Which drysuit to choose: Hollis BTR-500 or DUI Yukon?

[Adri Irmalos]

Hi All!

Probably there are already many discussions around drysuits, however would be great if I could get some feedback on my debate with myself

I'm in the process of buying my first drysuit and I narrowed down my options to the Hollis BTR-500 and DUI Yukon drysuits.(my budget is maximum $1,500)

Any of you using these drysuits and could share their experiences would be greatly appreciated.

A little background: I'm diving year-round, but in the winter months (Dec - Mar): 1) the water is quite cold for me with min temperatures of 20-22 Celsius at 30 meters 2) I'm freezing my butts off on the boat to/from the dive sites. Bottom line: I would like to stay dry and feel nice and toasty in the winter
In addition, I'm planning to get into technical diving early next year, therefore I would like to choose for a drysuit that I can also use on deeper dives without spending a fortune (I understand that this mainly depends on the undergarment used. I have planty of good quality warm stuff, so no issues there).
Also, I'm not interested in neoprene drysuits.

Thanks a lot for your feedbacks in advance!

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

Both are great suits! You really can't make a bad decision here. Do you need 1 pocket or 2? With your plan of Tech diving, you will want the second pocket the BTR comes standard with. You can always add one to the DUI, but the BTR has it. We sell both, so I can give you an honest opinion. You will love either one. If you want, send me a PM and we can go over a few other things and help nail down the right suit for your use.

 

[Adri Irmalos]

Both are great suits! You really can't make a bad decision here. Do you need 1 pocket or 2? With your plan of Tech diving, you will want the second pocket the BTR comes standard with. You can always add one to the DUI, but the BTR has it. We sell both, so I can give you an honest opinion. You will love either one. If you want, send me a PM and we can go over a few other things and help nail down the right suit for your use.

Thank you for your feedback! I also have a local supplier who recommends both, but I was wondering if anyone actually uses them and could give some feedback
I could get a good deal from my local supplier on the DUI (including the extra pocket on the side), so I'm quite leaning towards getting that

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

I've dove both. Great suits, different materials and the pocket. Other than that, they are pretty similar. The Hollis does have a zipper protector, and the Yukon doesn't.
Yukon has telescoping design making it a little easier to get in and out of. BTR is a little lighter weight material. Yukon comes with a boot and the BTR with a sock.

Diving wise, they dive the same. Both kept me dry when I dove them, and I put about 6 dives on each. Both have a good cut in the pattern, so neither is too baggy where it shouldn't be. The Yukon is on Closeout right now, as the Yukon 2 is coming out, the BTR is a current suit.

Feel free to ask any specific questions you're wanting to know.

 

[Adri Irmalos]

I've dove both. Great suits, different materials and the pocket. Other than that, they are pretty similar. The Hollis does have a zipper protector, and the Yukon doesn't.
Yukon has telescoping design making it a little easier to get in and out of. BTR is a little lighter weight material. Yukon comes with a boot and the BTR with a sock.

Diving wise, they dive the same. Both kept me dry when I dove them, and I put about 6 dives on each. Both have a good cut in the pattern, so neither is too baggy where it shouldn't be. The Yukon is on Closeout right now, as the Yukon 2 is coming out, the BTR is a current suit.

Feel free to ask any specific questions you're wanting to know.

Great, thanks a lot for the details!
There is only one thing that could be a make or break for me: I have quite a big head (lot of brains ) so I would need to make sure that it is possible to cut neck seal easily without damaging it. Is there any difference in the two suits from that point?

 

[Dive Right In Scuba]

Nope, the seals are the same, and both are trimmable. But, you wouldn't trim them to fit your head, you would have to see how it is around your neck. With a big head, you might be better adding a replaceable neck system, which we do in-house, to either one. That way, you can use the more stretchy Silicone Seals.