Review: TLS350 drysuit and XM450 underwear
Chris and I attended the Diving Unlimited International, Inc (DUI) DOG Rally and Demo Tour at Dutch Springs, PA. For $10 or $15, you can try out any of DUI's drysuits. The demo staff is comprised of about 4 DUI employees and volunteers from participating local dive groups.
You begin with a registration process that needs improvement. We were about 5th in line and there was commotion regarding whether to send the clipboards along the process, whether to collect the ID/After providing ID and securement of funds, whether the rest of the staff were ready, etc. These demos have been going on for 20 years. The process should be like clockwork. To their credit, the process after registration was clockwork.
From registration, you take your forms to each station starting with equipping your regulator with a drysuit inflator hose. Next is sizing participants for neck and wrist seals. You arrive at a table with multiple seals and you try each one until you find one that provides a nice snug seal without restricting blood flow. I was fitted properly on the first try each time.
I then proceeded to the first flattery of the day. One of the four volunteers staffing the undergarment station immediately commented "you must be a runner" as I approached. I replied that I run on occasion and thanked him for the compliment. Unfortunately, it was difficult to flirt with the one who proceeded to size me completely. They asked me what kind of diving I tended to dive in to which I responded that even 85 degree water is cold to me. I was handed DUI's latest XM450 undergarment that retails for $538.
I walked deliriously happily to the drysuit fitting area where I infomed them I'd like to try out a front-zip TLS350. Retailing at a starting price of $2078, the TLS350 is a versatile suit that should perform admirably in most conditions I would dive in. I was asked what size undergarment I had and then handed a small TLS350. I don't remember if this same station was where I received my rockboots and thermal socks, but those were received just prior to donning all the equipment. I was able to zipseal the neck and wrist seals into the TLS350 without a problem.
The XM450 undergarment looks stylish. It has a fine kevlar print/texture that does not appear in pictures resulting in a futuristic appearance. It feels lighter than the undergarment I certified in, yet when in 41F/5C degree, 70 foot deep water there wasn't the slightest chill felt. During my 80F/27C degree surface interval, the XM450 was only unzipped and didn't leave me sweaty. Mobility felt unhampered outside the drysuit.
The TLS350 did not perform as well.
Since seating in the final fitting area was limited, I had rushed my suit on and made the mistake of leaving my rockboots for last. When fully in my suit and all the air squeezed out, bending down to put on my rockboots was extremely difficult. The front zipper and inflator valve press against each other forming a solid barrier to flexbility. There did not seem to be sufficient give in the Trilaminate material at the back of the suit providing further resistance to bending.
The need for RockBoots adds complication to dive prep. I preferred the integrated boots on my previous drysuit. The RockBoots fit into my stock open-heeled Tusa Platina fins, but required lots of force to remove from my fins. My guess is I encountered the same phenomenon as the reviewer I linked to at the bottom of this blog entry.
In the past, 16 pounds of weight was excessive and caused me to drag -- with 12 pounds I was a shark in my Moby. Since I was unfamiliar with this gear, I decided to use 16 pounds to offset any potential buoyancy differences. When I was nicely buoyant to put my fins on, I should have listened to my instincts. Upon striding trying to enter the water, I couldn't descend past a couple feet even with the BCD and suit fully deflated. Following our DM and Instructors' guidance to exhale really deeply, I was able to finally descend albeit slowly. We swam a short exploration of the lake and I had a couple runaway ascents. Even though I was diving by the book.
We spent a long surface interval shooting the breeze with Abby about how much we love DAN, assisting divers around us, and meeting people. During part of the surface interval, I took my arms out of the suit. The suit truly can be self-don in terms of the zipper, however, putting in the right arm is a chore. Once you have the left arm in, there isn't enough give in the suit to put on the right unless you're a contortionist. Once the right arm is in, the head seal which thus far has been pressing painfully into my back slips over easily and the zipper glides well into place.
For the second dive, I added four pounds of trim weight which helped with my buoyancy. Aside from added weight, the only other difference in my dive was keeping my purge valve set to full open. My buoyancy control was much better but I did notice two things. The inflator did not always add air. And at several points when trying to purge from my arm, nothing would happen even though there was a giant bubble of air at the purge point. Therefore, I'm chalking up my less than ideal buoyancy to a mix of unfamiliar gear and slightly malfuctioning demo gear.
Overall Suit Ratings (0-10)
Style: 8
Flexibility: 6
Ease of entry: 7
Price: High
Comparison between the Whites Fusion and DUI CF200
You begin with a registration process that needs improvement. We were about 5th in line and there was commotion regarding whether to send the clipboards along the process, whether to collect the ID/After providing ID and securement of funds, whether the rest of the staff were ready, etc. These demos have been going on for 20 years. The process should be like clockwork. To their credit, the process after registration was clockwork.
From registration, you take your forms to each station starting with equipping your regulator with a drysuit inflator hose. Next is sizing participants for neck and wrist seals. You arrive at a table with multiple seals and you try each one until you find one that provides a nice snug seal without restricting blood flow. I was fitted properly on the first try each time.
I then proceeded to the first flattery of the day. One of the four volunteers staffing the undergarment station immediately commented "you must be a runner" as I approached. I replied that I run on occasion and thanked him for the compliment. Unfortunately, it was difficult to flirt with the one who proceeded to size me completely. They asked me what kind of diving I tended to dive in to which I responded that even 85 degree water is cold to me. I was handed DUI's latest XM450 undergarment that retails for $538.
I walked deliriously happily to the drysuit fitting area where I infomed them I'd like to try out a front-zip TLS350. Retailing at a starting price of $2078, the TLS350 is a versatile suit that should perform admirably in most conditions I would dive in. I was asked what size undergarment I had and then handed a small TLS350. I don't remember if this same station was where I received my rockboots and thermal socks, but those were received just prior to donning all the equipment. I was able to zipseal the neck and wrist seals into the TLS350 without a problem.
The XM450 undergarment looks stylish. It has a fine kevlar print/texture that does not appear in pictures resulting in a futuristic appearance. It feels lighter than the undergarment I certified in, yet when in 41F/5C degree, 70 foot deep water there wasn't the slightest chill felt. During my 80F/27C degree surface interval, the XM450 was only unzipped and didn't leave me sweaty. Mobility felt unhampered outside the drysuit.
The TLS350 did not perform as well.
Since seating in the final fitting area was limited, I had rushed my suit on and made the mistake of leaving my rockboots for last. When fully in my suit and all the air squeezed out, bending down to put on my rockboots was extremely difficult. The front zipper and inflator valve press against each other forming a solid barrier to flexbility. There did not seem to be sufficient give in the Trilaminate material at the back of the suit providing further resistance to bending.
The need for RockBoots adds complication to dive prep. I preferred the integrated boots on my previous drysuit. The RockBoots fit into my stock open-heeled Tusa Platina fins, but required lots of force to remove from my fins. My guess is I encountered the same phenomenon as the reviewer I linked to at the bottom of this blog entry.
In the past, 16 pounds of weight was excessive and caused me to drag -- with 12 pounds I was a shark in my Moby. Since I was unfamiliar with this gear, I decided to use 16 pounds to offset any potential buoyancy differences. When I was nicely buoyant to put my fins on, I should have listened to my instincts. Upon striding trying to enter the water, I couldn't descend past a couple feet even with the BCD and suit fully deflated. Following our DM and Instructors' guidance to exhale really deeply, I was able to finally descend albeit slowly. We swam a short exploration of the lake and I had a couple runaway ascents. Even though I was diving by the book.
We spent a long surface interval shooting the breeze with Abby about how much we love DAN, assisting divers around us, and meeting people. During part of the surface interval, I took my arms out of the suit. The suit truly can be self-don in terms of the zipper, however, putting in the right arm is a chore. Once you have the left arm in, there isn't enough give in the suit to put on the right unless you're a contortionist. Once the right arm is in, the head seal which thus far has been pressing painfully into my back slips over easily and the zipper glides well into place.
For the second dive, I added four pounds of trim weight which helped with my buoyancy. Aside from added weight, the only other difference in my dive was keeping my purge valve set to full open. My buoyancy control was much better but I did notice two things. The inflator did not always add air. And at several points when trying to purge from my arm, nothing would happen even though there was a giant bubble of air at the purge point. Therefore, I'm chalking up my less than ideal buoyancy to a mix of unfamiliar gear and slightly malfuctioning demo gear.
Overall Suit Ratings (0-10)
Style: 8
Flexibility: 6
Ease of entry: 7
Price: High
Comparison between the Whites Fusion and DUI CF200