I dive mostly quarries in the midwest but next year want to do some wrecks out of Chicago area. ... It seems the trilam suits seem to be the best all around suits. Do these hold up well for caverns? What are your preferences and why? ... Which seals do you prefer? Does anyone else gag from the neck seal when not in the water?
You will probably get a good deal of personal testimonial, and my response is just that. I dive a back zip Diving Concepts trilam suit, purchased back in 2002. I picked it because trilam appealed to me as the best 'all around' suit for my needs, back zip because I figured I would seldom be in a positon where I did not have someone to zip / unzip the suit, and DCI because that is what the shop sold. I use it a lot - in quarries, on wrecks off the NC coast and elsewhere (recently, the St. Lawrence River for example), and have used it in FL caverns. I dive it with singles (although that is something of a weighting challenge, even with my SS backplate and a steel tank) and most often with doubles. I have had NO regrets, EVER, about the suit, the producer, the material. I added a P valve after several years, which I should have done when I ordered it. I changed out the inflator nipple, to be the same size as the nipple on my wings, rather than using the larger nipple frequently found on drysuits, which requires a different size hose coupling. My shoulder dump valve is an Aqualung model, which has always leaked just a bit, and which I will someday replace with a SI Tech model. I have latex seals, and replaced the original standard thickness wrist (bell) seals with heavy duty wrist (bell) seals, which I prefer. I do not gag from the neck seal when out of the water (or in), nor do I feel faint from carotid compression. I felt that sensation early on and went ahead and trimmed the neck seal some more, so that it is comfortable. I have integrated boots, rather than neoprene socks and rock boots, but I am plus/minus on that aspect. I may change to socks if I ever have to replace the boots. I wear Halcyon gaiters with the suit.
Tips: besides heavy duty, bell (rather than cone) wrist seals, installation of a P valve, proper trimming of the neck seal, and use of gaiters - get a suit, dive it often (for me, I only dive wet in the pool, and when the water temp is above 73 degrees), dial in your buoyancy and trim (I use my BP/W for buoyancy, and keep just enough air in my suit for warmth and minimal squeeze) and you will consider it the best scuba gear investment you ever make.