Wetsuit advice

reactor is a ****house suit. don't buy it. it's $84 for a reason.

go to your local shop, try a bunch on, & buy the one that fits best. ask the guys & gals there what they wear & like. pick their brains. you seem like a nice, smart, personable chap. support your local brick & mortar surf shops. amazon/whiskeymilitia/et al...they won't miss you if you go elsewhere, but your local shop will. spend the extra few $$, learn some ****.

 

Not a bad price at all. Make sure its the right size. They can be tricky. I would go to a local surf shop, try on an oneill product and see if its the right size. Be polite and don't go commando when you try on the suit though. Nothing worse than having a wetsuit slightly too big or small.

 

Make sure you know your size before you order. Other than that I'd go for it. I have never owned O'NEILL but it sounds like a good deal. I have a Quicksilver 3/2 chest zip and I think I paid 120 at a local shop. Maybe it was 150. Any who, surfed last Tuesday in boardshorts!

 

below average, really. the tech on that suit was cutting edge 30 years ago.

glad to help.

 

Is the 'local joint' where you bought your Greco surfboard?

A man (?) who owns 20,000 dollars in guns, but sends his money to a company that makes nothing but soft-tops (probably in China), looking for an $84 wetsuit, and advice on Swellinfo. And somehow he receives advice.

This place has gone soft.

 

i must've missed all that.

 

Go to a surf shop I never buy anything off line because you got to know weather it fits or not and how the condition of it is

 

Yeah, I've been noticing the same thing lately. I see Hello and other noob treads arise daily and excitedly anticipate the entertainment of the standard vitriol yet there is none. It's like when someone posts an easy target these days the DJ instantly starts playing Wouldn't It Be Nice from the Beach Boys, much like will be playing pon de replay in the bunk room of brewengineer and Starchy on the Lotto winning SI surf trip.

Anywayz...

To the OP - my advice (which is basically worthless and may even cost you for taking!) is to get an overstock Drylock 3/2 on markdown which should be about 40% off. That'll run you over 2 bills but will be a 8-9 month suit for you in New England. If you don't want to spend that much, hunt for a similar markdown on an X-Zip2 3/2 which should be half the price. Same utility, you'll just be a bit warmer in the Drylock during the colder temps.

Anddddd MAKE SURE IT'S FORM-FITTING!!!

If you want to go the local route and support your neighborhood retailer you will pay more but the investment in an ongoing relationship is well worth it. Go up to CR in Hampton for that. That's only if you plan to stay in this game for a while.

 

Go to CR bro. That's your hot spot. Those two shops don't compare. Their reach and reputation extends far and wide.

 

'Brands and prices are the important things in life.'

Michael 'NRA' Jr thinks he did well by buying a soft-top from a 'small company in Cali.' He lives in Massachusetts.

Michael is happy that he can come here for personal advice without using Google to search for it.

Michael should have been informed that there is also a search function on the Swellinfo forum. (Standard protocol).

Michael is happy that people on the internet are being kind, unlike all of the cool cruel kids in high-school, the probable cause of his crippling insecurities and subsequent delusional-apocalyptic-gun-hoarding habits.

Let's hope he doesn't take up surfing, lest there finally be a mass-shooting in the lineup.

 

That Greco shop description makes me think of Adam Sandler's warehouse in Punch-Drunk Love. Hopefully it's the equivalent of Luis Guzmán answering the phone.

Good that you're doing research and asking questions, especially when money can be thrown away quite fast.

When the vets say it's going soft here it's because there has typically been an iron curtain of SI locals that keep the virtual waters clean (that's debatable with this motley crew) and surfable. When you're on here for a while you get sick of seeing the same posts, questions, and comments by members that will only frequent the forum for a couple weeks or months then be gone forever. It's a combo of good, old-fashioned earning your place as well as a general distaste for the redundant kookery from those making brief cameos here. The search engine is all you really need. Even for the genius comedy, I swear that this board recycles itself in total every 6-18 months.

So...in the spirit of reinstating the Hardening of America (HOA), BEAT IT KOOK!

The search tab is the only filter you need. That and lots of time.

Btw... (don't call it a "sport" unless you want an onslaught for real haha!)

 

Phil could run for ASP Board of Directors and get voted in first ballot. He's that good of a guy. Very easy to work with, non-judgmental, and follows through with what he says. You don't find that these days. Go to CR.

 

I've been surfing for a little over a year and a half, including two winters. I'm in VA beach, and my first suit was a good condition, second-hand Quicksilver Synchro 4/3 that I picked up at a local Play It Again Sports store for $70. At the time, I was not sure how far into the winter I'd be surfing, having never done it before. It got me through two winters here, and after some patching, perhaps a third. The cuffs and ankles are pretty worn and beat up - primarily from taking it on and off. But it's done its job. At first I was reluctant to buy a used suit, thinking that it might be really "funked out". It wasn't; but if you read about what some of these cats do in their suits, you'll understand my initial apprehension.

My first board was a beat-up, 8-4 beginner's board from a local surf shop. Light green and looked like a very large, dirty bar of Palmolive soap from an old service station restroom. Although a bit embarrassing to be seen with, it served me well. I'm now transitioning to a smaller, much lower volume board. But I'll still take out the 8-4 when there's enough of a ripple to push it along or just to paddle on those really flat days like we're currently experiencing. Lately, I've had both boards strapped to the roof of my car.