Wetsuits
So i was talking to someone about when it would be warm enough to get out on my board since it was in the 30s and 40s air temp last week and i am itching to ride. They said something about a wetsuit. Does a wetsuit work like underarmor for water? and should i get the full suit or do i only need the shirt top?
Wetsuits work by keeping your body heat in the suit. Its called a Wet-Suit because you need to get it wet and let water in for it to work. Your warm body heat heats up the water and keeps you warm. I would not reccomend going in the water with just underarmor/rashguard. I would say get a fullsuit for those weather condtions, you will enjoy being in the water a lot more, and be able to stay in the water or at the beach a lot longer.. hope this helps
Alley-Oop - Rider
Victoria Skimboards- Rider
FREAK Traction- Rider
thanks dude...how much do you think a basic wetsuit will run me?
a good cheap full suit is like $150
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depends, the prices vary.. the more you pay, the more comfortable you will be in your suit. Meaning how well it keeps you warm, how well you can move in it, how often you get rashes from it. It all varies, i would do some research. If you have some money to spend look into Resistance wetsuits.. they are top-o-the-line
Alley-Oop - Rider
Victoria Skimboards- Rider
FREAK Traction- Rider
make sure you go to your local surf shop and try some on. different models/brands will fit differently, find the one with the best fit within your budget. dont be afraid to be picky and try a bunch of suits, they will bear with you as you might drop $100-$400 for a suit.
I agree ^ Like shin-n said try on a few suits to find the best fit. When I worked in surf shops, I would makes customers try on more than one, just to make sure they got the best fit (because fit is everything). Even if the suit is thick, if it doesn't fit right you'll be cold or can't move in it.Originally Posted by shin-n
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
i just got the new billibong foil for 130 its superstretchy and works really good
Here's my view on wet suits, for surfing you need the very best suit and most of all the very best fit, because you're in the cold water 99% of the time. Now when skimming you're only in the water a very short time, most of the time you're standing on the beach or running for a wave (so you're only getting cold when you fall). Now I'm not saying you don't need a good suit for skimming, because you do. I'm just saying skimming is a lot warmer than surfing. So that's my 2 cents.
Edit: billibong foil for 130, I'll have to look into that.=)
Last edited by Jim Gordon; 01-24-2011 at 08:58 AM.
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
idk i am more cold when im in the air on a windy day than when im in the water jim, the freezing air rips right through a suit
skim wetsuit technology is lacking. all that water that normally heats up and actually warms you, drains right out of the suit when you walk back up the beach. leaving you standing on a cold beach with a piece of wet rubber on your back.
No. I am fracking chill.
Yeah, I guess you're right about the cold air, but if the air is warmer than the water.......you should be warmer on the beach though.
It sounds like your wet suit is too big and doesn't hold water......all you need is a very thin layer of water. Get a better fitting suit or gain some weight.
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
i actually am in the market for a new 3/2. the quiksilver syncro that had done me so well finally stiffened up, probably due to my excessive "leave it in the trunk of my car still wet and sandy while i go to work for 5 hours"
No. I am fracking chill.
I bought a 3/2 Xcel chest-zip (not sure of model, retail it was $325) for around $200 last may, and I'm starting to get disappointed. It's extremely warm, but the seals are welded and then taped over, and the tape keeps coming up on the left calf, and ripping off on the wrists. The seals are still watertight because of the weld. I'm guessing that this is either from me putting the wetsuit on badly, or from the stress of sprinting all day in a suit that wasn't made for it. Either way, it seems to me that a strongly welded seam without tape would be better for skimboarding.
well the usual is 30 degree air and 35 degree water, either way youre gonna be friggin coldYeah, I guess you're right about the cold air, but if the air is warmer than the water.......you should be warmer on the beach though.
It sounds like your wet suit is too big and doesn't hold water......all you need is a very thin layer of water. Get a better fitting suit or gain some weight.
send dat bad boy to xcel and they will fix her up to being brand new
I wouldn't go skimming in that.^ Wait till spring!
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
so i probably don't need a suit i just need to wait till it is warm enough?
Even though Mississippi is warm in the summer, you'll still need one for winter and maybe spring. You'll not need one as thick or as good as the northern states where it's a hell of a lot colder.
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
so could i get away with something as light as a 1mm or should i get a 2/3?
Get a cheap 3/2 or a short sleeve fullsuit
Yeah ^, get a 3/2, that's what I have and it keeps me warm. A 3/2 is not thick and you can still move good. Also, I live in Oregon and it's not warm, but we don't get snow on the beach like back east. I like a long sleeve full-suit though (my arms get cold) and if I fall on the hard sand, my elbows are protected.
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
I just got an oneill mutant 543 for xmas and it works pretty well for anything I'm doing this season. ridiculously stretchy(more so than my 3/2) and perfect fit along with a watertight feeling that is just lovely in the winter temps that are inexplicably always warmer than zeus' NJ temps... but yea solid suit, and the seam welds seem to hold up well. chest-shoulder area is really tricky to dry tho, wonder how long this thing will last me..
dont trust online readings, ur water is probably colder than ours or about the same. go to local fishing websites and such that actually get a real reading. most recent ive seen is 35 here. and yea, 543 mutant is badass
I have found that keeping a wetsuit wet is not that bad, what is bad is the sun. The sun will rot your suit and the heat from the sun or your trunk isn't good either. I just rinse my suit out with fresh water & let my suit dry out slow (never put it in a hot dryer).
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
every 2 or 3 sessions i put my stuff in washing machine on cold and lightest setting. no soap or anything. then hang it in bathroom to dry. i also flip it inside out after 2 days to dry the inside
I also did this with my 3/2 and it has come out with rips even w.o a spin cycle , which made it take forever to dry. but turning it inside out, rinsing it, then letting it dry a day inside out then a day normal side out seems to work best. collar area stays damp fo ever on my new one tho. back zips are easy, stay inside out w. zipper entirely open and exposed to airflow
hmm, was it a cheaper 3/2, cause my 3/2 gets washed all the time and nothing has happened in the past 2 winters. it probably dries because its only a 3/2
It was an oneill hammer from prob. '07 and I got it in great condition in which it remained until I used it all winter and most spring last year, was in a shambles by the time I took it out in oct or nov this year. and at most I washed it once a week. I thought I was taking good care of it...
skimming beats the shit out of suits also
yea i figured it was mostly that bc the kneepads went first, then a shoulder seam, then one of the crotch seams, then both of the crotch seams... Its also just a completely different kind of neoprene than the stuff in the mutant..seemed more porous and far less stretchy. but one of my friends uses a 3/2 dive suit thats from like 1980 that has nothing on it except for 2 ancient fixes that my grandpa must have did with solder or some wierd shit. and he falls all the time lol.but yea I hope my mutant lasts much longer bc its a boss
I'm in the market for some new boots. I like the mutant boots because they have a velcro opening. I have had zipper sides (which blew-out) and the slip on ones that were hard as hell to get on, and rip when doing so. Anyway do you guys know how good the mutant boots are and is there any other brands that have a velcro opening?
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
i have a pair of 7mm xcel boots that are glorious, i've never had cold feet with them, even when the air temps have gone down to 20 degrees or so. although that probably too much for oregon.
i also always jump in the shower with my suit and stuff and haven't had a problem.
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Edit......Ecel, sounds good. Easy on-off UltraStretch ankle panel with pull loop, Rex are they easy to put on?
J Gordon Skimboards - Owner
[Remember: your front foot is your gas and back foot is your brake.]
(speed = float)
pretty easy to put on when dry. taking them off is another story, but so is taking any wet wetsuit off.
i think they make 5mm ones too. because my 7mm in anything above 50 degrees, my feet start to get really toasty, but that's when i start barefooting it anyways
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