Buying a wetsuit for spear fishing in Scotland?

[Verdant]

Hi all. I'm looking to get into spearfishing and I need to get a wetsuit. General advice on the internet seems to say that for Scottish temps I'll need a 5mm+ wetsuit. I was planning to head to a surf shop to get a 5mm wetsuit with boots + gloves but after watching this [], the guy says a 'spearfishing specific' wetsuit is what I should go for? Anyone able to give me advice on whether a surfing wetsuit would be suitable and if not where near Edinburgh I could buy a proper one? Thanks in advance.

 

[Selenium]

Hi all. I'm looking to get into spearfishing and I need to get a wetsuit. General advice on the internet seems to say that for Scottish temps I'll need a 5mm+ wetsuit. I was planning to head to a surf shop to get a 5mm wetsuit with boots + gloves but after watching this [], the guy says a 'spearfishing specific' wetsuit is what I should go for? Anyone able to give me advice on whether a surfing wetsuit would be suitable and if not where near Edinburgh I could buy a proper one? Thanks in advance.

Hello,

Firstly I would like to mention that I am a real newbie that started only a few weeks ago but I have been researching for about 6 months before I dived in... sorry about the pun...

From what my really experienced scuba friend says and also what I gathered from the internet you really want a proper wetsuit for diving rather than a surfing one.
The surfing wetsuit will start leaking around the zipper and because you spend most of the time submerged you'll be getting a lot more water in and become cold fast.
Depending on your body sizes you could be able to buy one online.
I am lucky that although I am slightly overweight for my size... my weight distribution is fairly reasonable hence I could fit a standard suit.

I have checked the sizes tables of the particular suit I wanted several times and used a tape measure to check The actual sizes of my body.
Practically I bought a cheap £130 Omer camu 3D suit 5 mm in size L4. I am 1.82m high and weigh approximately 90kg

It suits me perfectly ! But I must say it was a hard decision to buy online and I was lucky to be able to try a Cressy L4 sized suit that fitted just as good....

The reality is that whatever you do you'll save a lot of cash if you buy online and it suits you... if it doesn't then its rubbish cause you'll pay postage return and you'll wait a lot to sort it out.
I saved about £60 ... and that's how much I paid for the fins online

Good luck!

 

[Bill McIntyre]

In Southern California, most of us wear a 7 mm suit for half the year, and switch to a 5 mm in the summer. I would think that a 7 mm would be a must for Scotland, and it should be a suit made for diving and have an attached hood. Surf suits are not suitable.

 

[manalive!]

I'd agree with Bill. I dive in North Wales and could wear my 7mm freedive/spearfishing suit all year round, though I would have to flush it to cool down at the warmest time of year. However, i also have a 5mm which I wear in the summer, though I definitely wouldn't want to be wearing that at the beginning or end of the season. Both of my suits are made to measure, so the fit is great, however, if you can fit in an off the peg suit then these are just as good and usually cheaper. Open cell internal (bare rubber inside) helps as the rubber is up against the skin and creates a seal, though you (usually) do need to lubricate them to get them on.

For off the peg look at online stores such as:

https://www.spearfishingstore.co.uk/
http://apnea.co.uk/
http://coastlinesports.co.uk/

For made to measure:

http://www.polosub.com/english
https://www.eliossub.com/index.php/en/
http://www.subcraft-store.com/

(I'm not affiliated to any of the above)

 

[rascolor]

Hi there
Firstly I like to Ask if you done any Freediving Spearfishing course previously as that I believe would be great start to a sport .
It will give you overall understanding of wot you going to be doing in water plus safety and methods of hunting if you do spearing course.

With regards to equipment off the shelf suits would be cheeper if mesuments suit your body composition
There are loots of brands on the market
Cressi, Omer , have s good and not expensive suits I have online catalogues I can send you if you like
Polosub, Elios are better brands and you can get made to measure. Price it more expensive but quality of neoprene is also different I can point you to catalogues with all designs

Personally for spearing I use Polosub and Cressi off the shelf. As they fit me just fine


For Freediving and competitions I use Elios as they are suits I wear for last 8 years but the use of suit is also different than wen Spearfishing


Hope that's helps

If you have any questions. Just ask ok pm me
All our club members and my students are happy with those suits and I can recommend it without hesitation .

All the best
https://www.bluewaterfreediving.com/