JMJ Wetsuits?

I just purchased a 5 MM Farmer John wetsuit from JMJ because they offer the ability to add relief zippers - the only wetsuit maker that I could find that does this at what seems like a reasonable price. My other wetsuits w/o the relief zipper were becoming a safety concern...  I'd love to know what to look out for, what's good about these suits, and what's not good about these suits. I did a quick search to see if anyone has commented on them before, but nada. If anyone has experience with these wetsuits, would you mind adding feedback here?

They look nice. No experience with them. You can get a Stolhquist 3mm Farmer with relief at Claveys for around $130. I love mine. Great quality

They look nice. No experience with them. You can get a Stolhquist 3mm Farmer with relief at Claveys for around $130. I love mine. Great quality

+1 for the Stolhquist or NRS 3mm. I pair mine with a 3mm wetsuit top in the winter. Very comfortable and still keeps me warm in the water. I had a cheap 5mm, without relief zipper, and that did not keep me as warm in the water because it was less stretchy and did not conform to my body as well. Was also much less comfortable out of the water.

They look nice. No experience with them. You can get a Stolhquist 3mm Farmer with relief at Claveys for around $130. I love mine. Great quality

+1 for the Stolhquist or NRS 3mm. I pair mine with a 3mm wetsuit top in the winter. Very comfortable and still keeps me warm in the water. I had a cheap 5mm, without relief zipper, and that did not keep me as warm in the water because it was less stretchy and did not conform to my body as well. Was also much less comfortable out of the water.

I get chilly easily, so I tend to stick with 5mm.  But - I'll be checking out the 3MM FJ from Stohlquist. They're 89 bucks on Amazon now... Thanks for the recommendations PorkChopXpress + jp52.

Considering you chill easily, the JMJ custom is potentially better for you.

However, if off-the-rack sizing garments fit you well, you may not need that.

If you’re not rack proportional, in addition to the warmth retention, the comfort of a custom suit can be comparatively amazing.

Should you find that is your path, check out Seventh Wave wetsuits. Thinnest/warmest. Yamamoto limestone neoprene with titanium liner.

Considering you chill easily, the JMJ custom is potentially better for you.

However, if off-the-rack sizing garments fit you well, you may not need that.

If you’re not rack proportional, in addition to the warmth retention, the comfort of a custom suit can be comparatively amazing.

Should you find that is your path, check out Seventh Wave wetsuits. Thinnest/warmest. Yamamoto limestone neoprene with titanium liner.

Checked 'em out. I'll wait until the next round for 7th Wave I'd love to give them a try. But now I have two on the way...

Considering you chill easily, the JMJ custom is potentially better for you.

However, if off-the-rack sizing garments fit you well, you may not need that.

If you’re not rack proportional, in addition to the warmth retention, the comfort of a custom suit can be comparatively amazing.

Should you find that is your path, check out Seventh Wave wetsuits. Thinnest/warmest. Yamamoto limestone neoprene with titanium liner.

I've had one custom made suit, and I've had one Yamamoto free dive suit, (not the same suit tho). The comfort you'd get from a custom made Yamamoto suit would awesome. Also many shops out there can add a relief zipper to any suit. 

Considering you chill easily, the JMJ custom is potentially better for you.

However, if off-the-rack sizing garments fit you well, you may not need that.

If you’re not rack proportional, in addition to the warmth retention, the comfort of a custom suit can be comparatively amazing.

Should you find that is your path, check out Seventh Wave wetsuits. Thinnest/warmest. Yamamoto limestone neoprene with titanium liner.

In terms of a shop that can add a custom zipper - the only place I could locate were in Monterey and Santa Cruz. Do you know of anything that can make the alterations in SF? I called most of the obvious outfits and they all referred me to shops down south.
I've had one custom made suit, and I've had one Yamamoto free dive suit, (not the same suit tho). The comfort you'd get from a custom made Yamamoto suit would awesome. Also many shops out there can add a relief zipper to any suit.

Considering you chill easily, the JMJ custom is potentially better for you.

However, if off-the-rack sizing garments fit you well, you may not need that.

If you’re not rack proportional, in addition to the warmth retention, the comfort of a custom suit can be comparatively amazing.

Should you find that is your path, check out Seventh Wave wetsuits. Thinnest/warmest. Yamamoto limestone neoprene with titanium liner.

In terms of a shop that can add a custom zipper - the only place I could locate were in Monterey and Santa Cruz. Do you know of anything that can make the alterations in SF? I called most of the obvious outfits and they all referred me to shops down south.
I've had one custom made suit, and I've had one Yamamoto free dive suit, (not the same suit tho). The comfort you'd get from a custom made Yamamoto suit would awesome. Also many shops out there can add a relief zipper to any suit.

I used Blown Out wetsuit repair in Santa Cruz, it was a few yrs ago, I believe it was $75 including shipping back to me after I paid to ship to them. Worked out well but a pricey addition.

Yup - at that point, you start to think it might be better just to pay the 250 bucks to get one custom with these things already added. Thanks for the reply Dale.

I’ve been doing surf video lately and spending a lot of time swimming the pacific, anywhere from 4-8 hours depending on how good the surf is. My O’Neill 4/3 ain’t cuttin it so was looking for a custom suit maker so will check out these suits. Nice they make 7mm but seems like it might limit mobility. Great price

In early 70s Stan’s Dive Shop in SJ made custom suits for about $450, skin/skin neoprene, a lot more flexible without nylon. It was FJ with a pullover hoodie and a vest I never used re it was too hot. I used it for work and play, some days 8+ hrs in the water and was never cold

Only advantage I can see for a nylon suit is durability but with straight neoprene takes just a few minutes to glue a tear

Just to add something to the thought process

FJs is great while paddling, for immersion not so great by itself unless you know you can get out of the water pretty fast

I wore the nrs fjs for a lot of years and did more swims than I can count, but my set up is simple and easy to manage so my time in the water is short, maybe few minutes tops

All depends on circumstances and your cold water tolerance but you might want to think about your top half

https://expertclimbers.com/body-areas-most-prone-to-heat-loss-how-to-reduce-that-loss/

Just to add something to the thought process

FJs is great while paddling, for immersion not so great by itself unless you know you can get out of the water pretty fast

I wore the nrs fjs for a lot of years and did more swims than I can count, but my set up is simple and easy to manage so my time in the water is short, maybe few minutes tops

All depends on circumstances and your cold water tolerance but you might want to think about your top half

The suit I ordered is a 5mm and if the water is cold enough to warrant, I’ll take a neoprene jacket to wear on top. Plus I have a synthetic long sleeve running shirt with balaclava attached. Think I’ll be ok for a good stint. I also have thick Patagonia surf booties. My set up is getting simpler by the day, fwiw.

I’ve been curious what the Patagonia surf stuff is like The wetsuits are on the expensive side

My current suit is 4/3 O’Neil back zip, warm enough when I’m surfing but since December all I’m doing is swimming the lineup w camera in hand, minimum 3-4 hours some days as much as 10. Gets chilly especially when water temp is hovering around 52 degrees

The custom double skin suits made at stan’s dive shop San Jose were almost too warm, after long days diving in winter there was steam when you peeled your suit. The other thing about straight neoprene is stretch and fit, doesn’t compromise your flexibility.

I’m on the hunt for something close to that old custom suit, the suits I’ve had over the last few years are not even close

Will probably be a dive suit w FJ and pullover jacket

Let us know what the jmj is like