Whatever happened to Polarfleece wetsuits

[bill_bain]

In the mid 90's there were a number of manufacturers of polarfleece wetsuits. They were supposedly about as effective as 3mm neoprene and had the advantage of neutral bouyancy and faster drying (less shivering on teh surface interval if it was windy). It sounded at the time like a good idea, but they seem to be gone now.

Just curious . . . .

 

[Dzscubie]

Bill,

I still have my Henderson polartec and wish I could find another one. Your right it seems noone makes them anymore. My wife has a dive skin polartec also and we have been trying to find her another one because her's must have gotten wet and "shrunk" on her.

 

[diveprof]

I still have one too. Bottom line though is that they are not as warm as a 3mm no matter what the advertising said. Yes warmer on the dive boat pre-dive, but not really with the diving. That was the problem and most likely what led to their downfall. They were more or less replaced by the .5mm and 1mm wetsuits that are really warmer. However, I am now of the opinion that for most caribbean diving, at least a 3/2mm, 3mm or my current fav, a Xcel 4/3 fullsuit is the better way to go. Don't care for the shorties - no sun protection on legs and you could end up with bumps and abrasions from the boat if conditions are rough. Yeah, a couple more pounds of lead, but I do not chill on the dives (even after multiple dives). Air consumption will be reduced if you are warm too = more bottom time.

 

[marine boy]

Hi

You could try having a look at the Thermocline range by fourth element - they are made using a very similar fabric and are available now in the US.

Hope this helps

 

[Bruce Justinen]

Hi, this is Bruce from SEASOFT SCUBA. I think the material you are referring to is what we call a "plush" interior. A few years ago, the US Custom folks decided to reclassify it under a different heading of textile, one with a 40% duty rate. That was the kiss of death for this material. We made a vest out of this material a ways back, I really liked it but with a 40% duty rate, it went from a $99.99 retail to over $150 and no one (rightly so) would pay that much.

Bruce