My dive buddy and I attended the DOG days at Blue Water Quarry in Pelham, Alabama last weekend (4/5/2009). For those not familiar with what I am referring to, DOG days are Divers Unlimited International (DUI) demo days where you get to try out DUI equipment in the water.
I tried out the CLX450 drysuit which has the front zipper, suspenders, crotch strap and telescoping torso as well as user replaceable neck and wrist seals. I also used some rock boots for the first time. The CLX450 has Cordura® Polyester blend / Butyl Rubber / Polyester on the upper portion and Polyester / Butyl Rubber / Polyester on the lower portion.
I normally dive a BARE NexGen Bilaminate rear entry drysuit. The NexGen is a Bilaminate entry level suit without suspenders, front entry, telescoping torso or crotch strap. This type of suit is normally called a “bag” suit and is looked down upon by the “elite” wearers of such suits as the CLX450 and above suits.
So, how did I like the CLX450 in comparison to my NexGen? First, here is what I liked about the CLX450:
User replaceable seals
- Suspenders
- Telescoping torso
- Front entry
Here is what I didn’t like:
- Bulky (in comparison to the NexGen)
- Restrictive to movement (even in the XXL I felt restricted)
- The user replaceable seals also seem more prone to leaking
Both the arms and legs felt very snug on the CLX450, now, maybe that was because of the Polartec 300 underwear I was also trying out for the first time. However, the compression of the Polartec by the sleeves of the drysuit resulted in a net reduction of protection. My arms and legs felt cooler than they usually do in my NexGen with the 200 weight fleeces provided with my NexGen and the looser arms and legs. The tightness also resulted in me feeling more restricted in my movements.
Because of the added bulk of the 300 weight Polartec and Trilam suit I had to add about 6 pounds of weight over what I need with the NexGen. Usually in fresh water with an AL80 and aluminum backplate with SS-STA, the NexGen with the 200 weight fleeces I use about 16-18 pounds of additional weight. With the CLX450 and 300 weight Polartec I required 24 pounds of weight to get, and stay down throughout a dive. Now I understand where many drive suit divers are coming from when they say they need between 20-30 pounds or more of weight to dive their trilam or compressed neoprene drysuits.
On first and second dives I noted wetness on the sleeve with the vent valve. The wetness was so marked by the time the second dive was over that I could wring water out of the sleeve of the Polartec undergarment. Now I understand that these demo suits see a lot of wear and tear but it didn’t leave me warm and fuzzy (no pun intended) about the dryness of the suits. Whether the wetness was from a seal leak or from the vent wasn’t really clear but still I expect a fairly new suit with new seals not to leak!
So, what would I like to see? How about a front entry bilam with telescoping torso, suspenders and user replaceable seals? Face it, it in a drysuit isn’t the suit material (unless you get into compressed neoprene) that is offering insulation, it is the undergarment and air space. It follows then that unless you need the added wear and tear resistance of the heavy trilaminate suits you are better served using bilaminate with shielding at the heavy wear areas such as knees, elbows’ and seat areas. Using bilam would give you greater flexibility and a lighter overall suit with less buoyancy so you wouldn’t need as much weight. Also, having a bit of room for the air allows the undergarment to fluff and function properly. When I was in my bilam with my 200 gram fleeces I felt warmer on the arms and legs than I did with the trilam because the tightness of the trilam material compressing the undergarment robbing it of its warmth. So adding in a front entry bilam with the nice features mentioned above would seem a good move.
I also had some issues with donning the front entry trilam suit since it seems to require two people to put it on with any ease, one to hold the arm of the suit in the proper position and you to chicken-wing into it. Now I am sure with a bit of practice I could manage it on my own, but with even slight tendonitis or mild RC damage it is a bit painful to don the front entry, heavy trilaminate suits, unfortunately I have both! Now with a bilam material it would be easier to manipulate the suit for a single person. Just my opinion of course!
Kudos to DUI for their demo days, and in spite of what I say above, if you want a heavy wear capable suit then the trilaminate DUI will be the ticket from what I have seen. However, for recreational diving I like the flexibility of my NexGen, I just wish it was front entry (and had a pee valve…)!