Interested in opinions on wetsuits

SFKneelo · Post by **SFKneelo** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 11:50 am

Hello,

I'm sitting on enough credit at Freeline to buy top-of-the-line.

What's best these days?

Which should be avoided?

I'll probably stick to a 4/3, but am curious if there are 5/3 suits that are great...

Many thanks!

gene west · Post by **gene west** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 11:58 am

SF Kneelo- while my O'neil 4/3 Heatseeker is great for me here in S.D.- when I lived in Mendocino, I wore a Hotline 5/4, built in Hood, one of the best wetsuits I ever owned, a lot of rubber, but I never got cold, ever!

BillL · Post by **BillL** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 12:02 pm

It doesn't matter what you get as long as you get a deal on it!
I'm all about being toasty, either that or I'm a wimp when it comes to cold. I had a Body Glove Vapor 5/3 last winter up there, it was warm but the knee patches disintegrated within days.Hopefully they have changed their designs. The boys all swear by the O'Neill Psycho 2 6/4. They hold up longer and stay warm longer even if you let them ferment in the back of your car. I'll see you in the fall!

surfhorn · Post by **surfhorn** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 12:08 pm

Freeline now carries O'Neill (which happens to fit my body shape well).
I'm looking at the 5/4/3 Mutant - or Psycho-don't remember which name- with removal hood for this winter. I've been using a 4/3 for the past, few years but with the flexibility of the newer neoprene, I'm going for a toasty, dead-of-winter suit this year. I used to use 5/3s many years ago but didn't like the stiffness so went with the 4/3. The new 5/4/3s are more flexible than my current 4/3.

I talked with James Antonelli this AM (who works at Freeline and who I met when he was 12 y/o kneeboarder back in the mid 1970's), and according to him this is the call.

If you're in the shop, check out the new 6'4 "shquad" that John built after his three R&D trips to Fiji this year! I also test rode a 6'0" battail quad last April and was really impressed by the board's performance. That was during the weekend that 38th Ave went off big time. Nothin' more fun than riding an unfamiliar board in big, solid surf!

skansand · Post by **skansand** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 12:18 pm

my 4/3 mutant has been my favorite suit to date....verry durable and sooo warm..

.up in santa cruz i was never cold in or outa the water and there was ice on the ground!!!....

even Santa Clause was shivering....

the zipperless entry is the is the best feature.. and the the kneepads look almost new still...

ocean7847 · Post by **ocean7847** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 2:47 pm

I will second the opinion on the Hotline 5/4 built-in hood. I swear, I end up flushing my suit in an attempt to cool down. However, I have heard very positive reviews of the O'neill Psycho 2 (pretty much any thickness, even 4/3). I think between those two you're going to be VERy warm, so go after the one that fits better. I recall O'neill suits fit me better, but its been a while since I've had a new one. This Hotline that I'm wearing is a bit looser in the chest/arms (maybe because I'm wasting away) but it does make it easier to paddle around when its not restricting my shoulder movement. Freeline is great. I picked up my a new standup stick there that was shipped from San Diego and the guys called me to let me know I left the fins behind (very very nice glow-in-the-dark colored Al Merrick G-AM's (nicely foiled)). They could've pocketed the fins and I wouldn't have ever known. Glad to see that kind of honestly (never would've happened at the SD shops).

Let us know if you get the Psycho 2 how you like it - I am contemplating getting one just because a) this 5/4 Hotline is so warm that I almost want to back down to a 4/3 and 2) it never hurts to have two winter suits.

alfredo zavala · Post by **alfredo zavala** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 5:37 pm

I'm going on year 4 of my psycho 4/3 and it is still hanging in there great.
I've never gotten cold in that thing and it can get pretty cold down here- i've read somewhere that the water stays colder than SCruz because of something or other(real scientific)

I do where gloves (Psycho 1.5mm), and they surely contribute to total body warmth.
I surf at least once a week and I am not overweight for my height. I am meticulous about rinsing after every go out and hang it on one of those special shoulder hangers for wetsuits, so this may count for its durability.

ScottMac · Post by **ScottMac** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 8:13 pm

Jimbo · Post by **Jimbo** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 8:27 pm

I have a Psycho 2 4/3 that I have never ever been cold in. It is 3 years old and looks and feels brand new - kneepads are killer. Fits my fat little butt just infe!

Scott · Post by **Scott** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 8:52 pm

I also have a Psycho 2 6/4 (what a beast, but still flexible). Going on my third year and excellent endurance. Pretty tough wetsuit to get into, however, by design. You really have to come up with a system to do it on your own. Kneepads are great. Some of the flap velcro has come off--that could have been designed better.

Craig · Post by **Craig** » Sun Aug 26, 2007 9:36 pm

4/3 Rip Curl F Bomb Fire Skin, really warm and super flexible.

sTiLl a gROm

james · Post by **james** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 1:16 am

In Europe, O'neill sell the Psycho 2 in 5/3mm, but apparently not in the US ?

Anyways, my 5/3mm has kept me warm for three hour winter surfs and held up to four winters use so I'm impressed by this suit, I'll be replacing it this winter with the same again as it fits me just right too.

SFKneelo · Post by **SFKneelo** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 7:35 am

WOW! Lots of great responses!

Surfhorn, I was wondering about O'Neills at Freeline. Ironically, if I didn't find a suit, I was thinking about boards and getting an O'Neill elsewhere... decisions, decisions!

After years and years of O'Neills, I tried on a number of different types at Freeline, and found the QuikSilver to fit me best. It did me well, but is now decaying.

And then there's always the fun of walking into whatever shop and saying 'Do you have a Large, Black Psycho?' Although it looks like 'Mutant' is also on the menu... Kinda like an 'Is your refrigerator running?' type mentality...

6/4s and Houdini-style entry/exits? So the flexibility is still there? With the new wetsuit flexibility, it looks like there's a trend towards thickness. Toasty is good!

ScottMac, it took me forever to find a hood that I could live with, which are the squidlids... For me, having the restriction on my neck was bothersome to the point it was hard to breathe (or so it felt.) Don has one, and likes it.

HotLine, Boz... Lots of ideas... many thanks!

BillL... looking forward to this Fall! It's been a long, long Summer!

Beeline2.0 · Post by **Beeline2.0** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 7:43 am

surfhorn · Post by **surfhorn** » Mon Aug 27, 2007 7:46 am

Its good that Freeline carries O'Neill's, Hotline, Quiksilver, Body Glove and one or two toerh brands; one-stop shopping for the discerning kneeboarder. But its difficult to try on more than one or two suits at a sitting. Your body starts sweating after the first one, making trying to fit a second suit difficult. You may want to schedule two or three seperate trips - or time in betweeen- to cool down.

I was a salesperson at Freeline for years and it was a lot of work to get the customer fitted properly. We used to take exacting measurements for custom fit Bailey Wetsuits out of Fortuna, CA. If you didn't know where to fudge the numbers, the custom suit would fit too tight in the shoulders. I'd always but an extra 1/2 inch in the shoulders and bicep measurements - without telling the company, of course.