Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

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trekdiv3r
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Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

Post by trekdiv3r »

Does anyone have any experience with diving a dry glove system on a suit with neoprene wrist seals?

My two questions are:

1) which dry glove systems can be installed on a suit with neoprene wrist seals (without requiring the use of an 'over-seal')?

And 2) have you found them to be reliable?

I've done some searchers online and on this forum but haven't found too much information.

Thanks!
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trekdiv3r
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Re: Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

Post by trekdiv3r »

By over-seal I mean latex over-seal as discussed on this page https://m.simplyscuba.com/products/Kubi ... ystem.aspx

I'm actually not sure what an over-seal looks like.

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mpenders
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Re: Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

Post by mpenders »

Looks like the "latex overseal" is just a latex seal glued to the outside of the neoprene sleeve. Here's a video that kind of shows it:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MnnXTjx ... kWQ3wdu5RE


I used the Sitech ring system on a Seasoft dry suit that had smooth-outside neoprene wrist seals, the kind that you need to fold under to seal. It worked good and was solid, but did permanently compress/crush the neoprene seal to the point that they would not have been able to be used with wet gloves again. Not a big deal, as I haven't worn wet gloves since.

The "latex overseal" system is interesting in that you preserve the ability to use wet gloves with the suit, should the need/desire arise. Not a bad backup plan in case you tear one of the latex seals at a dive site - no need to miss a dive, just break out your wet gloves from your save-a-dive kit.
Last edited by mpenders on Fri May 12, 2017 3:49 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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trekdiv3r
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Re: Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

Post by trekdiv3r »

That is a nice video, thank you. I'm not sure I would like to have a neoprene wrist seal and then a latex seal on top of that.

Do you still use the Sitech system? Would you be able to post a photo? Especially if it shows the area you mention regarding it being permanently crushed.
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fmerkel
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Re: Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

Post by fmerkel »

If the neo seal is 3mm or thinner and flexible you can use an OS system on it. The way the Kubi is 'normally' used is pretty similar to the OS, just a bit more elegant. You need to turn the sleeve inside out, position the cuff ring inside, apply a strong O-ring to the groove, then turn it back outside. If the seal is too thick or stiff that won't work well.
If it does, the sharp bend and hard stretch will work on the corner of the cuff seal and over time it will develop pinhole leaks. You find these leaks pretty easily with a light up the sleeve in the dark, then seal them back up with black contact cement. I've kept the seals going for years this way. You cannot easily used "Smurf" gloves (any kind with a fabric liner) with the OS system, they seep leak. Smooth gloves work fine.

Note - Both the Kubi and the OS are hard on latex seals for the same reason, the hard bend. I found they would go bad in a year at the stress point. You can't patch latex with neoprene cement. Replacement is necessary.

I have tried the SiTech system that uses the small colored rings to press fit inside the seal with the main ring outside. It's a real pain to get the compressible neoprene smashed down. Then it worked fine to 30-40 feet when the water compression made it leak. quite a bit unfortunately. I simply could not get them to not leak. I have no idea how mpenders did it. They work fine with latex seals and are not destructive like the OS, which is a big advantage, and they are easy to put in a latex system. You can use Smurf gloves. The single O-ring seal is a bit touchy to get right but you learn to deal with that.
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trekdiv3r
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Re: RE: Re: Dry glove system on neoprene wrist seals?

Post by trekdiv3r »

fmerkel wrote:If the neo seal is 3mm or thinner and flexible you can use an OS system on it. The way the Kubi is 'normally' used is pretty similar to the OS, just a bit more elegant. You need to turn the sleeve inside out, position the cuff ring inside, apply a strong O-ring to the groove, then turn it back outside. If the seal is too thick or stiff that won't work well.
If it does, the sharp bend and hard stretch will work on the corner of the cuff seal and over time it will develop pinhole leaks. You find these leaks pretty easily with a light up the sleeve in the dark, then seal them back up with black contact cement. I've kept the seals going for years this way. You cannot easily used "Smurf" gloves (any kind with a fabric liner) with the OS system, they seep leak. Smooth gloves work fine.

Note - Both the Kubi and the OS are hard on latex seals for the same reason, the hard bend. I found they would go bad in a year at the stress point. You can't patch latex with neoprene cement. Replacement is necessary.

I have tried the SiTech system that uses the small colored rings to press fit inside the seal with the main ring outside. It's a real pain to get the compressible neoprene smashed down. Then it worked fine to 30-40 feet when the water compression made it leak. quite a bit unfortunately. I simply could not get them to not leak. I have no idea how mpenders did it. They work fine with latex seals and are not destructive like the OS, which is a big advantage, and they are easy to put in a latex system. You can use Smurf gloves. The single O-ring seal is a bit touchy to get right but you learn to deal with that.
I see, so it seems that the thickness of the neoprene material is the main factor that makes it difficult. It looks like it is possible to install the Sitech quick cuff system, instructions on page 8 reference a neoprene suit.

http://www.sitech.se/media/87397/gluing ... k-cuff.pdf

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