# What wetsuit to buy for £150



## pedelpower (5 Sep 2013)

Looking to get a wetsuit for open water swimming in lake and sea but don't want to spend more than £150 looked at orca s4 looks good for the money. 
Any advise would be helpful. 

Also fit and sizing chart help advise ?


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## VamP (5 Sep 2013)

I have the S4, and it's okay for the money. I paid around £100 IIRC. I sized it using the table on Wiggle, and got the right size, although it felt too small to begin with. Putting on wetsuits is a bit of an art, and patience is a virtue.


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## Profpointy (5 Sep 2013)

i'd not buy a wetsuit without trying it on. And £150 seems quite a lot - there are also some exceedingly cheap wetsuits these days, eg in seaside ahops or decathlon type outlets, eapecially for undemanding use - and I'd have thought any old thing would do for swimming - Scuba diving or caving would be another matter with serious demands on warmth / robustness respectively


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## subaqua (5 Sep 2013)

Profpointy said:


> i'd not buy a wetsuit without trying it on. And £150 seems quite a lot - there are also some exceedingly cheap wetsuits these days, eg in seaside ahops or decathlon type outlets, eapecially for undemanding use - and I'd have thought any old thing would do for swimming - *Scuba diving or caving* would be another matter with serious demands on warmth / robustness respectively


 
its the thickness that counts for that I have a wetsuit for UK open water swimming that is great for 60 minutes in warm water scuba diving.

decathlon has some great bits of kit


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## VamP (5 Sep 2013)

Profpointy said:


> i'd not buy a wetsuit without trying it on. And £150 seems quite a lot - there are also some exceedingly cheap wetsuits these days, eg in seaside ahops or decathlon type outlets, eapecially for undemanding use - and* I'd have thought* any old thing would do for swimming - Scuba diving or caving would be another matter with serious demands on warmth / robustness respectively


 
You would have thought wrong. Swimming has a lot of demand on your mobility, and swimming wet suits are highly designed bits of technical kit. Good ones cost around £400. £100 is entry level. Seaside shop special is okay for paddling, not for swimming hundreds of hours in. It's not about warmth, it's about mobility, float and (absence of) drag.


As to your other point - Wiggle (amongst others) have an excellent returns policy so if you get the wrong size you send the old one back free of charge and get the next size up (down).


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## Nocode (5 Sep 2013)

VamP said:


> You would have thought wrong. Swimming has a lot of demand on your mobility, and swimming wet suits are highly designed bits of technical kit. Good ones cost around £400. £100 is entry level. Seaside shop special is okay for paddling, not for swimming hundreds of hours in. It's not about warmth, it's about mobility, float and (absence of) drag.
> 
> 
> As to your other point - Wiggle (amongst others) have an excellent returns policy so if you get the wrong size you send the old one back free of charge and get the next size up (down).



Yeah, wetsuits for swimming generally (or should) have more mobility around the shoulders and underarm region for obvious reasons. You don't want to try and swim in a surfing wetsuit for example because you will fatigue a lot quicker due to lack of mobility in the shoulder region. Additionally, more expensive wetsuits will have varying neoprene thickness levels (e.g. thicker on leg region) to help with those who have 'sinky legs' when they swim (often cyclists due to larger muscle mass!). Also, the top wetsuits might have 'catch panels' on the forearm region to help with the catch phase of the swimming stroke. Also, those that are more triathlon specific will have tech to assist with quick removal of the wetsuit in transition (although chopping a couple of inches off the legs and arms and a liberal coating of bodyglide around wrists/ankles helps here).

For my first foray into triathlon earlier this year I just bought an entry-level blueseventy wetsuit (the 'sprint') for £100. Got it in a sale and have been happy with it. I also just bought it from Wiggle and went on the sizing chart - but in reflection I'd rather have gone somewhere to try them on and get properly fitted. Mine fits fine, but probably should be a bit tighter for a proper fit. A lot of people buy a wetsuit online using the sizing chart and then when it arrives they believe it's too tight - when more often than not it's probably the correct fit - they're just not used to how tight it should be. It should take effort (and time) to fit into a wetsuit and as a rule of thumb I believe you shouldn't be able to pinch/pull away the wetsuit from the small of your back - but equally you should have mobility in the upper body/shoulder region.

Top tip for getting into a wetsuit - use carrier bags. Yes, put your foot (one at a time) into a carrier bag to slide down inside the wetsuit. The same applies for your hands. Just stops your skin snagging on the suit and helps reduce risk of tearing. Additionally, cut your nails as neoprene can be easily damaged. Fitting pictures can be found here.

Good luck buying a wetsuit - the Orca S4 looks nice, but take a look at other brands and shop around on price! Also, I really would recommend trying some on if you can!


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## VamP (5 Sep 2013)

Exactly right. I was so very close to sending mine back, but then persevered with it, and it was exactly the right size in the end. It feels claustrophobic at first, so don't get discouraged.

Carrier bags and bodyglide - the way forward.

Get tri goggles too. Much more comfortable, and make sighting (essential OW swimming skill) so much easier.


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## Nocode (5 Sep 2013)

VamP said:


> Get tri goggles too. Much more comfortable, and make sighting (essential OW swimming skill) so much easier.



Unless you're blind like me and need prescription goggles! I'm using the aquasphere eagles with interchangeable prescription lenses. Just wish there was more 'tri' specific (and tinted) versions available for prescription lenses without spending and arm and a leg.


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## VamP (5 Sep 2013)

Nocode said:


> Unless you're blind like me and need prescription goggles! I'm using the aquasphere eagles with interchangeable prescription lenses. Just wish there was more 'tri' specific (and tinted) versions available for prescription lenses without spending and arm and a leg.


 

Can't get contact lenses to work, huh? Bummer.


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## Nocode (5 Sep 2013)

VamP said:


> Can't get contact lenses to work, huh? Bummer.


Can't bear the thought I sticking things in my eyes  but might have to give them a go as I'm sure they would be really advantageous for sports!

Do you swim with contacts in? Just thinking if a lens fell-out whilst swimming it would make things quite tricky! I don't have a good track record during tri swim's having had a 'head-on' with someone during a pool swim and getting kicked so hard in the face during another open water event that my goggle eye piece vacuumed to my face! Bloody people stopping to do breast-stroke within 5 seconds of the hooter going!


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## VamP (5 Sep 2013)

Yeah, I do. I have never lost a lens swimming yet, but it could happen... I am relatively fortunate to have prescription at 2.25. which means that I can get by without correction somewhat.

Those mass starts get messy don't they? I am not a great swimmer, so I usually just take it relatively easy in the first few minutes, and pick up speed when the field spreads out a bit.


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## Nocode (5 Sep 2013)

VamP said:


> ...I usually just take it relatively easy in the first few minutes, and pick up speed when the field spreads out a bit.


Hehe yeah, that was exactly what I was trying to do. But clearly the guy in front decided to take it even easier than me! 

Will have to look into disposable contact lenses - I believe most opticians at least do a trial.


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## VamP (5 Sep 2013)

Nocode said:


> Hehe yeah, that was exactly what I was trying to do. But clearly the guy in front decided to take it even easier than me!
> 
> Will have to look into disposable contact lenses - I believe most opticians at least do a trial.




Yep they are what I use. I've been on them for 20 odd years, only wear them for sport, but they are great.


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## pedelpower (5 Sep 2013)

Thanks for all the replies ref wet suits dont no how it got side tracked into a convo on contact lenses lol. 

Thanks


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## VamP (6 Sep 2013)

pedelpower said:


> Thanks for all the replies ref wet suits dont no how it got side tracked into a convo on contact lenses lol.
> 
> Thanks


 
It's just the way we roll


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## Nocode (6 Sep 2013)

pedelpower said:


> Thanks for all the replies ref wet suits dont no how it got side tracked into a convo on contact lenses lol.
> 
> Thanks


Blame me!


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## subaqua (6 Sep 2013)

cheapo hair conditioner for getting into wetsuits . the £1 for about 2 litre stuff . what we use for the wet suits for diving


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## Flying_Monkey (8 Sep 2013)

I'd look out for previous years' models on sale. Contrary to manufacturers' claims there are very rarely any amazing breakthroughs that require you to buy a new wetsuit and the rules on thickness etc. haven't changed for a few years now.


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## roryo07 (27 Mar 2015)

I would check the a few of these out...Start at under £150 but like VAM P said, the higher end ones go for £400 and up!!! Expensive but you do get added buoyancy and freedom of movement http://www.tgstore.co.uk/mens-swimming-wetsuits/


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## Tommy2 (27 Mar 2015)

Not to hijack the thread but I am considering selling one of my wetsuits, a Huub archimedes, if anyone is interested at the right price I will sell otherwise I will keep it.
pm me if interested.

Make sure you spend time working the wetsuit right up to the crotch before thinking about putting your arms in and then work it right in to the armpit and shoulder before doing the other side.


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