.

[elliotdhmcgeary]

.

 

[AngoXC]

From more than one person i know i've heard the chest zips seal super well, but are like absolute hell to try and get on and off.

Not to mention you get to show off a bit of chest hair to the ladies as you walk up the beach from a hard days IRBing.

 

[jumpers]

Have used the rip curl and oneil chest zip wetties. The main advantage of them is they dont let water down your back, bloody warm as toast. Most of them - i think the e bomb - have a flap that you pull over your head that also stops the water. They are bit more difficult to get into but not all that much.
But i think if your are mainly using it for irb racing do you really need a chest zip to stop water geting in - suppose if you are the patient yes but driver maybe no???
Darn expensive though.
I heading south coast nsw in a week and just this morning got the steamer out....here comes winter

ps AngoX - only problem with showing off is you really have to gel the chest hair up to get it to poke out the zipper area as its fairly small - chicks just dig the line of chest hair poking out

 

[red_d0g]

Just recently bought myself an O'Neill Psycho 2 4/3 steamer and that is super good!
i'm down in tassie too and i have to keep letting water into it so i don't cook myself!
and that was a back zip, with some leaky bit to let water out at the bottom, under the zip.

I went a psycho over an xcel with the front zip, for purely the fact that the front zip looks like a pain in the backside.

In My Opinion - go a conventional wettie, just make sure it's full fluid sealed.

 

[syphon_the_python]

Sorry to hijack thread...I also have a couple of wetsuit questions.

Would something like this suit be versatile? I want something that will be warm enough for winter (potentially Tassie), and for the south coast of NSW in summer. Would I be better off going the 5mm version? Or will I get cooked?

http://www.wetsuitwearhouse.com/page/WW/mens-fullsuits-43/MWFUXF43

Also, has anyone used this wetsuit warehouse site? Apparently postage for a suit is around $40 to Australia.

Thanks,

Harry.

 

[red_d0g]

Thanks,

Harry.

What's you budget? and surfing or bodyboarding?
if it's not sealed, atleast go for a 4/3. It sure does get cold down here, brain freeze if you go under the water for some people (myself included)

 

[murrum]

Sorry to hijack thread...I also have a couple of wetsuit questions.

Would something like this suit be versatile? I want something that will be warm enough for winter (potentially Tassie), and for the south coast of NSW in summer. Would I be better off going the 5mm version? Or will I get cooked?

http://www.wetsuitwearhouse.com/page/WW/mens-fullsuits-43/MWFUXF43

Also, has anyone used this wetsuit warehouse site? Apparently postage for a suit is around $40 to Australia.

Thanks,

Harry.

You wont get 1 wetsuit that will work for tassie winter and Sth Coast summer. To be comfy in tassie, want a good qual 4/3 (oneil psycho) for winter. Water on NSW sth coast is still hovering around 20s at the moment - insanely warm. a 3/2 steamer is almost too warm now, but necessary in mornings due to air temps. In summer - a long armed spring suit will do you most of the time. dependent on upwelling.
You need 2 wetsuits.

 

[jumpers]

Sorry to hijack thread...I also have a couple of wetsuit questions.

Would something like this suit be versatile? I want something that will be warm enough for winter (potentially Tassie), and for the south coast of NSW in summer. Would I be better off going the 5mm version? Or will I get cooked?



Harry.

Think you have got too much variation in water temp - sth coast nsw in summer is NOWHERE near as cold as tassie (even summer tassie). I from central coast nsw and only need a springy during sth coast summers.
As posted above you will need 2 wetties.....the joys of surfing - i got 4 wetteis to cover everything

ps murrum - glad hear water still warm - i heading to bendy-uladulla-bawley in two weeks - cant wait surf real waves again

 

[fairy1]

Just recently bought myself an O'Neill Psycho 2 4/3 steamer and that is super good!
i'm down in tassie too and i have to keep letting water into it so i don't cook myself!
and that was a back zip, with some leaky bit to let water out at the bottom, under the zip.

I went a psycho over an xcel with the front zip, for purely the fact that the front zip looks like a pain in the backside.

In My Opinion - go a conventional wettie, just make sure it's full fluid sealed.

I bought a Psycho about 3 years ago but I think mine is a 3/3mm suit and it was too warm for warm for a Newcastle winter and I had to keep flushing cold water into it as well.

 

[jumpers]

I bought a Psycho about 3 years ago but I think mine is a 3/3mm suit and it was too warm for warm for a Newcastle winter and I had to keep flushing cold water into it as well.

Stop pissing in it nah only joking, physco top wettie

 

[tim_69]

every one i wake board with in winter have the Rip curl E bombs 3/2 and love them planning on getting one for myself soon

 

[fairy1]

Stop pissing in it nah only joking, physco top wettie

That's bad for the seams, I'd never piss in a wettie now would I? I'm so tubby I wouldn't need a wettie anymore.

 

[elliotdhmcgeary]

Have used the rip curl and oneil chest zip wetties. The main advantage of them is they dont let water down your back, bloody warm as toast. Most of them - i think the e bomb - have a flap that you pull over your head that also stops the water. They are bit more difficult to get into but not all that much.
But i think if your are mainly using it for irb racing do you really need a chest zip to stop water geting in - suppose if you are the patient yes but driver maybe no???
Darn expensive though.
I heading south coast nsw in a week and just this morning got the steamer out....here comes winter

ps AngoX - only problem with showing off is you really have to gel the chest hair up to get it to poke out the zipper area as its fairly small - chicks just dig the line of chest hair poking out

Thanks for that mate! Helped a fair bit.

Will be used for IRB crewing & patienting, with probably race driving next season. Along with that a lot of surfing & a lot of longer swims, so not sure if it's worth going the chest zip or not.

 

[jumpers]

Thanks for that mate! Helped a fair bit.

Will be used for IRB crewing & patienting, with probably race driving next season. Along with that a lot of surfing & a lot of longer swims, so not sure if it's worth going the chest zip or not.

No worries. I reckon just go normal zipper - the new wetties are so warm and will avoid the hassle of getting in and out of chest zips. I think reason chest zips were invented was to stop water rushing down back - by sounds your requirements i reckon back zip.
Another thought - jumping in and out of duck could damage wettie fairly easy (they so flimsy these days) - hate rip expensive e bomb through irb'ing

 

[maskerade]

peak wetsuits are made by rip curl i believe and are equally as good in my opinion. i use a rip curl steamer and a peak long arm spring suit and both are super flexible seal well and are high quality both lasting well over the 4 yearrs i have had them

 

[fairy1]

peak wetsuits are made by rip curl i believe and are equally as good in my opinion. i use a rip curl steamer and a peak long arm spring suit and both are super flexible seal well and are high quality both lasting well over the 4 yearrs i have had them

I'm not sure about now but Rip Curl suits were always made in Australia whereas the Peak suits were Asian, I always tried to support Rip Curl because they kept manufacturing local.

 

[elliotdhmcgeary]

Another thought - jumping in and out of duck could damage wettie fairly easy (they so flimsy these days) - hate rip expensive e bomb through irb'ing

'Aight, cheers mate. Are you talking about ripping a specific zip type, or just wetsuits in general? Haven't really seen many people rip wetsuits getting in and out, with some people in the IRB team having backzips, and one or two having the chest ones.

peak wetsuits are made by rip curl i believe and are equally as good in my opinion. i use a rip curl steamer and a peak long arm spring suit and both are super flexible seal well and are high quality both lasting well over the 4 yearrs i have had them

From my experiences, Peak aren't that good at all, wheres Rip Curl have some great reviews. Currently using a Peak Tri Suit thing, but with arms, and it really isn't that good at all. Glides through the water, but doesn't seal too well at all. That's at least with the specific swimming ones, the likes of Orca and Blue Seventy wetsuits, are a hell of a lot better.




Also, do any of you guys have any other brands i should look into specifically, for the sort of thing i'm looking at using the wetsuit for.

Cheers.

 

[jumpers]

'Aight, cheers mate. Are you talking about ripping a specific zip type, or just wetsuits in general? Haven't really seen many people rip wetsuits getting in and out, with some people in the IRB team having backzips, and one or two having the chest ones.

Also, do any of you guys have any other brands i should look into specifically, for the sort of thing i'm looking at using the wetsuit for.

Cheers.

Ripping - more referring to wear on the smoothie part, i always find the smoothie part does not wear as well - jumping in and out of duck may rub against it. E bombs are expensive wettie to damage.
Yep i think peak and curl are made at same place but curl puts extra "effort" -ie blind stitching, gluing etc. But i have mate who swears by the new peaks -he reckons more like old wetties which were bit thicker, tiny bit less flexible but lasted much longer.
I would (money permitting) buy e bomd / oneil physco / billabong for surfing and then get another cheaper version eg peak, west suits and use that solely for irb racing
Body gloves make good wetties also but be bit expensive with exchange rate at moment

 

[elliotdhmcgeary]

Ripping - more referring to wear on the smoothie part, i always find the smoothie part does not wear as well - jumping in and out of duck may rub against it. E bombs are expensive wettie to damage.
Yep i think peak and curl are made at same place but curl puts extra "effort" -ie blind stitching, gluing etc. But i have mate who swears by the new peaks -he reckons more like old wetties which were bit thicker, tiny bit less flexible but lasted much longer.
I would (money permitting) buy e bomd / oneil physco / billabong for surfing and then get another cheaper version eg peak, west suits and use that solely for irb racing
Body gloves make good wetties also but be bit expensive with exchange rate at moment

Aaaah! Decisions, decisions I'm more or less looking for a single "nice do it all" wetsuit, as owning two at the moment, it's just really inconvenient.

I'm not worried about too much rubbing when i'm jumping in and out of the boat, i mainly jump straight over the pontoon in and out, do you know what the knees are like on E-Bombs? Over Summer holidays i'm probably spending about 2 hours in the surf out on the racing mals, so that'd be my only issue with rubbing.

Cheers for all your help mate!

 

[24alpha]

Elliot, get the chesty, you'll look cool because you're up with the fashion. And besides, if Mich wears one, they gotta be good!

Rip Curl have always made the best wetsuit. Why look at anything else!