New Wetsuit Fit Help

[tomh8]

Hey guys, I'm taking a trip to California in a few weeks. I needed a new 3/2 and I bought the Hurley Fusion 302 Front Zip. I bought a Large Short and I'm afraid it is too tight. This is my first front zip so I'm not sure how easy/hard it should be to get on and off. Getting it off was very difficult. The legs seemed perfect, but the neck was pretty tight. It also felt a little tight in in upper arms/shoulders. When I finally got it off, the seems left imprints on my upper arms. I know front zips are a little harder to get on and off and I know it will loosen a little once I actually wear it. My measurements are: 5 foot 8, 165 lbs, 33 inch waste, and 39 inch chest. What do you guys think?

[dtc]

Front zips are a #$%@# to take off until they stretch a bit. That is normal.

The neck should be snug but not cutting off breathing - about the same feeling as you get from a back zip, once adjusted properly.

Is the Fusion very stretchy ie if you grip between your hands, can you stretch it ok? If so, it might stretch after a few sessions to fit your body - but you need to be careful that its not already stretching as much as it can and is still too tight.

Really its a personal thing, is it too tight for you? Only you can tell. Bodies are very different shaped and suits are standard shaped, but they will stretch to some degree.

All I can say is that, yes, they are very hard to get off. Its not unknown for people to need outside assistance for the first 20 or so uses. You do get a technique after a while (flip the neck bit, take out the left arm first all the way, then the right arm) and the suit will stretch/it will get easier.

IMHO, front zips rule.

[tomh8]

Thanks for the help! I put it on again just now and wore for about a half hour around the house. Much, much better. Definitely keeping it. The first time I needed outside help to get it off, but this time I did it was fine on my own (still annoying). Can't wait to use it. Thanks

[Big H]

Banz needs to weigh in....didn't he just buy like 7 wetsuits to try?

[RinkyDink]

I wear a compression shirt underneath my front zip. It makes it much easier to get off. Now that I've taken it off more times than I can remember, I have a routine that makes it easier. It's still a pain in the neck to get off, though, especially when my arms are already wet noodles--I consider it like doing repetitions to failure where the wetsuit removal part is the failure reps. Anyway, my routine goes like this: 1. Unzip chest. 2. Make one small fold across the top underneath the zipper. 3. Grab wetsuit above navel and slide it down a little. 4. Grab wetsuit from lower back area and slide it down a little (compression shirt helps). 5. Roll right arm sleeve down about two inches and then roll left arm down about two inches.Focus on getting your right wetsuit sleeve rolled past your elbow. Once my sleeve is past the elbow, I'm usually home free. By the time you have tan lines around your wrists you'll have a routine that works for you and your wetsuit will have stretched a bit. Good luck.

[waikikikichan]

Guys.... Fellows.... Bros, are you forgetting " Shrinkage" ? When things get cold they shrink. When things get hot they expand. It was always hard to watch customer SWEAT trying on wetsuits in the shop. ( and then not buy them after stinking them up ). Once you get in the cold water and get flushed once, it'll feel looser.

[Surf Hound]

That suit will fit you fine. Being 5-8 and 165lbs a LS should be on the big size for you. I never wore a wetsuit until 2012 and it took me awhile to get used to. At first I had hard time paddling, catching waves as I felt like I had no feeling of my board or the waves power. Everything was off, just weird. Now a wetsuit is normal but they are still a bitch to put on and take off but you will get used to it.

[dtc]

It was always hard to watch customer SWEAT trying on wetsuits in the shop. ( and then not buy them after stinking them up ).

Huh, I have problems finding wetsuits that fit (apparently....my shoulders are too broad for my height and my stomach is too narrow - which is weird cos I'm neither big shouldered or particularly skinny). Anyway, I tried on 3 or 4 wetsuits at one shop and none of them fitted, and I had to stop because I was totally exhausted from putting them on/taking them off and - yes - covered in sweat!

I then had to head off to a different shop on another day and do it all again, until I finally found a brand that fit. I think I was Banz like by the end, must have tried been 8 or 9 suits.

The one I bought suit is starting to wear out and I cant decide whether to just buy the same brand (xcel) online and hope they haven't changed the cut/fit; or go through the whole process again.

Btw, if you are looking for a suit (and it will vary from country to country), now is a good time to buy a 2015 model, as the 2016 models are being promoted at full price and the 2015 models are in run out. Whether there is any actual (rather than claimed) difference who knows, but its pretty unlikely you will notice any shortcomings with a 2015 model.