EXTRA
March 1999
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EXTRA
March 1999 |
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DUI is a US company that makes what some would call the ultimate drysuit. It has usually done so using neoprene that is crushed after the suit is constructed. The effect is to pull all the seams in tightly and produce a fabric that is hard-wearing but displays none of the buoyancy changes at different depths inherent in a suit made from normal gas-filled neoprene. The FLX 50/50 moves away from the classic DUI design because, though its bottom part is of crushed neoprene, its upper half is made from a more conventional tri-laminate of butyl rubber sandwiched between two layers of hard-wearing man-made fibre. Gates is a giant conglomerate most famous for its Uniroyal tyres and fanbelts, and its Hunter wellies. It got into the drysuit business when approached by a company to make the now-obsolete Tornado all-rubber suit. It has since made suits of this sort for several drysuit brands, including a professional all-rubber suit for DUI! TRADE SECRETS The PRO-VSN 1100 is one of a range of conventional-looking drysuits made by Gates and marketed under its own name. It is the vast resources in rubber technology available to the Gates company that separate its products from the rest. For example, instead of stitching, taping or gluing its seams like other drysuit-makers (DUI does all of these), Gates can vulcanise the seams of its products on the inner side. I have seen the ovens in the Dumfries factory but I am still not clear how Gates protects its suits from melting in the heat. It's a trade secret. What I do know is that I have had a Gates tri-laminate suit since the day the company first made one, and it is still as watertight and the vulcanised seams as perfect as they were the day I first put it on. Both the Gates and DUI suits are a pleasure to wear - but then both fitted me perfectly. Both are available in a wide range of stock sizes. Whatever make you buy, it is essential to get a suit that fits you properly. The DUI FLX 50/50 comes with a front diagonal zip. It benefits from the DUI patents that allow for a good extra length in the torso, allowing you to pull the suit up over your head easily when getting into it; fixed internal braces and a crotch strap very tidily take care of the required tuck in the material. The tri-laminate top comes in two colours, the pale blue indicating those parts double-layered for reinforcement. The conical neck seal is well-bonded to this, and the hole in the surrounding layer of tri-laminate is neatly finished off with a round collar. DINNERWEAR AND BULLET-PROOF The dry zip is covered by an outer layer of fabric that is closed by its own top zip.The overall effect is so smart that I've been told it looks as if I'm going diving in my dinner-suit! The Gates suit has a more conventional design, with a cross-shoulder zip, bellows-type neck seal and fixed boots. However, in addition to its advanced seam technology, the PRO-VSN uses a material sourced from Gates' vast range. It is neither a tri-laminate nor a neoprene. It is an extremely strong yet stretchy material unique to this product. It is heavy duty and it does not compress at depth. Wearing a well-fitting Gates PRO-VSN 100 might make you feel bullet-proof, but although it is heavy it is flexible and extremely comfortable. If you are impressed by things that appear to be beyond destruction, this is the suit for you. The PRO-VSN 1100 comes fitted with probably the best boots available on any drysuit. You would expect no less from the company that makes Hunters for the rich, famous and (dare I say it?) well-heeled. These boots are comfortable and beautifully made, well-integrated with the leg ends, and appear very tough. The Achilles heels of DUI suits used to be just that - the heels! DUI provided legs terminating in a soft sock end and then merely glued a rubber sole on to them. Now the legs still terminate in soft sock ends but the wearer dons a pair of Rock Boots over them! These are like canvas hiking boots. You use them with your fins. No lacing-up or knot-tying is needed because the laces are simply pulled and held tight with a locking toggle. The surplus lengths are tidied away behind a velcro-covered tab at the heel, which is also called into play when pulling them on. Now you can play football in the car park at Stoney Cove in your drysuit without fear of puncturing it. Dry diving is what these suits are about. Both use long conical wrist seals, which will keep the skinniest arms dry. The Gates seals are of heavier latex than those of the DUI, but the more muscular of us will need to trim either type back so that our hands don't go numb through lack of a blood supply. SEALS OF APPROVAL I measured 5cm of close contact between my wrists and the latex of the seals of the DUI and 8cm with the Gates. This is what is needed. I have been getting a reputation as the scourge of drysuit manufacturers who provide anything less. I just don't enjoy that cold seeping effect suffered when gripping something strongly in a suit with shorter wrist seals. Wet arms should not be the norm after a drysuit dive. I have to admit to getting soaked in the DUI suit during one dive, but that was because the inner (waterproof) entry zip was not completely closed, and I didn't notice because it was covered by the outer zip. I'm sure this will happen to every FLX 50/50 owner at least once. What about the valves? Both use what look like Apeks valves but the Gates suit has the Gates brand on them. Both had inflation valves at the centre of the chest and automatic dump valves at the upper arm, the latter so perfectly positioned that they really were automatic. It was never necessary to do a Roman salute to let all the remaining air out of either suit. If every automatic dump worked as well, no one would ever buy a cuff dump. The air in both suits was unobtrusively kept at a constant volume throughout every dive. So which suit is better? The Gates is the embodiment of absolute strength, while the DUI probably has as much longevity and is also a triumph of style. Inevitably style carries a price premium! The Gates PRO-VSN 1100 costs £649; the DUI FLX 50/50 costs £896. |
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