Hi brains trust, I need a new winter wetsuit. Have been very unimpressed at the quality of one's I've had recently. They tear and fall apart at the seams way too soon.

What's the best quality wetsuit you've bought?

Ion Strike, which is windsurfing specific. Tried a few different brands and keep coming back to this brand.

I've had a couple of Snugg, made to measure (uk Newquay), lasted much better than ripcurl flash bomb I have.
had one for 15yrs kite/windsurfing, I have got a couple of foil cuts since winging on newest Snugg. im in UK so easier to deal with. I have heard that some ppl have to send them back for alterations if measured up wrong.

I've been very happy with Needs Essentials from Torquay, have purchased three by mail order over the last few years (for family and me) and been v happy with them, quality seems excellent and pricing is good.

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kato said..
Ion Strike, which is windsurfing specific. Tried a few different brands and keep coming back to this brand.

But do they go the distance

O'Neil Psychotech. Expensive, but worth it.

DC

There are always tradeoffs in wetsuits. Stretch and durability (and to a lesser extent warmth) are almost always inversely correlated.

I have found ONeill to be the best balance of stretch / durability / warmth / fit for ME. I also value stretch much more than durability in a thicker winter suit, than a do in a summer suit where even the cheapest neoprene is still stretchy at 2mm. Hence, I pay for premium material winter suits and buy more basic summer suits.

First step is to find a reputable brand that fits you well. From there you can pay up for the more premium (generally less durable models) or go for the more basic (more durable, less stretchy) models.

Patagonia but $$$

I wear a R5 6/5/4 a lot. I get about 1 1/2 years out of a winter suit before they're really falling apart. I've gotten good at seam repair as icy balls is not fun!

Best booties: Solite: soliteboots.com

Best winging gloves I've used: waterproof.eu/products/accessories/gloves/

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foilthegreats said..
Patagonia but $$$

I wear a R5 6/5/4 a lot. I get about 1 1/2 years out of a winter suit before they're really falling apart. I've gotten good at seam repair as icy balls is not fun!

Best booties: Solite: soliteboots.com

Best winging gloves I've used: waterproof.eu/products/accessories/gloves/

I, too, like my Patagonia suits. Great fit, super warm, stretchy and good customer service. I've had one suit replaced and another had the seams addressed free of charge. I take care of my suits (rinse after use, drip dry out of the sun) and both have held up for a number of years whereas the other "surf-specific" brands seem to last 1-1.5 years before they just aren't warm anymore.

The best all round suit I've had is a c-skins wired , recently had mystic winter suit that's lasted really well but the seams on the summer one after one season as started to come apart.
I do check my suits and use iron on seam tap or patch repair etc , probably adds quite a bit of extra life to them but after a couple of years they don't hold there heat as well and feel as nice and stretchy.

I've been wearing DaKine wetsuits since last June.. 4/3 mission zipless and a 6/4 Cyclone hooded zipless.. I can't recommend highly enough.. warm stretchy and above all durable .. They are also true thickness .. I.e the 4/3 is 4mm / 3mm neoprene with a lining extra ..Some brands include the lining in the thickness ..

One other thing I like best is how far below the knee the knee pads extend.. perfect for knee starting your wing board.. see wax marks in pic below..

Used Mystic Majestic 5/3mm Back Zip for 13 months, nice stretch, warm and comfy but started to fall apart, maybe can squeeze a few more months out of it.
My next one will be shark stop wetsuit sharkstop.co/science/ (AU based startup), should be a win win for safety, knee starts wear and foil cuts.

"Shark Stop bite-resistant wetsuits incorporate space-age ultra-high molecular weight polyethylene nanofibre (UHMPE).
VIEW WETSUITS
UHMPE has a strength to weight ratio 50% greater than kevlar, and 8-15x greater than steel*UHMPE nanofibres are high modulus and abrasion-resistant, along with being UV resistant and lightweight with low density. This technology is widely used in ballistic protection and defence applications"

My last Mystic started falling apart after about 3 wears. Bought a Rip Curl Dawn Patrol and the neck on that fell apart within the month.

The Mystic is now a short arm wetsuit as it was the seams below the elbow that came apart. Plus sections near the chest I have stitched up myself. Should last a bit longer.

The Rip Curl did a warranty job for me and replaced the neck with different material. Obviously they acknowledged the lack of durability of the previous material.

No idea what to get for winter in a 4/3 though.

I'd skip anything with welded seams. Most brands have dropped them, but there are a few holdouts. They sounded like a good idea at the time, but they make the suit stiffer and eventually they crack anyway.

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firiebob said..

kato said..
Ion Strike, which is windsurfing specific. Tried a few different brands and keep coming back to this brand.

But do they go the distance

Well and truly go the distance . Comfortable even for 24 hrs

I got sick of super expensive RipCurl leaking during the first season even though they fit me perfectly. Couldn't ever be bothered with warranty hassles.
Been using Need Essential for the last 18 months, love them, basically half the price and the inner and outer sealed ones remain fully sealed for way longer then the RipCurl. Also like the whole philosophy of the company.

Appreciate the feedback. Will have a look a Need Essentials. Never heard of them. I am really interested in something last more than a season before the icy jabs of cold water start gushing in through a rip, tear or seam giving way.

I have a couple of Need Essentails, imo the chest zip is noticeably more flexible than the back zip.

I got a 4/3 Need Essentials chest zip in 2019. Neck started going after about 6 months, I notified them just after the warranty period (didn't realise it was 6 months). Tiny bit pi**ed but not too much as it was really my fault for not letting them know sooner. I stitched it up with fishing braid and bits of an old wetty. Worked well enough.
Has lasted 3 years now. Neck is finally knackered as are some of the seams. I'm about to buy another from Need Essentials. Good value I reckon.

The issue I see with most modern wetsuits is the "glide skin" neck material. Although it works a treat, this material has no durability. Show me a wetsuit that doesn't have it and I'm interested.

I have 3 hooded suits now that I use a lot and get 2years out of the needessentials hooded 6/4/3 and is pretty long for me and with there price a pretty good deal. Pretty much the same with Srface for the same price. Main difference between NE and Srface is the way they open the zipper and I prever the hooded of the Srface. The NE has a slight benefit in an finer inside liner

The suits that lasts the longests are for me the high end C-skins. Warm, supple and after 5y still going strong!Downtrade: they take longer to dry and cost twice the price of an Needessentials but well worth it.

Those srface suits look interesting...30 day try and rtn offer as well.

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toppleover said..
I have a couple of Need Essentails, imo the chest zip is noticeably more flexible than the back zip.

I'm a bit of a woos in the cold so went with a 5/4 front zip.

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Sputnik11 said..

toppleover said..
I have a couple of Need Essentails, imo the chest zip is noticeably more flexible than the back zip.

I'm a bit of a woos in the cold so went with a 5/4 front zip.

Hey Sputnik, did you get the cheaper 5/4 unsealed? Just as a heads up and sorry I didn't clarify, the fully seam sealed ones are a quantum warmer. I've got one of the 543 hooded unsealed ones and it's great but basically let's water in through every seam. The 3/2 fully sealed that I've literally used 100's of times still hardly lets a drop in.
If you feel the cold do your self a favour and get one of the fully sealed ones. They are great to deal with, I'm sure they would change the order if you rang the Torquay shop.

The other thing I've found that makes a huge difference is a wind proof jacket over the top, I've got a Mystic Wind Barrier Jacket - it's a kiting one but perfect for winging. It's thin and super light and totally blocks the wind and the windchill.

I am a bit hooked on needEssentials wetsuits. I have 4 dating from 2017 to now. The performance is excellent and they are ridiculously cheap. I strongly recommend the liquid taped thermal suits.

The older suits had a variety of minor cosmetic issues, either a little bit of loose stitching, or a little bit of delamination of the lining around the cuffs. The suits still work fine but can look a little sad with fraying bits here and there. Suits with faults in the warranty period were replaced immediately. The quality and durability of the newer products is much better than the older ones.

I used to buy RipCurl suits and I would have said the quality and durability is fantastic. It would want to be at 2-3 times the price of a need suit. In recent years the RipCurl suits would start to degrade in various areas so they're not as good as they used to be.

It's worth pointing out that new wetsuits are much warmer than old wetsuits. I have a 10 year old RipCurl 4/3 than I now use as a warm weather suit. My newest needEssentials 4/3 thermal is warmer than a 4 year old 5mm. I am sure part of the additional warmth comes from better materials and seam sealing. The older suits would be more leaky and I have read that the nitrogen gas bubbles in the neoprene leak out with wear and tear. Not sure about that one.

I have got an ION semi dry 5/4.
For sailing is super good. Really good quality and really warm. Thoroughly recommend ION.

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JonathanC said..

Sputnik11 said..

toppleover said..
I have a couple of Need Essentails, imo the chest zip is noticeably more flexible than the back zip.

I'm a bit of a woos in the cold so went with a 5/4 front zip.

Hey Sputnik, did you get the cheaper 5/4 unsealed? Just as a heads up and sorry I didn't clarify, the fully seam sealed ones are a quantum warmer. I've got one of the 543 hooded unsealed ones and it's great but basically let's water in through every seam. The 3/2 fully sealed that I've literally used 100's of times still hardly lets a drop in.
If you feel the cold do your self a favour and get one of the fully sealed ones. They are great to deal with, I'm sure they would change the order if you rang the Torquay shop.

The other thing I've found that makes a huge difference is a wind proof jacket over the top, I've got a Mystic Wind Barrier Jacket - it's a kiting one but perfect for winging. It's thin and super light and totally blocks the wind and the windchill.

I got this one - needessentials.com/collections/mens-wetsuits/products/5-4mm-premium-thermal-chest-zip-wetsuit

I have two.
An O'neill top of the line which i use only for surfing and surffoiling.Flexy,warm and way tougher than RipCurl(flexy but leaky in a month).
I have tried Needessentials,Vissla,Billabong...good but nothing beats the Oneill.

For Wingfoiling i use an RRD i got of Ebay, warm an very tough but i would not surf in it, not flexy enough.

No magic bullets IMHO, for prone paddling i need a flexible (and delicate) suit.
For the Wing a kite or windsurf suit with lots of smooth skin for windchill is fine and will last very long.I am not big so in winter mornings i can use a 2mm XL smooth skin zipper jacket on top.

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wind driven said..
I've been very happy with Needs Essentials from Torquay, have purchased three by mail order over the last few years (for family and me) and been v happy with them, quality seems excellent and pricing is good.

Thank you - I was not aware of them. I like what I read on their website and will consider for my next suit.

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foilthegreats said..
Patagonia but $$$

I wear a R5 6/5/4 a lot. I get about 1 1/2 years out of a winter suit before they're really falling apart. I've gotten good at seam repair as icy balls is not fun!

Best booties: Solite: soliteboots.com

Best winging gloves I've used: waterproof.eu/products/accessories/gloves/

any tips on seam repairs mate

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Rodskeg said..

foilthegreats said..
Patagonia but $$$

I wear a R5 6/5/4 a lot. I get about 1 1/2 years out of a winter suit before they're really falling apart. I've gotten good at seam repair as icy balls is not fun!

Best booties: Solite: soliteboots.com

Best winging gloves I've used: waterproof.eu/products/accessories/gloves/

any tips on seam repairs mate

I usually use a razor to cut and open the seem to repair. For me the groin area is always the first to go. Patagonia seems are taped. You can usually feel and see where they have started to separate. I cut through the tape and open the seem down as close as I can to the outside seem weld. I usually don't repair an area bigger then a few inches at a time as it can become too messy.
I've only used the Aquaseal NEO, I liberally apply to both sides of the seem then wait 5 minutes and apply another coat. I push together and carefully clean up any excess pushing above the seem. Wait another 5 minutes then push and seal the seems together. This product works extremely well when used currently, read the instructions of the product: www.gearaid.com/products/aquaseal-repair-adhesive-neoprene?variant=718509309969

You can always practice on an old wetty, it's probably a good idea just to know how the cement product you're using will cure.