advice to the OP: Consider an Apollo neoprene drysuit. It has several advantages for your specific situation:

1. It's inexpensive compared to other suits. (I think the list price at my LDS is around $1,400.)
2. Neoprene is rugged. It's not easy to replace hood or wrist seals, but they're also not likely to fail.
3. Apollo's have extra dump valves on the ankles and left wrist. This can save you if you inadvertently get into a foot-up ascent, for example. Great for a "newby" still getting a handle on buoyancy control. Once you get used to the suit, you may find you don't want to use these "training wheels," at which point you can lock them in the closed position.

 

[boat sju]

Boarderguy,
Was your john/jacket a rental, because it sounds like it didn't fit? I recommended the neosport 2 piece because it's affordable. Semidry's seem to be pricey to me.

PeanyButter is not certified yet so a drysuit is probably in their future.

 

[Boarderguy]

Boarderguy,
Was your john/jacket a rental, because it sounds like it didn't fit? I recommended the neosport 2 piece because it's affordable. Semidry's seem to be pricey to me.

PeanyButter is not certified yet so a drysuit is probably in their future.

20 years ago I used whatever the shop had. More recently I was lucky in finding a nice fitting rental I used every time from my lds. That was until a few months ago when I picked up the Hollis for $450 out the door. They can probably be found for $550 ish now and imo is worth the investment. A cold dive will put off a lot of people and yes, rentals always suck.

One of the things I miss from farmer John's is being able to fully remove the step through on surface intervals. Now I just peel the top down and tuck the arms in.

 

[kaylee_ann]

The thing is diving the Great Lakes and Rivers, you can have water from the upper 30's to the mid-70's......

There is nothing worse than suiting up in 80+ degree air (sweating and overheating) to go plunge in waters with a wicked thermocline... but a necessary evil.

I use a dry suit for the lakes where the thermocline will be present, a 5/7mm 1-piece for 60 degree waters (up to the 70's), and can do a 3mm shorty for non-thermocline waters once they are above 72 degrees for dives under an hour, and not repetitive (that can get cool - I'd like to consider a full 3mm suit).

It is challenging here....

ain't that the truth. my OW dives were in a quarry where it dipped from 74 to 61 relatively quickly. it doesn't sound like a huge difference but I'm easily cold.
had a 5mil wetsuit. hot as balls out of the water...not so much in.

 

[kaylee_ann]

I would highly recommend a drysuit. that's the route all of us cold water divers eventually have to take. like @Marie13 said you can get drysuit certified concurrently with your OW.