Posted by Wayne on June 23, 2002 at 23:23:55:
In Reply to: Wetsuit feedback posted by joediver on June 23, 2002 at 22:42:42:
I bought the 7mm X2 Body glove 1-piece suit this year. It is very warm and comfy. It replaced a well worn Pacific Wilderness "bear" wetsuit. The old one fell apart at the seams and they charged me $25 to sew it back together (6 months and about 50 dives), but it continued to unravel. It had about 250 dives when I retired it.
Comparing the two: The PW one had a front ziper that went pretty low down the left leg. This meant that I could visit the head without unsuiting. I miss that feature. But the front zipper made it really hard to remove the suit without assistance. It is hard to pull a suit over the shoulders from behind. The Body glove is a cinch to enter and exit without assistance. But i really miss the long front zipper when I have to do a predive pee. I looked at the Excursion briefly while I was at SC yesterday and it looks an aweful lot like the X2. I'll bet it is a winner.
I have 8 body glove wetsuits in the coat closet for the family. These are mostly shorties and 3mm suits we use for body surfing. Some have been handed down through up to three kids. My personal bodyglove shorty is finally starting to let go in places (material failures on a 15 year old suit that I out grew but still wear -- I am not complaining), but the seams have NEVER failed. They are of the highest quality. Assuming the newer suits are like the old ones I have, my new one and yours, if you buy it, will last a long time.
Wayne