Page 1 of 1

wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 8:23 am
by echallbu
Hey, im newb to this forum. im from oregon but stationed at ft stewart GA and do all my diving in south florida. im planning to come back to oregon for awhile around march. what wetsuit thickness are you all using out there? I see a lot of people with drysuits but those are out of my budget. any help?

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 8:26 am
by thefeve
7mm farmer john style, or similar... I'd say as thick as you can find. In the 7mm Farmer John i was plenty warm enough, and i know others use 7mm semi-dry suits. Much less than that and I'd guess you'd be uncomfortably cold...

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 8:28 am
by WylerBear
7mm farmer john with a 7mm jacket so you have 14mm to protect your core is pretty standard. You might be able to borrow one while you are here. Lots of us have unused or rarely used wetsuits sitting around.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 8:41 am
by CaptnJack
If this fits you its a steal of a deal and comparable price to a cheap new wetsuit.
http://www.nwdiveclub.com/viewtopic.php?f=45&t=19957

BTW if you decide on buying a wetsuit you definitely get what you pay for. I also suggest borrowing or renting for the first few dives to make sure its working for you.

Re: RE: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 10:17 am
by DecidedlyOdd
Cheap, used drysuit beats a new, fancy wetsuit any day around here.

Sent from my Nokia 920 using Board Express

Re: RE: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 12:21 pm
by thefeve
DecidedlyOdd wrote:Cheap, used drysuit beats a new, fancy wetsuit any day around here.
Agree for sure. I was lucky enough to have a buddy that let me borry a 7mm farmer john while i was still getting used to the diving here, knowing I'd end up in a drysuit. And there are plenty of used drysuit deals to be had.

However, if the OP is just going to be here for a short spell, and isn't comfortable with learning the other skills that go along with a drysuit, a rental or cheap wetsuit is probably the way to go. echallbu - how long are you planning on diving here in the NW? If its going to be more likely you'll do a lot of diving here, I'd for sure say look into what you can find on a used drysuit, you'll be much happier in the long run. 300-500 isn't all that out of the question, but you'd want to check the zipper and seals. If you're on really strict budget, used wetsuits are out there as well.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 12:50 pm
by Dusty2
Lots of options. It depends on how much time you plan to spend up here. Rental or borrowing a suit would work if your only going to be here a couple of days but if you plan on staying awhile buying could be an option.

A lot depends on your tolerance to cold and being from a warm water area I would say it's pretty low. Keep in mind that with a wetsuit fit is a very important consideration as well as thickness. If a suit doesn't fit well it won't be warm even if it is the right weight. For most that do the wet suit thing it requires a two piece 7mm suit and a 7mm hood. Some thing like a 7mm jumpsuit with a 7mm short sleeve shorty over it works well and will give you a bit more versatility over a farmer john. The problem is stripping down afterward in our cold outside temps.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Thu Jan 10, 2013 2:10 pm
by CaptnJack
Also you might not realize but old wetsuits become stiff and inflexible. They leave gaps for cold water to pour in/though. Its just a function of the aging of neoprene. So beware the cheap 1970s craigslist wetsuit. If it has a beaver tail its too old!

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Fri Jan 11, 2013 5:52 pm
by BlowBubbles
If I were to go with a 7mm, I prefer a one piece semi-dry suit with a hooded vest, maybe has less material on torso but les water intrusion for me is warmer.

But as others have posted. Better to rent for short stay. Longer stay look for a used trilaminate Drysuit, you won't regret it. Can adjust layers underneath for warmer waters. Takes training but better buoyancy.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Fri Jan 11, 2013 8:07 pm
by Jeremy
BlowBubbles wrote:If I were to go with a 7mm, I prefer a one piece semi-dry suit with a hooded vest, maybe has less material on torso but les water intrusion for me is warmer.
Yep. That's what I've personally dove in the last three years. Henderson semi dry. It's been great. Quick to put on, bulletproof, and warm.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Sun Jan 13, 2013 3:10 pm
by lavachickie
From talking to a diver or two who has moved to this area, you CAN affect your cold tolerance, to some degree. It would seem we all have a biothermal limitation, and then also a mental sense of comfort limitation.

It would seem that some people ward against even the smallest chill, ALWAYS keeping themselves bundled and swaddled and warm all the time. This makes one very cold intolerant. As a results... they can't "handle" any chill. They feel a draft and run for a jacket.

Others are very "hearty" in that they can tolerate colder temps, fluctuations in temperature, etc.

The former can become the latter by simply allowing themselves to be chilly now and then. Don't run to "fix" it, just be with it. Work through it. I'm not suggesting you sit in a tub full of icewater until you get hypothermia. I'm just saying move the bar a bit, and over time you'll find yourself more able to deal with cold. The more you expose yourself to cold and get used to it, the more comfortable you will be in the cold.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Tue Jan 15, 2013 9:48 am
by LittleGoat
[quote="lavachickie"The former can become the latter by simply allowing themselves to be chilly now and then. Don't run to "fix" it, just be with it. Work through it. I'm not suggesting you sit in a tub full of icewater until you get hypothermia. I'm just saying move the bar a bit, and over time you'll find yourself more able to deal with cold. The more you expose yourself to cold and get used to it, the more comfortable you will be in the cold.[/quote]

Some of the best advice I've heard all month.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Tue Feb 05, 2013 6:06 pm
by brihno
I am going to go ahead and necro this because I have been diving a two piece farmer john in south Oregon and Crescent City, CA for several years. First dive is always fine, second dive freezes your butt off. Now I wish I had one of those one piece hooded semi dry suits with the silver inside for one reason: The one piece (assuming fits correctly) should minimize the amount of exchange between the water in the suit (that you already warmed up) and the 48-50 sea water outside your suit. This alone makes the one piece suit very appealing to me, because everytime I dive I go to move my head and get a shot of cold water down my spine (my hood is a separate hood with a large skirt). I should note that my wetsuit fits pretty tight and so it's not like there is a flow of water due to ill fit, it's just a lot of seams and joints in the farmer john style that tend to open and close with different movements in the water. If I could have my way, I'd get small 3mm shorty suit to wear under the 7mm, one piece, semi dry, hooded wetsuit.

Anyway just my humble opinion on it.

Re: wetsuit thickness

Posted: Sun Apr 07, 2013 2:30 pm
by keeprunningamuck
I couldn't afford a drysuit being a college student so I bought one of these semi-drys

http://www.sierratradingpost.com/camaro ... rFamily=32

And its been great. Of course you'll need boots, a hood, and gloves.
Take care of your gear and it will take care of you