I tried VISSLA's 7 Seas model in New York this late spring and was hot in the 3/2-millimeter full suit.
Pros: Price tag, sleeve gaskets, stitching and gluing, 1-year warrantyĬons: Neoprene retains water and gets a little heavy VISSLA's 7 Seas is economical but doesn't cut any corners to deliver a functional wetsuit at a fair price. The new Psychos are miles ahead, but there aren't enough problems or even one single tear in my suit that warrant tossing mine out just yet.Ĭleanline Surf, the Pacific Northwest's coldwater surf aficionados, called the Psycho Tech "the pinnacle of wetsuit technology and performance." The site goes on to taut it for being lightweight, warm, durable, and flexible - I don't disagree.Īlso, the TechnoButter neoprene rejects water so well that it stays light even when wet, and it dries much faster than most suits. My old Psycho II model from 2009, which saw heavy service through 2010 and has seen service in most of the years since, is still, shockingly, in pretty good shape.
This wetsuit is flexible, and I've found it to hold up in temperatures considerably lower than their rating. That alone may or may not speak volumes to you, but the US military is not known to be one to skimp on matters of national security. O'Neill puts a lot of money into research and design, and while the US military doesn't exactly endorse or use any single wetsuit, they've frequently sent personnel out in O'Neill suits. If there's one company I'd put all my good faith in keeping me from the wrath of hypothermia, it's the late, lauded laureate and godfather of the modern wetsuit, Jack O'Neill. O'Neill's Psycho Tech is the kind of cozy, stretchy, almost watertight suit that becomes oh-so-precious to cold-water surfers when winter storms roll through and leaky seams threaten to end surf sessions early. Pros: Warm, almost watertight stitching, lightweight, quick-drying
The O'Neill Psycho Tech is made with water-resistant neoprene to keep it from retaining water, and its top-notch stitching makes it almost watertight.
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To help anyone shopping for a new suit, I've field-tested a number of wetsuits from top brands like O'Neill and Rip Curl, consulted with diving and surfing enthusiasts, and conducted plenty of research to come up with a list of the best currently available.Īt the end of this guide, I've included answers to a few FAQs, including the differences in suit types and thickness, as well as some insight into the best way to care for your wetsuit and how to pick out a diving suit. What one person might need for kayaking might be too cumbersome or ill-fitting for a surfer. Paddleboarders, kayakers, and divers, among others, also don neoprene getups to keep cold water from cutting their outings short - but not every wetsuit is a jack-of-all-trades type of suit. Surfing isn't the only water sport one might wear a wetsuit for, however. But wear the right wetsuit and you'll quickly forget all about the hypothermia-inducing water temp (for the most part). Paddling out to a break with water temperatures below 65 or 70 degrees Fahrenheit without a generous helping of rubber ranges from slightly uncomfortable to downright deadly. For anyone who doesn't live in the tropics, wearing a wetsuit while surfing is a necessity.