best gloves and boots

xcel drylocks nuff said. By far the best boots and gloves out there in my opinion.

 

When it comes to boots you really need to wear what fits your foot the best. Should be snug but not too tight. If they are too narrow or too tight on your toes, your toes will go numb from the blood flow restriction. Too loose and they will fill with water. For example, Xcel is great stuff, but the boots don't fit my feet well so I can't use them. Best to try on a bunch of different brands till you find what feel most comfortable.

 

how warm are the xcell 5mm boots? how durable are they? i used 7mm ripcurl fbomb boots last winter. they were super warm, but the neoprene under the balls of both feet wore down to nothing by the end of the winter. the fbomb gloves were super warm, too, but wore through the fingertips (from grabbing the rail at the end of each ride). warm is great, but stuff's gotta last, too.

 

I wore a pair of xcel infiniti 5mm TEKs last winter, plenty warm and durable...

 

i have xcel drylock 6.5 boots, maybe a size too big but they still keep my feet very warm. i dont think they've ever been cold

 

I'm getting ready to buy a fresh pair of Body Glove Vapor 5mil boots... basic design, but very durable and warm. I use Rip Curl 5mil gloves which are alright but generally last only a season.

 

yeah, i've had very bad experiences with Rip Curl.

 

oneill is pretty good and warm. ive never had rip curl way to much money

 

ive worn the same pair of xcel 5mm split toe booties for the last 3 winters, and got rid of the 7 mm round toes. Rough guess 100+ sessions in those things so far.

They arent as warm as the Xcel 7mm round toes but they feel SO much better. When the air and water are both below 40 the 5mm. split toes start to get cold after an hour or so but its worth it to me to have that better feel.

a lot of it has to do with your wetsuit...remember if your core starts getting cold, the body shuts down blood flow to the extremities so a less than ample wetsuit can cause cold feet and hands. at least thats what ive heard.

 

Excel

Excel drylok 7mm boots, 5mm lobster claws is what I have and my hands were sweating at one point in 40deg water.

 

not sure on gloves yet but my setup for this winter will be a 4/3 mutant with hood and 654 mutant boots.

 

I would definitely recommend rip curl 5mm lobster claws, I had the 5mm gloves first and hated them. Too much rubber around your fingertips and too many seams. They will keep you fingers toasty all winter long.

 

Gloves arn't as important because the bastards either bust seams or wear holes on the fingertips by the end of the season anyways.

 

Hey guys, I'm just curious about something. I hear a lot about O’Neill, Rip Curl, and occasionally Billabong, but I rarely ever hear anything about Patagonia or Matuse, or even 9 plus from you guys on the east coast. I know Patagonia makes some good cold water suits, I'm just curious why I never really read their names being mentioned here like they are on the West Coast forums. Is it that they aren’t good in cold water, not marketed that well, or nobody wants to give them a shot?

 

patagonia doesnt have tons of suppliers on the east coast. they make the best wetsuits in the world. they are top of the line. but expensive as hell

 

i would love to give a patagonia suit a try but i dont wanna spend 500+ on a winter suit. Though i know inlet outlet in manasquan carriers there suits.

 

I've had good experience with HOTLINE suits and boots. Not that easy to find though.

 

if you know your size, Wetsuitwarehouse.com has some good suits, and supposedly great customer service.

I just got a Hyperflex 4/3 flow and 5/3 booties, i haven't been able to use then yet, but I can't wait till wetsuit weather.

 

Xcel Drylock Mittens. Less seams...less chance of holes. In 40deg water and less than 30deg air i can last probably 5hrs