Wetsuit Help

I am planning on buying a wetsuit for Ab diving/Spearfishing for the Northcoast.  I would like to avoid a 7mm suit if possible to avoid having to wear so much lead and being restricted.  I was thinking about getting a 5mm open cell farmer john set up from Mako. The ad for the wetsuit says that an open cell suit has the warmth of a lined 7mm suit???  This add also points out that the double layer in the torso also conserves heat.  My question, will I freeze with the suit in the attachment below?
http://www.makospearguns.com/ProductDetails.asp?ProductCode=M2A

I dove a 7mm fj scuba suit for years. Kept me just right as far as warmth is concerned.
Last year I bought a 7mm Yazbeck. After 2 dives I'm almost wishing I bought a 5mm.
With such a great fit there is virtually zero water transfer between you and the suit and you stay toasty warm.

Were you thinking about the 5mm because it would have been warm enough for around here?  Also, this is the link for the first wetsuit I had considered, it's a 7mm jumpsuit from Cressi that seems to be pretty good quality, but not camo like the Mako.  Will camo really help with avoiding detection by fish?
http://www.leisurepro.com/Prod/CSBJ7M.html?&&

I'm still new to diving, but I went from a 7mm closed cell to a mako 5mm open cell. After about 3 hours in the water I start to feel a little chill. The difference in flexability is worth going open cell, and so far the mako has held up, mostly shore dives. I'm happy with the mako thus far, hope this helps.

Get a suit with a built in hood. No water down your back and hood coming out. 7 mm for our our pristine water during the winter, and going deeper depths. It does get warm sometimes and you can let water in. Better than being cold.

Rent a 5mm before you bite the bullet.

I use an Excel infinity dry-lock in 5/4mm. I don't go very deep, max 15' and only stay in around an hour. I've never had a problem being cold. Hope this helps.

Anthony

The water is between 46 to 49 from Sonoma to mendocino right now. Factor that with a lot of windy spring/early summer conditions and I think you will regret buying a 5 mil. The difference between 5 and 7 will be nowhere near the difference between open and closed cell. Just my opinion though.

It all depends where and how long you plan to dive and how tollerant to cold you are. Your extremities (read hand and feet) will get cold first, 10 mm on torso is the overlap of farmer john's and jacket each at 5mm.
So if your dives are 2-3 hrs you should be OK most of the times, however on those days when the water is 47 (icecream headache when you first submerge your face) you wish you had a 7mm.
I would say you will need 3-5 pounds extra weight for a 7mm as compared to 5mm. As suits age their warmth diminishes....just get a 7mm and you will never look back.
Good luck with your search.
Check spearboard, you can get some decent deals there. What size are you looking for ?

As suits age their warmth diminishes....just get a 7mm and you will never look back.

+1

It would suck to have the whole day free to dive on a stellar top to bottom winter viz day and have to quit after a few hours cuz you got cold...my 7mm let's me dive literally all day without getting chilly. I say go for the 7.

 

Sincerely,

Jim

About a third of people do not really fit the off-the-rack wetsuits. If you are one of those, custom may be the way to go. Yep, they cost more, but I think it is worth it for the best fit and maximum warmth with usually thinner 'prene. The best heat retention is offered by Yamamoto neoprene, here's why:

"Most wetsuits available around the world are made in China, Taiwan, Thailand or Mexico. These are all made from neoprene sourced from China. The main company being Sheico in Taiwan. Chinese neoprene is petroleum based and is characterized by its heavy weight and that it gets heavier once wet. Also its lower closed cell content which means there is less air and more rubber in the neoprene. You can immediately feel the difference in weight if you hold up one of each type of suit in your arms. Chinese neoprene also takes a lot longer to dry out. Some customers tell me they can take 2/3 days and they are still wet on the inside.
 
Yamamoto's Closed Cell Foams are all produced from 100% CR — Chloroprene Rubber commonly know as Neoprene ® (DuPont Trade Mark). Yamamoto's rubber is made from LIMESTONE — over 99.7% calcium carbonate. The function and quality of all technical foam rubber is decided not only by the purity of the raw materials — the limestone that goes into Yamamoto's technical foam rubbers comes from one source — but also by the independent closed microcell structure.
 
This perfect uniform independent closed microcell structure' has been achieved by employing a special polymer derived from limestone along with the most advanced manufacturing techniques — all developed by Yamamoto Corporation.
 
The individual foam cells do not absorb water, and each independent closed cell is filled with Nitrogen Gas, creating an excellent thermal insulation with optimum heat retaining properties.
 
As a result of its special properties and virtually no water absorption, the weight of our material in dry or wet conditions remains almost the same and therefore wetsuits and other products made of this material do not become saturated with moisture or get heavy when submerged in water.
 
The closed cell content of Yamamoto Chloroprene is more than 93%, 22-33% higher than any competitor's materials, whose closed cell content is typically in the 60-70% range."

I went from a 5-6-7 suit to a 3-4-5 in Yamamoto and outside of really windy days spent on the surface for long periods of time, I plenty warm. As time goes on and I can afford it, I will get another suit of Yamamoto - a thicker version for the really cold days in winter.

There are many great suits made of Yamamoto on the market - I would find a shop that carries several of the brands and try them on to see if you can get the right fir from an off-the-rack. That's my $.02

John

If you've never used an open cell suit you might be surprised by the mobility it offers.  I have the Mako 7mm which keeps me plenty warm, and use 25lbs of lead which makes me negatively buoyant below 30 feet.  The only time this suit is ever a problem is when the water gets above 55 or so, at which point I get too warm.  The solution to this is letting cold water into your suit to cool you off.

After years of making do with my surfing wetsuits and a hooded 5/3 vest I broke down last year and picked up a 7mm open cell suit. Man what a difference. I was on the fence too about a 5 mm or a 7 mm and opted for the guaranteed warmth and haven't regretted it. As Brian noted it's easy enough to cool down with flushing  a little water into the suit, but it's tough as hell to warm back up if you get chilled out there.

My only bitch would be is that with the open cell suits you always have to put on a wet wetsuit due to the lube. but it's a small price to pay for staying toasty.

......snipped.....My only bitch would be is that with the open cell suits you always have to put on a wet wetsuit due to the lube. but it's a small price to pay for staying toasty.

I have found the plastic shopping bag (HDPE) method to work really well to get the arms and legs in which would otherwise require wetsuit lube, shampoo or soap . . .

I have found the plastic shopping bag (HDPE) method to work really well to get the arms and legs in

Elaborate please.
I always thought the lube method would be a total PITA.
After my first try, seeing how easily the suit went on; I'm a big fan.