I've seen many different types and brands online and in stores. What are some good models and more importantly, which ones should I stay away from?
I've seen some 'off-brand' dry suits for <$600 (not semi-dry's) and the ones I hear most people talk about are DUI's and Dive-Rite's for ~ $1100-1600. The Typhoon Nexus is ~$380. Here is a link to several of them:
Any recomendations are welcome but lets try not to turn this into a DUI vs. 905's thread.
hehe
Thanks in advance,
-Chad
Note: All values are in USD.
A drysuit is a big investment and something you want to fit you just right and last a long time. I wouldn't skimp and get something real cheap. Here are some good quality trilam drysuits I'd recommend checking out. I've seen all of these suits from diving with divers locally that own them and all of them are really nice suits (I dive a TLS350). You can't go wrong with any of them IMO. Fit is the most important thing though. Also, keep in mind you'll most likely want to add dry gloves, and thigh pockets to the suit as well and you'll need a decent set of undergarments. These extras will probably add another $400 to the cost of the suit.
*DUI TLS350
*Andy's DS3
*Diving Concepts UltraFlex
*DiveRite 905
If you don't have the big cash to lay out and plan to dive locally, a full neoprene dry suit is a great place to start. I dove a Harvey's full neoprene dry suit for 4 years til it finally gave out. I think I paid @ $600 bucks for it. I put in well over 100 dives in everything from ice dives to the dog days of summer. Super comfortable! Negatives are they are a bit more buoyant since they are made of uncrushed neoprene verses crushed so you need a bit more weight. Another negative is you need to be somewhat careful around sharp objects. Full neoprenes are no where near as fragile as a trilam suits but not as rugged as fully crushed. Insulation wise they are pretty good...I got away with just long johns and sweats down in the winter down to my skivvies in the summer :
Once that suit died <a dive story in itself!> I was ready to lay down the bucks and buy the best...a DUI CF200!!! <Sorry, we did agree not to play out "Dry Suit High Noon" here, huh?> Anyway, I got my money's worth, it was a great suit for me at the time.
Dry gloves? it's up to you but as I am sure many on this board will agree, once you try 'em you never go back!
My first suit was an O'neill which I was very pleased with. My second was a Whites' I prferred that over the O'neill for comfort They both were inexpensive neopreme suits I now have a DC 2mm crushed neo suit and like it with dry gloves. Found out that with the dry gloves you want to make sure of what you grab on to I managed to get a less than pin hole in my glove and it leaked enough to get my hand wet not bad got it fixed.
What accesories would you recommend for the first time drysuit owners. Do I need the "rockboots", or can I use a less costly alternative? How about the thermals, Can I use the thermals the Army gave me, or sweats, or would you HIGHLY RECOMMEND the store bought thermal suits? Just bought a "new" used trilam suit and just need to know what I have to convince my wife that JUST GOTTA HAVE! ;D
In cold conditions , I use a Thinsulate liner (DUI). I think most of us use some time of dive-made thermals. For warmer water , J just use sweats and a long sleeve shirt. (Just something long to prevent those ugly sqeeze lines). I agree with the others , dry gloves are so nice. The others can probably tell you the best options for the gloves. And I am getting pockets put on my TLS350. After going pocket-less for a year , I find that I really would like that accessory on my suit.
Jean
In order of importance for accessories here is how I'd rate them.
1. Undergarments
2. Dry Gloves
3. Thigh pockets
Like Jean said a good undergarment suit specifically designed for diving is a must with a drysuit for cold water. I actually have two sets of undergarments. For the real cold water I'm using the DUI Thinsulate Ultra 400 jumpsuit and for summer time the Softwear 300g Polartec jumpsuit. If you can only afford one undersuit get the thicker warmer one first. I did it backwards and purchased the lighter 300g Polartec first and it was not warm enough for me diving Lake Superior and Lake Michigan without adding extra layers under the 300g suit. Even then, it still came up a little short for warmth not to mention was less convenient having to add multiple layers. Sweat pants (cotton) are not a good undergarment for diving as they do not wick moisture away from your body properly. I found the 300G Polartec suit to be adequate for temp ranges of the mid 50's up to 70 degrees.
Rockboots are great if you intent to do a lot of walking on rough terrain with your suit - otherwise any ol' boot will do. In fact, the old turbo sole from DUI had certain advantages, such as ankle flexibility and smaller fit compared to the new rockboot system.
I'd definitely recommend two pockets, preferably with velcro instead of zippers (zippers can get stuck, velcro you cal always open), and a P-valve.
As for thermals, fleece undergarment can be had in a wide variety of thicknesses and prices, and usually will do an adequate job at keeping you warm. Once you get into deco diving I'd highly recommend getting DUI's 400g Thinsulate: it will retain 80% of its insulative quality when completely flooded if used in conjunction with argon, something no other garment will do for you (beware of cheap knockoffs). Definitely money well worth spending...
The one thing I like about the rock boots is that they keep excess air out of the feet. Even though I dive with minimal air in the suit anyway, I like the fact that I don't get any excess air shifting into my feet. Rock boots are a little less convenient as it's one extra piece of gear to put on but they're also nice in that you don't have to take your whole suit back down to the lake just to rinse the boots off afterwards.
My 2 cents: If you can avoid Rockboots you will probably be happier in the long run. They definitely help keep air out of your feet, but they cause problems with fin fit, and, as mentioned, are just one (two) more pieces of gear to remember to bring along. Ankle flexibility is an issue, but is not that bad (try not threading the laces through the top two eyelets on the boot - that helps). Eventually you will get used to your suit so air trapping will not be that big of a deal. The standard DUI soles (Turbosoles) are kind of flimsy so that's the other problem. I use the Rockboots because, for my foot size, the Turbosoles made my feet too big for Jet fins, but too small for Turtles. The Rockboots make the Turtles fit nicely. Fit is the most important thing so take that into account with any boot/fin combination.
Pockets are great. Go with the Velcro. Get at least one bellows pockets, and another bellows or flat pocket (advantages to each). Dry gloves and Thinsulate are necessary investments around here. If you plan on doing a lot of Great Lakes diving start thinking about Argon in your future. But that's another subject.