Surfriding Doubling up wetsuits?

mthomps

mthomps

Location
Cleveland
I'd really like to ride in december before the lake freezes. Our best waves occur when its cold. I have a 3/2 full suit that will get me through most of October feeling cool but comfortable. I was thinking, instead of buying an expensive high quality 4/3 what about buying a bigger 3/2 fullsuit or even a full sleeve top half and double up. It would save me a few hundred bucks . Has anyone ever tried this?
 
motozachl

motozachl

uPsiDeDoWn
Location
JAX
Yeah i've done this. It works but not the best. Your feet are going to get the coldest though so invest in some 10mm whatever booties. Also something to keep your head warm is nice like a hood although its really hard to turn your head. IMO just get a 5/4, its what I always wear even in November/Dec
 
Christian_83

Christian_83

Xscream
Location
Denmark
Ive done, dry suits. not ideal for jetski IMO. 6/5/4 GUL VIPER w hood, really nice and WARM, but a little "stiff". 3/2 with another 3 or 2mm over works just fine.
If you got 2 nice suits, wear them. But beware there is heck of a difference between suits(construction), get a suit with chest entry, I'm so happy for my GUL and billabong w chest entry. no more back flush,not like my jet pilot (2012 suit, seems like its made in the early 90s)
 
red_ak_ranger

red_ak_ranger

Location
Texas
SXIPro said:
When there is a skim coat of ice on the lake I wear a full 3/2 over a shorty, leaving me plenty of range of motion and pretty warm and comfy. The key for me is a neoprene hood, neo gloves and good booties.
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As he says. Biggest part is keeping your extremities warm. Easily the worst part of cold water alaska for me is when I go for a sub (or one of those half subs cause i suck at it 3/4 of the time) and get that chunk of water that hits me in the face. Instant brain freeze without a hood.
 
JT_Freeride

JT_Freeride

John Tetenes @Jtetenes
Location
Long Island
Get a fully sealed seam 3/2. You can sit in the water for hours and not get wet. You will need booties tho and run a cooling line up to your handle bars you can ride all year long. Xcel drylock. It's expensive but worth it. I have but I ruined it cause I ripped it all over the place from sharp edges.
 
Old_Skool

Old_Skool

Site Supporter
Location
Maine
mthomps said:
Anyone ever tried this thing? http://www.wetsuitwearhouse.com/page/WW/X215UF#.VCm-UlfGDlY

Has anyone ever had neoprene gloves that didn't fall apart? I had 3mm's that were to pieces half way through a season. All my socks/booties have held up.
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That hoodie is basically a tour coat. Racers use them all the time for cold water. I don't know about how it would work in December conditions in Cleveland but I think you'd be better off with a good 5/4 with a seperate hood. I use a Quicksilver Synchro 4/3 up till the lakes here in Maine freeze (around Thanksgiving time) and am comfortable as long as I keep my head, hands, and feet warm.
 
227

227

Its all about the surf!
Location
Oceanside, CA
Yes you can double up on wetsuits, but like mentioned it opens a whole new can of worms, mainly it cuts down on your flexability. The best way to double up wetsuits is to go with a full suit and then a shorty over it (Short legs and short arms), this keeps your core warm but allows movement. It's still not the best option though. Like already mentioned the best set up is a good 3/2 taped and sealed wet suit for regular riding and then, for when it starts to turn cold, use your taped 3/2 along with a tour coat. The tour coat does the same thing as a double up wetsuit but its way more flexible. If its too cold for the taped 3/2 suit and tour coat combo then you need to get a good dry suit. Thick wetsuits aren't the answer because they cut down your flexability. For your extremeities, for your hands use your regular riding gloves and hand warmers. Thick wetsuit gloves will give you major arm pump. Properly set up handwarmers keep your entire hands warm. If your handwarners aren't keeping your entire hand warm, then your set up is probably wrong. I see shot-ty, worthless, hand warmer set ups all the time. Since your feet don't really need to be flexible you can go with thick rubber like a scuba or kayaking setup. When it comes to feet, I prefer to rely on thick enough rubber to keep my feet warm instead of some sort of hand warmer set up because your feet do go in the water much more than your hands so they should not be relying on a running engine for warmth, plus having both foot and hand warmers robs your hands of needed warmth, and if your hands are cold, your whole body is cold.
 
XJCrawler

XJCrawler

Location
Edmonton, AB
227 said:
Yes you can double up on wetsuits, but like mentioned it opens a whole new can of worms, mainly it cuts down on your flexability. The best way to double up wetsuits is to go with a full suit and then a shorty over it (Short legs and short arms), this keeps your core warm but allows movement. It's still not the best option though. Like already mentioned the best set up is a good 3/2 taped and sealed wet suit for regular riding and then, for when it starts to turn cold, use your taped 3/2 along with a tour coat. The tour coat does the same thing as a double up wetsuit but its way more flexible. If its too cold for the taped 3/2 suit and tour coat combo then you need to get a good dry suit. Thick wetsuits aren't the answer because they cut down your flexability. For your extremeities, for your hands use your regular riding gloves and hand warmers. Thick wetsuit gloves will give you major arm pump. Properly set up handwarmers keep your entire hands warm. If your handwarners aren't keeping your entire hand warm, then your set up is probably wrong. I see shot-ty, worthless, hand warmer set ups all the time. Since your feet don't really need to be flexible you can go with thick rubber like a scuba or kayaking setup. When it comes to feet, I prefer to rely on thick enough rubber to keep my feet warm instead of some sort of hand warmer set up because your feet do go in the water much more than your hands so they should not be relying on a running engine for warmth, plus having both foot and hand warmers robs your hands of needed warmth, and if your hands are cold, your whole body is cold.
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Thick wetsuits don't cut your flexibilty if you buy the right suit. My 5/4 chestzip Mystic majestic suit flex's better then my old rip curl E-bomb 3/2
http://www.mysticboarding.com/products/mens-waterwear-113/wetsuits-115
 
Vumad

Vumad

Super Hero, with a cape!
Location
St. Pete, FL
I've worn my shorty over my long suit plenty of times. I also wear mx pants and shirt over then to block the wind. Coldest I have rode is 50.

I wore it 2 years ago in Daytona. I'm from fl so 50-60 is really cold for me. It's actually not the water that is the problem. It's when you start to dry out that it gets really cold. Our water temps are often higher than our air temps.
 
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