So, after several months waiting, my new suit finally arrived.
And it's quite something.
It took total around less than 3.5 months. But that is due to the shipping. In reality It was done in less than 2 months. If you live in the EU, that;s how long would you wait.
There's not much goodies you receive with the suit. But I guess it's due to the fact that it's lower price. You don't get an inflation hose, hood or booties. So I guess it's up to you to provide them. You get a bag, the suit and lubricant.
You can choose silicone seals, and choose flex boots instead of socks.
The suit is quite lightweight and compact, weighting below 3kg. Compared to my old cordura drysuit with rubber boots which was 6+kg. this is like wearing nothing at all.
The suit was custom ordered, and I guess it's a modified XL sized suit to be closer to the dimensions requestes.
I believe the total price was 1770eur. Which is much cheaper than any other custom made suit. Considering that "budget suits" cost around 1500eur.
Here are my first impressions and I will update as the time goes by and I get more and more dives in it.
Here it's currently 35C, so not quite drysuit weather.
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Fist things first. The cut:
It's different. As in, the first suit I've seen with this cut, and after reading some reasoning for the features, it's quite logical.
The most apparent thing is the zipper. which changed everything.
The zipper instead of going from the top of the shoulder to the hip, goes from the side of the shoulder to the armpit.
As can be seen here
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This is due to the fact that when you're wearing a harness from either a sidemount or a BP/W the straps don't press on the zipper. So the hips are zipper free, and so is the top of the shoulder. Quite an interesting choice, and it does feel different donning and doffing. Since it feels like wearing waders because it's quite snug over the hips.
I don't have any insulation in this image, only due to the fact I'd die of a heat stroke if I did.
Another interesting thing is the "chest peace" is separate from the trilam, and made from cordura. So it's free floating due to the fact that it should protect from abrasions to the trilam. It's stitched together at the zip.
Next thing is the daisy-chains on the arms with some kind of shell material to protect the elbows. Which feels thick and rubbery. They call it superfabric, but it feels like rubberized PVC coated kelvar. Much thicker than cordura, and it feels bonded instead of glued. The daisy-chains are great for housing what ever, bolt snaps, a computer or something similar.
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I opted for the SiTech oval cufs with antares rings. Once autumn comes we'll see how it fares.
The valves are SiTech, and the zipper is Masterseal T-zip, amd they say it's UK made trilam.
Next interesting thing is the three pockets. (Yes three).
The two side pockets, which are made in a way not to interfere with sidemount diving. And are both roomy and low profile. With a slate pocket in the back which is rubberized to the book or a slate will not slip out, large bellow pocket which is low profile, and a top pocket.
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And the third pocket which is an biceps pocket that can be used to store various easy to reach stuff.
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They all seem practical, and we'll see how they do underwater.
And the last but not the least. The trilam socks.
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Which are strange on their own since I've never seen trilam socks, only latex or neoprene, but I guess it's an better, longer lasting alternative to the neoprene socks or booties. Since all of the probles I've seen with my clubmates suits are usually the booties, and micro holes in the neoprene. I'm guessing this will be easier to pach. The socks are roomy enough to fit thick wool socks, and so far I'll probably use either neoprene booties or some old MTB shoes which became too worn to use.
One note on the seals
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they look sturdy and high quality. And a lot better compared to my old drysuit. But I guess that is to be expected. There are no loose threads, not wonky stiching anywhere, and the fit and finish is on par with any Santi drysuit.
Now, to survive the warm weather, and to test the suit in the cold Adriatic depths in a month.
If anyone wants any more pictures I'll be glad to take them.
Cheers guys.
