hello everybody i am wondering if you could help me with choosing a wet suit for free diving. Location of diving would be lakes and ocean around Italy and France. Thanks
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Thread Status: Hello
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Suits
Hi; I have to say I'm jealous about your diving location! I use an OMER wetsuit, specifically made for freediving. Picasso, Cressi-sub, and JB Esclapez are all supposed to make good freediving suits. For the Mediterranean you will probably need a 2 piece 5mm suit. My suit is 5mm johns, with the chest area made of 3mm. The top has the attached hood, arms, and velcro beaver tail. I don't know of your local suppliers, but look at www.spearfishing.com for OMER in America, it will tell you what suits they sell.These suits are made in Italy, so you should be able to buy them close to you. Good luck, Erik
Hi; I have to say I'm jealous about your diving location! I use an OMER wetsuit, specifically made for freediving. Picasso, Cressi-sub, and JB Esclapez are all supposed to make good freediving suits. For the Mediterranean you will probably need a 2 piece 5mm suit. My suit is 5mm johns, with the chest area made of 3mm. The top has the attached hood, arms, and velcro beaver tail. I don't know of your local suppliers, but look at www.spearfishing.com for OMER in America, it will tell you what suits they sell.These suits are made in Italy, so you should be able to buy them close to you. Good luck, Erik
Reply to Dolda
Hey Dolda, Contact the president of Picasso - Roger Yazbeck. He is a consummate expert on this stuff. I and my dive partner just bought suits from him. They are expensive but exceptional. I could go on and on about how wonderful his suits are but you really need to hear it from him for a number of reasons. He is a great guy who loves the sport and has an enthusiam for life that is inspiring. Just the experience of visiting with Roger is worth the call. He is a very honorable and ethical man. My partner (who is somewhat of a know it all and tends not to listen the first time round) is new to the sport and decided that his old wetsuit would do if he bought a bib because he was going to "layer" the materials for the changing conditions. He lives in Santa Cruz CA where the water temp is seldom above mid 50 degrees F. He stubbornly went ahead and spent $200 on a bib. A week later while talking to Roger about fins (he bought a pair of Black Team) he asked Roger about his layering plan. From the ensuing discussion my partner decided to buy the Mimetic and placed his order with Roger. Now at this point it may appear that Roger is just a good salesman who is hyping is own product. Roger called my partner back the next day and apologized, telling my partner that he just remembered that he was doing business with this other dive shop and that he needed to fill his order through that shop because he was not in the business of interfering with other businesses. Yes the other dive shop is a licensed distributor of Picasso products but it's not often that a business turns down a total sale for partial sale in support of others in the business. Roger spent over two hours on the telephone with me. He willingly answered all my questions, including telling me of other suits that were cheaper than his that may work for me. I readily admit that part of why I bought my Picasso Mimetic is because of the service I got. Right from the beginning, before I had ever bought anything from him, Roger treated me as if I was longtime consumer and a big spender. He has a depth of information about all aspects of freediving and spearfishing and shares it freely. May all your dives be warm ones, Angus
Hey Dolda, Contact the president of Picasso - Roger Yazbeck. He is a consummate expert on this stuff. I and my dive partner just bought suits from him. They are expensive but exceptional. I could go on and on about how wonderful his suits are but you really need to hear it from him for a number of reasons. He is a great guy who loves the sport and has an enthusiam for life that is inspiring. Just the experience of visiting with Roger is worth the call. He is a very honorable and ethical man. My partner (who is somewhat of a know it all and tends not to listen the first time round) is new to the sport and decided that his old wetsuit would do if he bought a bib because he was going to "layer" the materials for the changing conditions. He lives in Santa Cruz CA where the water temp is seldom above mid 50 degrees F. He stubbornly went ahead and spent $200 on a bib. A week later while talking to Roger about fins (he bought a pair of Black Team) he asked Roger about his layering plan. From the ensuing discussion my partner decided to buy the Mimetic and placed his order with Roger. Now at this point it may appear that Roger is just a good salesman who is hyping is own product. Roger called my partner back the next day and apologized, telling my partner that he just remembered that he was doing business with this other dive shop and that he needed to fill his order through that shop because he was not in the business of interfering with other businesses. Yes the other dive shop is a licensed distributor of Picasso products but it's not often that a business turns down a total sale for partial sale in support of others in the business. Roger spent over two hours on the telephone with me. He willingly answered all my questions, including telling me of other suits that were cheaper than his that may work for me. I readily admit that part of why I bought my Picasso Mimetic is because of the service I got. Right from the beginning, before I had ever bought anything from him, Roger treated me as if I was longtime consumer and a big spender. He has a depth of information about all aspects of freediving and spearfishing and shares it freely. May all your dives be warm ones, Angus
Roger is a great guy - good friend of mine in fact.
I was using Picasso products before we even met, and I am a walking Picasso Ad when anyone asks me about my choices in gear.
But I try to seperate business from friendship. Both just happen to be the same in this instance.
BTW - Angus - I am in Eugene!
I was using Picasso products before we even met, and I am a walking Picasso Ad when anyone asks me about my choices in gear.
But I try to seperate business from friendship. Both just happen to be the same in this instance.
BTW - Angus - I am in Eugene!
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thanks
Angus are ya working for Piccaso or what you should be a sale person. Just kidding
I may consider to look after Piccaso, but only the prize is chalenging. Anyway thanks you and Cliff your re: were helpful thanks
dodo
Angus are ya working for Piccaso or what you should be a sale person. Just kidding
I may consider to look after Piccaso, but only the prize is chalenging. Anyway thanks you and Cliff your re: were helpful thanksdodo
I have never owned a freediving wet suit but I have owned about 8 different makes of wetsuits ranging from one piece to 2 pieces. Some of the brands have been Body Glove, Mares, O'Niel, Oceanic, Henderson, etc. My last two have been Mares (5mm 1 piece) and Body Glove (3/2mm one piece), I have been very happy with these suits. Now my wife is a distributor for these products so I get a very good deal. On average I dive about once a week year round with an increase in summer to about three times a week. My diving includes freediving, scuba diving, and lobster hunting. My choice of inexpensive suits my needs and I do not feel they hinder my performance. I guess the question is...Does a specially made freediving wetsuit really make a difference?
A freediving suit makes a huge difference!
I think your question is one that is asked many times and yet it probably never gets a good answer. I hope to try and answer it as best as I can.
The unique properties of a freediving wetsuit is so noticable that, in my opinion, it is like a spiritual awakening
I will never dive in a "scuba wetsuit" again. Even the few times I choose to blow bubbles from a tank, I still dive in my 7mm Picasso Camu. If I were to take up tank diving again, my ultimate suit would be the Picasso Comercial, in either 7mm or 9mm. It gives the best of both worlds. Extreme durability and the warmth that rivals a drysuit, without the superfluous technology. K.I.S.S. is my philosophy on diving.
Picasso, Omer and other freedive equipment companies use Japanese neoprene which is unlike any other product being used in a typical wetsuit. The extreme flexibility and glove like fit make them extremely warm and comfortable to wear. You never have to fight the suit while wearing it. It moves with you, not against you. No zippers and integrated hood provide warmth unparalleled for their price.
Yes they do make a huge difference. They have their drawbacks, but I personally feel that those drawbacks are offset substantially by their advantages.
Hope this helps answer your question.
Safe Diving....
I think your question is one that is asked many times and yet it probably never gets a good answer. I hope to try and answer it as best as I can.
The unique properties of a freediving wetsuit is so noticable that, in my opinion, it is like a spiritual awakening
I will never dive in a "scuba wetsuit" again. Even the few times I choose to blow bubbles from a tank, I still dive in my 7mm Picasso Camu. If I were to take up tank diving again, my ultimate suit would be the Picasso Comercial, in either 7mm or 9mm. It gives the best of both worlds. Extreme durability and the warmth that rivals a drysuit, without the superfluous technology. K.I.S.S. is my philosophy on diving.
Picasso, Omer and other freedive equipment companies use Japanese neoprene which is unlike any other product being used in a typical wetsuit. The extreme flexibility and glove like fit make them extremely warm and comfortable to wear. You never have to fight the suit while wearing it. It moves with you, not against you. No zippers and integrated hood provide warmth unparalleled for their price.
Yes they do make a huge difference. They have their drawbacks, but I personally feel that those drawbacks are offset substantially by their advantages.
Hope this helps answer your question.
Safe Diving....