being new to the sport, I was looking at equipment to get and was looking at a wetsuite. I have heard that a drysuite is the way to go, but with being new and already spending so much so far I was going to go the wetsuite route.
who in the group uses wetsuits and what thickness????
I was looking at a 5mm with a hooded vest over that???
most of my dives will be around the cities this summer.
any thoughts on this would be great.
:-\
Hi,
Aristoff,
Welcome to the wold of diving. We are probably the most active local diving shop in Minnesota, and you are correct in believing that a drysuit is the way to go. I can also understand not wanting to spend another big chunk of $$$$. I would advise you to get a 7mm suit for local diving if you don't want to invest in a drysuit. Anything less is not going to be very versitile. We have a sale on 7mm semi-dry suits until April 17th. They are normally $149 and are on sale for $119. Feel free to stop by and take a look. We also invite you to come out for some of our fun dives. We have fun diving events about 3 days a week. Best of all, fun diving events are free!!! Check out our website at
Happy Diving,
Richard
I first bought a 7mm wetsuit for local diving. Then I upgraded to a semi-dry. Now I dive completely dry. You will hear the same story from countless other divers.
I have a Mares Isotherm semi-dry for sale if interested (see forsale section). I think it is the best semi-dry on the market. You could look around for deals on used drysuits ($750-1000). You could also buy a decent back-entry drysuit -- something like a Viking Xtreme -- for around $650 if you know where to look. Remember that you also need undergaments for the drysuit ($100-300).
I personally enjoy the "wet" part of diving. Maybe it's because I am one of the babies of the group.
Anyways, I purchased a Henderson Titanium Hyperstretch 7mm this past fall. I love the extra-stretchy material. It is very comfortable and easy to put on. It really comes down to a matter of preference I suppose! I would recommend that you try out different styles/types before purchasing.
Good Luck!
Amanda
I dive dry locally. My friends call it my Expensive Leisure Suit. It really allows me to extend my locally diving beyond the summer months, and allows me to go to Lake Superior and to depth in Minnesota and Wisconsin quarries.
Prior to getting the dry suit, I was using a 6.5 mil one piece Tilos wet suit for local diving. It's yours if you want it for let's say $45. I'm 6 foot tall and of slender build. I think it is size medium.
For warm water diving I use a 3 / 2 wet suit (three mil on the body, but 2 mil on the arms and legs). Last year at this time it was overkill in the Gulf of Thailand (I don't run my bathwater as warm as that sea), but it provided good protection from the jaws of the oddly agressive trigger fish.
Kirk, If you don't get rid of that wetsuit, I could sure use one. my 2 mil just doesn't cut it. pls let me know. I like diving wet, but will go dry I'm sure at some point.
I also posted gear wanted in that section; just in case someone can help me out with garage-sale dive gear! I could use a lot! Gear purchases include shore dives in the Detroit Lakes area and after dive coctails!
I'll second the henderson, nice stuff. I dive a 7 mil with a hooded vest and add a 3 mill beanie under that for cold or deep makes a world of differance. Have dove in temps in 30's with this set up not toasty warn but very doable. For me anyway
I realy like the layering concept, having the right stuff when you need it.
Tim
I use a 6.5 mil farmer john I like the 2 peice so I can wear ether peice or both depending on water temps. of course being a "diver of girth" helps with the insulation (just ask a walrus) ;D
I just got my new Elios wetsuit and can easily say that it is the WARMEST wetsuit I have ever used- and I've owned a lot of them over the past couple of decades. Fred, FreediveND, has a bunch of them and will tell you the same thing.
I used my 2 piece 6mm suit for a few hours last weekend in 43 degree water and never even felt a shiver. I, reluctantly, had to get out of the water because everyone else was cold and wanted to go home.
Here's the link for the site:http://www.eliossub.com/html/news_en.html
BTW: When a comapny calls there suit a "semi-dry" the are mislabeling them about 90% of the time. To be a "true" sem-dry they need to have drysuit seals on the neck, wrist, and ankles to keep the water out AND have a drysuit zipper on them as well. I believe the Mares Isotherm fits this definition, but many of the other companies have jumped on the band-wagon lately and are not quite accurate. Although my apnea suit is wamrer than any semi-dry I have ever worn, I could not truly call it a semi-dry and feel right about it. Other comapnies that make true semi-dry's are: Sporasub, Cressi sub, Blue water Hunter, Free Shark, and some of the really old Parkway suits- these were basically Jetsuits without the valves on them.
Jon
I started with a full scuba max 7 mill wet that is very warm except for the occasional trickle that would go down my neck. I added a 6 mill vest and hood to that. It fixed that prob and got rid of the ice cream headaches as well. I don't mind the cold water in that set up.