Neoprene Drysuits (how tight should they be?)

> I'll do that. By the way, I imagine you know the shop. If you don't,
some
> here do. It's Brownies Southport. They were the factory retail shop for
> Halcyon until the company moved to High Springs. The are still affiliated
> and still very much a DIR operation. In general, it looks like I'm going
to
> have to go with a made to size suit. I appear to be a medium in all but
> length. The estimate was for a cave cut DUI, but even the off the rack
DUI
> was estimated at something like $1,600.

*blank expression on face*
Never heard of that shop, no. And even that off-the-peg sizes price seems
very very expensive, unless the exchange rates have gone through the roof
(or floor, depending on your perspective) in the last 2 hours...

> I presume your estimate at 20% was for an off the rack suit, right? If
so,
> do you have an idea what a made to size suit should run?

Well, I can't remember the exchange rate, its far too early for me to be
thinking, but in the UK you can get drysuits from £300 (whcih I guess is
around 20% of $2600, very roughly speaking), up to around £700-£800 for the
top-of-the-range suits and brands. Now, even at a 1.5 exchange rate, thats
still only $1100 or so I think, and for that price you'd get custom made, or
at least for very little more.

It may be that drysuit prices in the US are just very highly inflated, but
at those prices they are waaaay above cost and prices in the UK and anywhere
else in Europe that I know of. Take a look at any of the UK online shops
for a rough sort of guide to prices available, and i'm sure some would sell
to the US if you asked, and even after delivery, taxes, duties and all sorts
of other little things added would be still significantly less than the
prices you've seen. Certainly worth investigating before you think about
spending that much on a drysuit.

David

Vic <vic@innocent.com> writes:

>"Lee Bell" <leebell@ix.remove.netcom.com> wrote in message
>news:A7WTb.9300$GO6.8574@newsread3.news.atl.earth link.net

>> So was I until the local shop told me that a made to size membrane suit will
>> cost me something like $2,600 US.

DUI, right?

>Wow.

>If you're truly looking at that sort of money, Lee, it might pay you to
>have a little holiday & find out why you're diving the wrong side of the
>puddle...

As far as DUI is concerned, he won't see any difference. I guess you
didn't see my earlier posting about DUI putting up the price in the
UK to match the price everywhere else in the world. Either they
don't realise the level of competition in the UK, or they don't care.

Pete

--
__________________________________________________ __________________
Pete Young pete@antipope.org Remove dot. to reply
"Just another crouton, floating on the bouillabaisse of life"

Lee Bell wrote:
> Vic wrote:
>
>
>>If you're truly looking at that sort of money, Lee, it might pay you
>>to have a little holiday & find out why you're diving the wrong side
>>of the puddle...
>
>
> I"m looking at it, but I'm not spending it.
>
> As for the trip, maybe someday. I'm willing to give your diving a shot, but
> I'm more than a little doubtful that it will teach me that I'm diving on the
> wrong side of the puddle. I can't recall reading a lot of rave reviews by
> people who left the warm, clear waters and reefs of S. Florida for a UK
> vacation brag that much about Soney Cove. 8^)

[Involuntary shiver]

I'd forgotten the charms of that place until icebreakers. The guys up
here still don't understand why I only did one dive on the weekend...
(although cheers to Steve for showing me the Staingarth on an enjoyable
dive!)

If you do get over this way, come up North... the diving is cheaper,
less busy
and the life is stunning. I've got a couple of spaces on a trip to
Shetland in June if you're interested...

Ben

--
Ben Panter, Edinburgh
My name (no spaces)@bigfoot which is a com.

> So was I until the local shop told me that a made to size
> membrane suit will cost me something like $2,600 US. I'll
> soon be trying out some for the hyperstretch wetsuits or,
> whatever a semidry suit is, to see if I can get enough warmth
> to make it worth it without being so restricted that I hate
> to put it on.

Lee,

Be aware that DUI suits are _astronomically_ expensive.

My current suit cost me less than half of that (Hunter ProVSN 1100)

Iain

Iain Smith wrote:

>> So was I until the local shop told me that a made to size
>> membrane suit will cost me something like $2,600 US. I'll
>> soon be trying out some for the hyperstretch wetsuits or,
>> whatever a semidry suit is, to see if I can get enough warmth
>> to make it worth it without being so restricted that I hate
>> to put it on.
>
> Lee,
>
> Be aware that DUI suits are _astronomically_ expensive.
>
> My current suit cost me less than half of that (Hunter ProVSN 1100)
>
> Iain

That figures. Is there anything the DIR boys recommend that is not
hideoiusly expensvie? I mean, back when I was younger and more
impressionable, I bought two back up lights for almost $80 us each . . . and
I don't even like them. The beams are too narrow for my diving.

Lee