Your thoughts? Fusion Drysuits

[Rescue 312]

Hi,

Some may have read my previous post regarding my existing drysuit that I have for my surface activities and based on the responses received, I am looking to get a dedicated drysuit for scuba alone.

I have been browsing the net (we have a very limited range over here at dive shops) and also reading various posts on the forum here as to what people prefer.

I recently came across an online store - "Dive right in Scuba" and was having a look through their drysuits (as ya do) and noticed some extremely affordable items, but this had my confused as to what exactly they were..

As with most things I have encountered in life, cheap does not necessarily mean poor quality, and just because something is expensive, doesn't mean its the best product out there. I know there is a lot of personal preference when it comes to drysuits.

Ideally I would like a Bi/Trilaminate suit, with front entry zipper and in black (matches the mask, snorkel and fins ).

I have found 1 (the USIA Aqua Sport) which is in my price range and seems to match what I would like, however, further down the page, I discovered these.. what exactly are they? and are they any good etc?

Whites Fusion Bullet Skin | Dive Right In Scuba - Plainfield, IL

Whites Fusion Lycra Skin Only | Dive Right In Scuba - Plainfield, IL

Whites Fusion Tech Skin | Dive Right In Scuba - Plainfield, IL


can of worms opened...

Cheers Dave

 

[00wabbit]

I really like my fusion. Others I dive with really like theirs also. Dive Right in Scuba is a great shop to buy from.

Fusions are a different beast than other drysuits.

The way a fusion works is you have an oversized waterproof suit that is a bilam material I believe. Then you have a compression skin that goes over it to compress the suit onto your body. The compression skin is held on at the wrists,ankles, zipper and neck with velcro.

The link you listed is for the replacement skin only. Not for the entire fusion suit.

---------- Post added May 14th, 2013 at 12:24 AM ----------

The skins are interechangeable. I have the bullet skin which is the most durable but also the heaviest and slightly less flexible than the others. I can buy the sport skin for travel which is much lighter but doesnt have pockets and is a little less durable.

This is the entire suit.
Sport skin : Whites Fusion Sport Drysuit | Dive Right In Scuba - Plainfield, IL
Tech SKin: Whites Fusion Tech Drysuit | Dive Right In Scuba - Plainfield, IL
Bullet Skin: Whites Fusion Bullet Drysuit | Dive Right In Scuba - Plainfield, IL

As you can see the price is much higher for the full suit. You were only looking at replacement skins before.

Fusions also come in the Fusion One series which is their entry level. It is the same concept but not compatible with the other skins.
Whites Fusion One Backentry Drysuit

 

[Rescue 312]

Awesome, cheers for the reply, would explain the massive price differences there

 

[00wabbit]

Yup. Fusions are really great suits.

Whatever you get make sure it fits properly. You do not want excess air moving around inside a drysuit. You will just be fighting it as the air bubble moves around in the suit. You really need to try on dry suits. Many people have to get custom made drysuits.

One thing I like about the fusions is that the compression layer keeps the air bubble from moving around quickly and the way the suit is made accomodates a wide range of people. In my specific size of suit I could gain or lose 50lbs and it would still fit. With a regular style drysuit if you gained or loss 50lbs you would probably need to get a new suit.

 

[Rescue 312]

Yes, from what I have read so far it's best to try suits on, unfortunately over here in NZ, we have a very limited market, quite a few of the online places I have looked at do custom fitting for usually around a couple hundred more, so that is looking like the best option. but with anything over the net, there is an element of risk that it could go pear shaped..

 

[TSandM]

Most dry suits are made of one layer of fabric, of whatever kind, whether it's a laminate or neoprene or compressed/crushed neoprene. The Fusion is different. It is a two-layer construction, with the inner layer a bilaminate bag that is cut quite deliberately oversized, to allow a lot of freedom of movement. In order to control air trapping and expansion of the inner suit, there is an outer, compressive layer, which can be Lycra, 1mm neoprene, or a combination of the two. What you have linked two is the outer "skins", or compressive layers, which is why they are so inexpensive. There is no zipper and there are no valves involved.

The Fusion, constructed as it is, is unique in the dry suit world in that it does NOT have to fit well, or really much at all. It's nicer if you get a bag that's the right size, but I, for example, can happily dive my husband's suit as my backup, even though it's a full size larger. With the user-replaceable neck and wrist seals, you have a suit you can easily customize to yourself without spending a huge amount of money on doing so.

I have two Fusions, and I bought my first one almost five years ago, and dived the living daylights out of it until the zipper finally failed at 450 dives. Very impressed with the suits.

 

[altaskier]

I also have a Fusion, and am very happy with it. Last weekend I rented a Fusion from Dive Right In Scuba (happens to be my local shop - just 10 minutes from home - great bunch of people) for a friend from Croatia for her first try in a dry suit and she was hovering with perfect buoyancy within 2 minutes. OK, she has a few hundred dives in the log and she's a physics PhD (helps with understanding buoyancy) but the cling-on of the skin does help in preventing big air pockets.

I rented a suit for her size based on her dimensions without my friend trying it on in advance. That is, I followed the size fit info and size chart at Support - Whites Diving - Whites Diving and it worked out fine (she was in the middle of one of the size ranges).

I bought a suit with the Bullet skin and got the Sport skin thrown into the package. I end up using only the Sport skin because it doesn't sag in between dives when wet, and because it dries more quickly; I find it to be quite durable enough (and I think there's another thread on Fusions where other people say the same thing). If I were buying new I might get the Tech skin instead.

If you're pressed for cash you might consider the Fusion One, but then you need someone else to zip you up and you have no choice on outer skin.

I bought fancy thermal undergarments but I have also used a $25 fleece jacket and wool ski long underwear with good results.