• Welcome to the DeeperBlue.com Forums, the largest online community dedicated to Freediving, Scuba Diving and Spearfishing. To gain full access to the DeeperBlue.com Forums you must register for a free account. As a registered member you will be able to:

    • Join over 44,280+ fellow diving enthusiasts from around the world on this forum
    • Participate in and browse from over 516,210+ posts.
    • Communicate privately with other divers from around the world.
    • Post your own photos or view from 7,441+ user submitted images.
    • All this and much more...

    You can gain access to all this absolutely free when you register for an account, so sign up today!

Suit Thickness??

Thread Status: Hello , There was no answer in this thread for more than 60 days.
It can take a long time to get an up-to-date response or contact with relevant users.
K

Karl44

Member
Aug 17, 2012
14
0
11
Hey guys

Im just about to buy my first proper spear suit.

Im set on the Beuchat Marlin Prestige but im not sure on which thickness?

Im going for the long johns which will be warmer but do I go 5 or 7mm?

what thickness are you guys wearing this time of year?

Cheers
 
To answer your question, this time of year on the south coast 5mm, probably up until November, although many may wear a 5mm year round. Some people feel the cold more than others.

I have both a 5mm suit with high waist trousers (Omer Blackmoon - Same as Camu) & a 7mm Mares Instinct suit with long johns. Both bought this year.

I found the 7mm Mares to be too warm this time of year, particularly when the sun was out! It is a very good fit, and with long johns, no water ever made it down my back... however I overheat when finning & have to take a lot more water out with me.

The 5mm suit is better suited for this time of year.

I will hold onto the 7mm for the depths of winter, however I would first want to try a neoprene vest underneath my 5mm suit if I get cold.

I prefer the high waist trousers over the long johns, as my chest area is less compressed making breathing up more relaxed.
 
One other thing to bear in mind is stock levels/availabilty of your chosen suit... it could take a few weeks for your suit to be shipped to the retailer before it's shipped to you. If that's the case, it will be pushing October by the time you get it.
 
What I would do is look at water temp. look at last years water temp. reports and factor that in. If you're doing scuba you won't generate as much body heat as you would freediving. The thicker the suite more weight you have to wear and less flexibility in my case.
 
I've dived in a 5mm Cressi suit early in the year in the Highlands and wasn't cold. That's with long farmer john type trousers. I wouldn't want to carry more weights.
 
I would talk to the local spearfishers / freedivers. It depend where you are at. Where i live (Denmark) 9 mm is recomended from late fall, to early spring
 
For UK(?), I reckon 5mm, especially as you plan to get a long john - which will give you 5+5mm over your torso & crotch. When my Elios open cell spearo wetsuit was new, I almost got heat stroke when I first used it in November*. If you get a 7mm wetsuit, you'll need to carry more lead on your weight belt -- I carry about 22.5lb, that's more than enough to lug around IMHO.

However, there are some folks that really feel the cold more than most (e.g. those from tropical climes, with very low body fat/size, etc.) - if you are one of them, you might want to consider 6 or 7mm. My 5mm is pretty warm though - perfect for the UK really.

*It was still plenty warm enough in late October this year & its getting pretty old now.
 
Approximately I use 9 mm when water is from 3-4 (freshwater in winter) to 10 degrees (C), 7 mm from 10 to 15, 5 mm from from 15 to 18 and 3 mm for anything above.
 
It's December here now. My 5mm compressed neoprene suit (Omer Blackmoon with pants) was not quite warm enough when air temps were in the single digits and water temps around 13 degrees. I spend a lot of time on the surface breathing up so air temps will affect things somewhat. I managed a good hour could have gone to two , but would prefer to be more comfortable out there.

Anyway, used my 7mm suit with long johns on the last trip and it was excellent. The problem with the 7mm though is it makes movement more restrictive in movement and it needs more lead.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Menu
Log in
Register
Cookies are required to use this site. You must accept them to continue using the site. Learn more…