X Shorts or glue on pockets?

[MrsBBC]

Have any women here ever tried pocket shorts such as:

Scuba diving X-Shorts w/ cargo pockets for acc. XLarge | eBay

Highland by XS-Scuba 2mm Super Stretch Neoprene Pocket Shorts

I recently used the DiveRite thigh pocket, which clips onto the waist band. I found that it continually moved the pocket to the front of my thigh, even if I used a webbing keeper to prevent it from moving on my belt. I had other problems with the pocket too..

So, that brings me to whether or not to purchase 2 pockets at £90 ish each, plus the neoprene cement (allowing me to personally choose the pockets I require), or to purchase shorts with pockets affixed, and no choice of individual pockets at a considerably lower price.

I like the idea of being able to slip the shorts over whichever wetsuit I am using.
To sew pockets onto both my wetsuits would cost me a fortune. Aaand I still haven't affixed pockets to my drysuit.

Presumably these shorts are designed for men.
I am a size 14-16 and do not wish to wear shorts which fall down, or give me a horrendous camel toe.

Are these shorts comfortable and suitable for female divers, or should I get glueing?
and how effective are they over a membrane drysuit?

Thanks,
Nic

 

[Blue Sparkle]

I'm going to be keeping an eye on this thread - thanks for starting it!

I've been wondering the same thing.

I'd have no problem gluing pockets on my wetsuit, except I have THREE wetsuits, and the really nice pockets are like $70 each. Erm... that's $420 in pockets. Even cheaper pockets would add up. Yeah, I could make some, but not sure I want to. Plus, in summer I don't wear any wetsuit.

So.... I looked at the X-shorts and the Highland brand that is similar - but only online and not in person. But, same as you, I discovered they only come in Men's sizes (annoying, and Men's pants do not fit me, and I also don't really like to buy from companies that don't make women's sizes, and Men's pants do not fit me....).

Right now I'm flip-flopping between gluing on bought pockets, but doing one suit at a time to minimize the financial pain; or making my own "X-shorts," probably using the pre-made pockets that I like the best (which I could then also wear when I dive in only a skin). I did dive with a pair of cargo shorts on over the skin last summer, and besides the pockets being way too small and not dive-gear-oriented, I could see that the concept could work.

So, it will be interesting to see what comes out of this thread

And if there are any women who find the X-shorts to be a good fit if they tend more to a "boyish" figure or to smaller-waist/larger hips (the latter making Men's pants not a good fit on me).

Blue Sparkle

 

[Jax]

I have the XS scuba highlander shorts - Love 'em!

That said, I also glued pockets on my 7mm. I bought the shorts to use with my White's Fusion drysuit. However, now that all is said and done, I think I will see about removing the pockets from my wetsuit - the XS scuba highlander pockets are bigger, better, and I can leave things in them and just move them from dive to dive.

The pockets make donning the 7mm more difficult, as I leave my 7mm inside out and instead 'roll' the suit up my legs and body. The pockets-part of the suit is a little more difficult to roll up as they are not as flexible.

Also, the XS Scuba Highlanders have D-rings on straps in the pocket. I clip 'stuff' to the straps, so when I have to yank out something like my spool or mask, nothing gets lost; I just have to stuff it all back in again.

I wear XS size, and these shorts are well-sized. The waist elastic is strong, but not uncomfortable, and it boasts a drawstring so no matter how much weight you put in, the shorts don't fall off.

 

[kathydee]

Hi,

I have a pair of X shorts that I use when diving wet. It's probably the best pocket solution if you own multiple suits. They add a bit of bulk, but work fine.

 

[Firefyter]

I'm pretty sure TSandM uses or has used the X-shorts. If she doesn't weigh in here, you might shoot her a PM and ask her for a woman's POV.

 

[MrsBBC]

Jax, is there a separate compartment for slates? the little hole in the corner of the slates always breaks, and then I can't attach them to the d ring.

KathyDee, what size/shape are you?
Do the shorts pull up high, or sit low on/below the hips?
Again, are there D rings or a section for dive slates?

Cheers for the replies, I have been playing with the idea of making my own shorts from cycling shorts, so that I know the shorts will stay in place all dive. Again, costly, and might not work as anticipated.

Nic

 

[Ayisha]

I use the OMS weight pouch and it fits on the webbing at the front of my BC where the BC clips together. It can be put horizontally or vertically. I have a weight integrated BC with pockets, so I don't need a whole lot more pocket space. When I've felt that I've wanted to carry more for particular dives, the weight pouch has been really useful.

I believe mine is the OMS BCA 269 Weight pouch, and you can see it and others here: OMS Backplate & Harness Accessories http://www.OMSdive.com

There is a similar one by Diverite called the clipper pocket (not sure about the size difference) and it and others can be found here: SCUBA Diving Equipment for Technical, Sidemount, Rebreather, Wreck and Cave Diving: Dive Rite, Inc - Product Catalog - Pockets

I put a thigh pocket on my thigh and I thought it looked ridiculous on me since I'm petite and it's on a wetsuit, so it didn't look quite right. The "weight pouch" is a little more discrete. It depends how much pocket space you need, I guess...

 

[TSandM]

I use X-shorts with my Fusion, and used to use them with a wetsuit, when I dove wet. The lack of women's sizes isn't important, since they have a drawstring waist. You buy whatever size will go around your hips, and just pull the drawstring to keep them up. The drawstring on the current X-shorts is elastic, which is not good for keeping the shorts up well unless you have a very large difference between hips and waist, but you can replace it with a lacing-type string that you can tie, if you want. (I use a BP/W setup with a crotch strap, and as soon as I have that fastened, the shorts no longer go anywhere, so I haven't bothered.)

I started out using boy's cargo shorts, and they worked okay, but the pockets were pretty small.

The X-short pockets are simple bellows pockets. They do not have specific divisions for wetnotes or slates. I don't know of a pull-on short that does, but I suppose you could make your own shorts using Halcyon pockets, if you wanted that. They would end up costing more than the pre-made shorts.

One thing about the X-shorts -- the original ones would simply disintegrate after a while, so they didn't sell them for some time, and then came back with a better design. But the seams on those pockets eventually come apart, too; I've gotten very good at restitching them.

 

[kathydee]

KathyDee, what size/shape are you?
Do the shorts pull up high, or sit low on/below the hips?
Again, are there D rings or a section for dive slates?

I'm a size small (5-6) and don't have an hour glass figure, but do have a narrow side profile to my waist. I seem to recall the drawstring cinches just above the hips. Since I haven't worn them in a while (the warm water gear is currently in storage) I can't be certain. But in over 100 dives I never had problems with how they fit or stayed on my hips.

There are no D rings in mine, but it's easy to tie a bungee loop in the pocket grommet and just use bolt clips to attach your accessories.

 

[Jax]

I use X-shorts with my Fusion, and used to use them with a wetsuit, when I dove wet. The lack of women's sizes isn't important, since they have a drawstring waist. You buy whatever size will go around your hips, and just pull the drawstring to keep them up. The drawstring on the current X-shorts is elastic, which is not good for keeping the shorts up well unless you have a very large difference between hips and waist, but you can replace it with a lacing-type string that you can tie, if you want. (I use a BP/W setup with a crotch strap, and as soon as I have that fastened, the shorts no longer go anywhere, so I haven't bothered.)
The XS Scuba Highland shorts have a non-stretching string.

I started out using boy's cargo shorts, and they worked okay, but the pockets were pretty small.

The X-short pockets are simple bellows pockets. They do not have specific divisions for wetnotes or slates. I don't know of a pull-on short that does, but I suppose you could make your own shorts using Halcyon pockets, if you wanted that. They would end up costing more than the pre-made shorts.

The pockets on the highlanders are also bellows, without separate area, but I just put a slate against the thigh - it slips in and out easily. The bellows also have velcro on the sides so they are not any more "out there" than they have to be.

One thing about the X-shorts -- the original ones would simply disintegrate after a while, so they didn't sell them for some time, and then came back with a better design. But the seams on those pockets eventually come apart, too; I've gotten very good at restitching them.

I haven't had mine long enough to write of reliability, but they seem exceptionally well made as are (IMO) all of XS Scuba stuff. I looked at the stitching and have no reservations recommending them.