Who makes a GREAT custom drysuit

[Kevin Floyd]

I have owned an Othree neoprene suit and it is really not a suit for all purpose diving. It is highly compressed and dense neoprene so it weighs a ton. Secondly, it is very warm so if I am diving warm NC waters where I need to wear a suit only to for the purpose of buoyancy redundancy, this suit is pretty uncomfortable. The fitting of this suit was also not the same as my Makara even though I paid custom price for it. They simply took a stock suit and trimmed it to make a "custom" instead of building something from the ground up.

On the other hand, if you plan on diving very cold waters for long exposures, then this suit is ideal for that purpose. It is bullet proof and something you could pass to your grandkids.

Are custom dry suits something you pass on to your grand kids? In that case my grandparents shafted me.

 

[Storker]

@Storker Ursuit and Santi are coming in a close second... more Santi mainly because they offer heated undergarments.

You do know that you can choose any undersuit brand with any suit brand, right? Mix and match to your heart's content.

I use an Ursuit trilam suit, a Waterproof hood, Waterproof glove rings, Showa gloves and either a Scubapro or a No Gravity undersuit, depending on how cold the water is.

 

[Chanly83]

@Storker havent gotten to that certification yet.... PADI “mixed brand diving.”

 

[taimen]

The problem I am having with Ursuit, Santi and Fourth Element is their new and revolutionary materials seem to get great reviews then they get dove for a year or so and starting acting like my chinois. I am not speaking from experience just what I gleam on the great web. Then it turns into a warranty war and I have enough nice, shiny, expensive, fantastically built, cutting edge things in my life that are being “handled” by warranty.

Then choose Santi E-lite, Ursuit softdura (or Deep 6 Makara). Those are made of well proven materials.

 

[Superlyte27]

My first 10 drysuits were picked based on cost. I'll never do that again. And I was one of the only Santi dealers in the nation and didn't have a Santi.

I took a chance on DUI and couldn't be happier. I haven't had a single concern and have had none of the issues I've read about. I do believe the TLS350 was a crappy suit. All of my friends who dove one had major failures. But that was 10 years ago. Things change.

 

[Chanly83]

@Superlyte27 food for thought for Santi and DUI, thanks.
@lexvil seaskin has some very interesting custom design options...

 

[lexvil]

@Superlyte27 food for thought for Santi and DUI, thanks.
@lexvil seaskin has some very interesting custom design options...

They make great suits with a bunch of options, it’s not just buying on cost it’s cost plus excellence, not mass produced off the rack stuff, I don’t get anything by recommending them except longer wait times if I want another suit, have two one neoprene love it except the back zip, and a Nova shell suit which has served me for years, I have replaced the brass zipper for a plastic Ti-Zip. Most suits are good, fit matters, I’m not an off the rack guy, if I were I probably wouldn’t have found Seaskin.

 

[Ouvea]

Then choose Santi E-lite, Ursuit softdura (or Deep 6 Makara). Those are made of well proven materials.

Personally, I've been disappointed with the durability of my E. Motion. I have dive buddies with DUI TLS suits that are older than mine and with far more dives that are in far better condition and did not require the amount of repairs that mine required. I've had to replace the seat section, which also forms the crotch area, of my Santi E. Motion after four years. The lower lumbar section of the suit has about 8 patches across the width. Looking at the material fromt the exterior, I'm more inclined to believe that the material is delaminating causing failure of the mid layer. The soles of the flex boots simply do not last. I wore through the heel in two years. Also the ankle straps tore through neoprene. I applied aquaseal to the exterior to close the tear and to protect the underlying neoprene from additional wear. Factory also said the Ti-Zip is starting to fail and recommended replacing it (the one thing that I though was secure as I never felt the front of my chest get wet). So after four years, I've replaced the zipper, the crotch/seat of the suit and have a number of patches through out the suit. After two years, I have replaced the Flex boots as I wore nearly through the heel of the soles.

I will commend Santi for the cut of the suit. You have full range and unrestricted range of motion in a very form fitting suit. This makes venting the suit extremely effective in large amounts or just fine tunning small amounts. Great funcitonal suit, but approaching year five, I've extended its "life" with some very costly repair. Looking back on it, I should not have repaired the suit and should simply have ordered a replacement suit from DRIS. My suit gets soaked in wetsuit/drysuit shampoo water, soaked again in fresh water then gets hosed off. It's hung to dry in my garage away from sun light.

 

[taimen]

Personally, I've been disappointed with the durability of my E. Motion.

I have an E.Motion+ and can only second that. The parts made of E.motion fabric are wearing fast and developing pinholes. I also like the cut. That is why I recommended E.lite because it has a good reputation and track record of durability, with the excellent cut and fit.

 

[laikabear]

I know a couple people who have had Santi E.Motion suits and several that have had an E. Lite (including me). The E. Motion fabric is just not durable enough. It's known for getting pinholes. The E. Lite fabric is pretty tough and I've been happy with my Santi. The one weak spot on mine is the boots. They started to wear around where there are velcro straps, and will eventually need to be replaced. For now, they have been successfully Aquasealed. The suit is 2.5 years old and has about 150-175 dives on it. My friends with Santi E Lite suits have been happy with them. They're just so darn expensive. And Santi customer service absolutely sucks. I actually have referred to the Santi as a Ferrari before.

I bought a 2nd drysuit a few months ago, a Seaskin trilam (Nova) and it seems to be made of tough material too. But, it has been plagued with a few leaks from both the P valve and dump valve, and it isn't as comfortable as the Santi (the suspender clips are poorly placed and dig into my hipbones, but I'm female and that may just be a "me" thing). Some of the stitching on the zipper cover started to fray/ unravel immediately, and the bungees inside the pockets (mine are the Expedition) also frayed immediately and had to all be replaced. The boots are thick and clunky - while they seem indestructible, they also trap air and limit ankle mobility somewhat. Overall I think the Seaskin will be a durable suit as the fabric seems tough, and I think I finally have the leaks fixed, but it definitely doesn't compare to the Santi (which retails for 3x as much). I thought the Seaskin would be my main suit and I'd move the Santi to a backup position but instead it's the other way around. I have 2 friends with Seaskin Novas that absolutely love them, though.

From what I have seen locally and heard, DUI is similar to Santi, with the FLX Extreme being the durable fabric and the TLS "tears like silk" being not durable enough. I know a number of folks with lots and lots and lots of dives on their DUI FLX.

I'm going to try to limp these 2 suits along for many years to come, as when one is being repaired I can now still dive the other. When it's time for a new suit, I'm not sure what I'll do. The premium suits are just SO expensive. And there's always so much other gear or classes to spend money on...