Winter is coming - 5mm rec

Got a billabong and quicksilver cause they were both my size and on clearance at el shoppe last winter. Not any fancy new kinds just the company's basic five mils I believe. Quiksilver wins for movement and comfort but not seam wise, took it out last time we had waves and water came in the thighs right away. Billabong is toasty for what I remember from last winter but stiff. Not the best reviews you'll get but my rough $.02

If someone were to get me a new five mil I would find the fanciest excel or vissla suite cause those look toasty. But realistically I would prob just find whatever's cheap and fits at the shop again if I needed a new one.

 

I think suits come down to fit. Different brands for differently even at the same size. I absolutely love rip curl. Your from Brooklyn? I'm on LI. Last winter i wore a 4.5/3.5 all winter and was warm. And i surf every time there's waves, and even when there aren't waves. I surf slot and you know how cold it can get. Super comfy too. I only wear rip curl these days.

 

There's so many good ones out there that my best advice would be how much your willing to spend and the best fitting. They all pretty much fall apart after a season or two if you throw it in the closet after the season is over without proper conditioning and storage to avoid dry rot.
This Surfline feature is pretty comprehensive.
http://2016wetsuits.surfline.com/
Good luck.

 

No 5mil for me this year. Rocking a 4/3 excel Hawaii comp with a 1.5 Patagonia hooded vest. Gonna bear and grin it. I hate extra rubber.

Grin and bear it*fail*

 

im in a 5 mil year round in oregon, and i prefer ripcurl ebombs or oneil stuff. Im not a rich hipster from brookyln that can afford the full patagucci shwag fullsuit but i can assure you i bought a pair of their booties and they were utter garbage. I got a new rip curl ebomb on sale at the outlet store in santa cruz for 220 bucks, i think there ussually like 3 or 4 hundo otherwise.

I hate excel, seams crapped out on me in less than 4 months and they refused to honor their warranty.

based on trial and error over the past decadish of spending more time in a wetsuit then boardies (or any other single outfit for that matter) heres my generic all around rankings for brands ive tried out of 1(worst)- 10(best)

Oneil: 7
Ripcurl: 7
Quicksilver: 6
Hotline: 6
Billabong: 5
Patagucci: 5 (but due to the price-point should be lower)
Excel: 3

 

Just ordered a Billabong 5/4/3 to replace my beat up Quicksilver 4/3 which had been getting me through the previous 4 winters here. Both are back zip. Neither are high end suites, prices new around $180-$190. Getting older and needing more rubber.

 

O'Neill fits my body the best so any oniel one works for 4 me. They are kinda leaky after being 5 years old lol.

 

O'Neill is the best wetsuit for quality. I have Rip Curl boots and they're good too-need to try a Rip Curl suit soon.

 

Fit??? Hell no!!! It's all about color and style!! I like some panels to be either magenta or fuscia!! It is what impresses the babes best!! And if you can wear a bow tie with it, so much the better!!!

 

Hands down best suit out there are the Isurus suits...Yamamoto rubber throughout. Expensive like the patagucci suits but has been the warmest suit I've owned. X el and patagonias are incredibly heavy comparatively. Only had a 3/2 O'Neill and only owned 1 rip that felt incredibly stiff. If your looking at the patagonias I would suggest looking at th isurus.

 

Somthing i forgot to mention. Rip curl has good customer service. A know a guy who got rips in his suit, twice i think. Both times he sent the suit to rip curl and they fixed it free of charge. He just paid shipping.

 

I just got a xcel x2 infinity with the tdc lining on sale . I normally use oneill. but it was a hundred bucks cheaper. hope i dont regret it.

 

Depends...how big are your tahtties?

Srsly though...start with your price point, go from there

Personally oneill has been working just fine for me...my 5/4 is on its 3rd winter though it's begun to get a little loose and leaky, makes getting it off easy though...bought the 5.5/4 for feb/mar and thing to hold out, we'll see

Patagooch 7m boots - gloves suck, have returned 2x, againe got compression pin holes in 3rd pair after just a few uses, I gave up

Excel 7m gloves

 

Yep, I agree. I had ripped one suit on the lower sleeve, asked if they could just make it a short sleeve full suit. No charge. I buy mostly rip curl.

 

I always like the fit of Xcel and they work great for a season, but they never last. I've had the best luck with O'Neil and Rip Curl. I have an O'Neil Mutant 4/3 that I love. 3rd season and it still fits tight as a glove. Plus the removable hood extends the use of the suit an extra month.

 

This brings my two questions: can you simply return the patagooch gloves with their receipt? Been through two pairs as well and was not happy with either. Also, who else has da glove recommendations? Xcel is the way to go? That was my main thought already.. If I get to work more this winter I'll be looking to try some

 

if yall buy a new one mail me ur old one, 2 xl size please

 

Iron clad my bro...they replace anything

Started with xcel in April...too warm...hoping for good things with them come Jan/feb this seasone

 

I've always preferred xcel suits, boots and gloves for the reason that they last for me. Also, they fit and the they are warm. Even there lower end products are warm.

Contrary to what others have said I've had good customer service with xcel. I've sent my suits back after a few years of use and they have reinforced and re-glued seams.

I'd rather gets wetsuits from a company that only makes wetsuits, rather than one that focuses on making cool t shirts. Just my opinion.