Re: [GSAS-Member] Any scuba divers in the group?

[Matt Staroscik <matt@wrongcrowd.com>]

On Tue, Oct 03, 2006 at 05:33:07PM -0700, SUSAN WELENOFSKY wrote:
> I'd like to. What type of suit would I need? I'm looking at a 7MM two-piece
> Bare suit.

I have been doing a lot of reading on that topic. I can summarize my 
findings like this:

- A good 7mm wetsuit will be tolerable down to say 60'
- Past there, the neoprene compresses so much that you lose insulation. 
Do you lose too much? Depends on the diver.
- While many do dive the Sound in wetsuits, a drysuit is much, much 
warmer. There's a huge volume of anecdotal evidence that dry is the way 
to go in our area.
- And just because the dive shop guy is comfortable in a wetsuit doesn't 
mean I will be. I get cold easily. But everyone's different. 

I have decided to get a used neoprene drysuit, which will be about $500. 
That's not much more than a top-quality new wetsuit. Other divers have 
told me that a trilaminate/vulcanized rubber drysuit, while lighter, is 
a poor insulator compared to neoprene and you might not be able to wear 
enough under it to stay warm. Neoprene is also cheaper. 

That all said: if you want wet I have found 2 good options. 

discountdivers.com, a local shop, has Henderson Hyperstretch 7mm 2-piece 
wetsuits on sale for about $400. (they also have all the used stuff I am 
browsing.)

Or, you can get a Mares Isotherm semi-dry type wetsuit for $350 at 
LeisurePro.com. 

I'll be happy to talk more off-list, I've been going nuts with the scuba 
gear research in recent weeks. 

- Matt


-- 
Matt Staroscik
matt@wrongcrowd.com | http://wrongcrowd.com
_______________________________________________
GSAS-Member mailing list
GSAS-Member@thekrib.com
http://lists.thekrib.com/mailman/listinfo/gsas-member