Anything specific I need to pay attention to? I cant afford the breathable versions, so other than that, what type of material and closures are the best?

Thanks,
David Mosley
www.seacats.org

You may want to look for nylon. These suits are about 25o $ each. Just shipped some over from Europe.
nylon is durable and still light.
The other option would be PVC but gets easily damaged once you contact something harder like a shackle.
For more info you may contact me directly.

Fritz

Stohlquist tells me that they have switched to their own laminate which they are very happy with. Their breathable suit should be 200 bucks cheaper this spring.

Nobody had actually seen the full suit... e but they make a dry top out of the same material.

Flaps over the zippers and gasket seals protect the seals

Fleece around the neck is very nice.

relief zipper is damn practical.

A non skid butt is important. (If you are buoy racing... the dry suit can be too bulky and slippery.)

Take Care
Mark

I will not consider a suit with zip along the back shoulder blades...you must have someone to help you zip/unzip it. This is a pain if you like to sail single handed at times...imaging heading out all zipped up and the wind dying and things getting hot...you're essentially trapped in the suit until you get back on shore!

Ask me how I know!

MIke.

All good advice, are there any that double as a dive suit also. I have looked online at some dive suits, and seem to have a gasket to inflate them somehow. Dont think I need that on the cat. I dive and sail though, so a little practicality to kill 2 birds would be nice.
david mosley

Dive drysuits and sailing drysuits are completely different animals. There is no way I would where a dive dry suit while sailing. And it is impossible to dive in a sailing drysuit. Stohlquist seems to have value for the money. I have a Kokotat and really like it but they are expensive. Whatever you buy get the booties on it to keep the feet dry.

Mike Hill
H20 #791

I'm currently checking out several different drysuits...there is one on ebay (Typhoon) from a British vendor that seems to be the best value for a breathable (~340 USD). Their shipping adds another $40...but this is still the lowest cost I've seen for a breathable, front entry suit with latex booties.

Mike.

Whats your favorite?
I have looked at Kokotat, and can get front entry breathable for about 599, anything else in that price range I should check out? What are the pros using?

David Mosley
www.seacats.org

I couldn't find it for $599.

Thanks,
Luiz

I found it at http://www.shop4adventure.com/page97.html

David
www.seacats.com

Thanks!

In my search, I noticed that Kokatat dry suits without Gore-Tex socks/zipper are sold with discounts, while the ones with socks/zipper are not. I guess they will stop making them without socks/zipper.

It seems that the cheapest Kokatat+zipper+socks+reflective tape sales for $735.00 in APS

They also have a Kokatat swift entry dry suit for $342.00

Good luck,

what about this Musto?
http://www.apsltd.com/Prods/prod10418.asp

Between the 2, which ia best? I need to buy soon!

David Mosley
www.seacats.org

Look for all dry suits they have in http://www.apsltd.com/Depts/dept202.asp ( Link

I like it. The photo shows socks... but only latex seals are mentioned in the text.

Cheers

My 2 cents:
Breathable? Definitely - Extends the comfort range in marginal conditions.
Relief Zipper? Get it now or get it later but you WILL need it.
Booties? Definitely - Not only dry feet but ease of ingress/egress.
Front Entry - Definitely

I bought a used Stohlquist and it's great but being an older model is not breathable.

Check APS as Luiz suggested, check the items "on sale" as they have a couple of drysuites discounted. Right now they are offering free shipping on orders placed before Jan 4 (verify).

Good Luck! You won't regret getting one.

I have a Gill dry suit for which I need to add a relief zipper. I haven't called them because they're suits are manufactured in Europe so I strongly doubt they have the capability to add it while it's in the U.S.

Who else can I go to to get a relief zipper added?

Call Stohlquist or APS. Stohlquist has great customer service and will probably do the work on your suit. I was told that APS does this type of work but they are closed until Jan 4 so I can't verify. I need a bootie replaced and a relief zipper also but will wait until the harbor freezes in.