OCEANIC Flex Drysuit

By Doug Pemberton

The world of drysuits is a large and sometimes confusing one. There are dozens of makes, models and designs on the market fabricated from a wide assortment of materials including neoprene, crushed neoprene, butyl rubber, polyester and nylon, not to mention the various combinations of these materials into bilaminates and trilaminates.

The Flex drysuit from Oceanic reflects a growing popularity in the use of trilaminate materials in drysuit construction. The trilaminate material used in the Flex is made of butyl rubber coated on the outside with tough nylon and on the inside with a lighter grade nylon. The result is a rugged but very flexible material that allows great freedom of movement.

Workmanship and attention to detail is good throughout the Flex suit. All seams are double overstitched and covered with hot-glued 30mm tape, providing added strength. Knees and shins are protected with an extra layer of trilaminate fabric. An elasticized waist band gives a more contoured shape to the suit and reduces the bunching of material that can occur in some other fabric shell suits.

The Flex comes standard in male and female sizes with valves and an inflator hose. Valves are made by Apex and the inflator valve is centre-chest mounted while the dump valve can be mounted either on the left cuff or shoulder.

The suit, because of the flexible material, goes on easily and is comfortable to wear but it does necessitate the wearing of a heavier grade of underwear than would be worn with a neoprene suit. The latex wrist and neck seals work well and are comfortable but, compared with the tuck-under neoprene seals that I am used to, need a little more care and attention when putting them on and taking them off. The suit we tried had a bell shaped, latex neck seal whereas for smaller necks, a cone shaped neck design may be better suited and the cone neck seal can be ordered as an extra cost option. The solid rubber boots which can be ordered in a range of sizes have a good sole and provide adequate traction. The suit we tested also came with a three millimetre hood with a built-in purge valve and velcro retainer for the mask strap. This is a nice hood but not warm enough for our cold waters so Oceanic offers an optional six millimetre hood.

Walking around between dives with a drysuit peeled down to the waist is comfortable but with most fabric suits, suspenders are a must otherwise the suit quickly ends up around your ankles. The elasticized waist band of the Flex helps to keep the suit around your waist but there are also suspender attachments in the suit and suspenders are optional.

For more information check out your nearest Oceanic dealer.