TESTCENTRE
Some like it semi-dry
7mm Rear Entry Semi-Dry Wetsuit
COMPANY: NORTHERN DIVER PRICE: £ 383 TEL: 01257 254444 WEB: WWW. NDIVER. COM
As things stand there are three main types of exposure suits: wetsuits, drysuits and semi-drys. The first is a neoprene garment with open seals, which allows water to flush through quickly, enabling your own body to heat said water in the layer between suit and skin.
This type is best used in warm waters abroad or in the shallows here in the British Isles. A drysuit takes the opposite view, with seals which hopefully provide a watertight barrier with an undersuit to provide the warmth.
Last, but definitely not least is the semi-dry suit. While some old or ill-fitting drysuits might also deserve this moniker, the semi-dry has always had a special place in my heart.
Basically a wetsuit with drysuit-style seals at the neck, wrists and ankles, I learned to dive in such a suit last century and continue to do so – not the same one, I hasten to add – in my 37th year of underwater adventures. Northern Diver are perhaps better known for their excellent drysuit range, among them the umpteenth generation of their Divemaster suit. If you were to transfer the style and quality of that particular suit into semi-dry guise it’ d be a winner in my estimation. And guess what?
ND’ s 7mm Semi-Dry Rear Entry Wetsuit looks to all intents and purpose like a drysuit. Made from a unique super-stretch DFN-Ultragrade neoprene, it’ s a different world from the suits I used back in the day. Very flexible, easy to don and feeling more 3mm or 4mm than seven. There’ s a titanium lining to enhance its thermal properties and an anti-bacterial inner lining for divers like myself who tend to‘ go’ on longer or colder dives. As the old joke goes:“ All the rest are liars!”
It’ s very well made with triple-glued and blind-stitched seams, reinforced knee, seat and crotch areas and smooth-skin seals. Many semis have zips at the ankle and wrist, however Northern Diver keep it simple with extended material to cover the inner seals.
The rear YKK Aquaseal Ti-zip, through which the suit is accessed, was smooth and easy to zip on and off, whether via my buddy or by the Hope-patented dog lead / nearest tree / lamp-post / car boot strut method.
The zip strap has a press stud which ensures your buddy closes it all-the-way with a nice click as it’ s engaged, and also prevents it accidentally opening. On the right hip is a‘ transporter’ pocket suitable for a small reel or spool and compact dSMB. It’ s equally suited to store a point-andshoot camera, torch and slate.
My medium suit was a good snug fit, although I’ d maybe have liked another inch on the neck seal to make turning it in on itself a little easier. There are two Velcro tags to keep the seal nicely in place.
I always judge the efficiency of a semidry on how much cold-water‘ shock to the system’ I sustain when rolling into the water from my RIB. If there’ s a sharp intake of breath, it means the seals aren’ t quite doing their job to best effect. ND’ s 7mm Rear Entry Semi-Dry Wetsuit( it really needs a catchier name) didn’ t suffer from the above.
Yes, there was an initial flow of water but this was gradual.
With very little flushing through the seals, my body temperature soon heated the thin film of water to keep me warm. It’ s a very comfortable suit to use; the freedom of movement and easier buoyancy control compared to a drysuit is always a plus point for me.
After several boat dives to a maximum of 20 metres / 40 mins, I only just began to feel a little colder towards the end, but that warmth soon returned in the shallows on my safety stop.
On a marathon shore dive of over an hour using my scooter I’ d have expected to feel colder, because all the work was being done by mechanical means. But that wasn’ t the case and I returned to shore and immediately had the rear zip open to cool down.
I’ d be happy to use this suit for depths up to 30m in UK summer. Others might disagree, but that is of course dependent on individual constitutions. If you’ re a frequent shore diver then the suit is far more compatible than a drysuit. I’ d also recommend it as an option for say, the Med or Red Sea off-season, when you may require a little more thermal protection.
Available in S, M, ML, L and XL sizes it’ s also competitively priced at under £ 400. Now, if I was the sort of reviewer who gave marks out of ten, then this is easily an 8 / 9 – but come on Northern Diver, give it a proper name!
SCUBA SAYS
A classy semi-dry suit that oozes quality, offers great thermal qualities and is versatile across a variety of water temperatures.
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