WETSUITS

i think ebomb's are the best on the market, i have a 2/2 steamer for goldcoast winter. The oneill physcio wetsuits are ment to be ebomb's next best option if your thinking about other brands.

? I've never had a drama with cheaper brands, but then you see a lot more of the Rip Curl and Billabong suits out on any given day so I guess marketing works ! Next suit I'm going to try is a Triple X.

After 20 years of buying rip curl suits and nothing else, I finally gave up after returning 3 or 4 rip curl suits with serious faults in a 12 month period. I currently use a phsyco freak for winter and an excell infinit 3/2 for summer and rate it as the best suit i've had. (and
i've owned several e-bombs)

use a reeflex mercury or reeflex jupiter steamer or springy and they will always have you covered :)

thanks for allowing me a free plug in a legitimate thread started by someone else. Go to www.derevkowetsuits.com

Check them out.
Good prices, good quality.
I wont overdo it in case the admin gets on my case.

I am weighing up between Oneil Pysco pro (chest zip) or an E bomb. Both have great features but i cant split them.

I have been researching prices over in the UK and seems you can get E bomb shipped to Australia for $240 (Australian $ ) instead of paying $565. Im all for supporting the local surf shops but not if it means im spending an extra $300.

Has anyone else shipped from the UK? Im not really up to date with how VAT charges work etc.

Those Derevko ones look pretty solid lostclimber, how long have you been using them?

Verner, you need not worry about VAT, only GST and customs charges. Depending on how they ship it, you may have to pay 10% GST and customs clearance charges to get the suit.

Brendo
Derevko have only been in Oz since last Oct/Nov. been in South Africa for a few years.

I live in tassie and have been using the Omega patriot 4: 3 for the last few weeks since the water temp dropped. I find it just as warm, and would even say that they are more comfortable.

very good, I'll check them out for my next steamer, possibly next year...

Yo Brendo,

I've been using a Triple X wetty for just over a year and I love it mate. I have a 3/2 steamer and its fantastic. Warm, Comfortable.

Only had one problem so far and that was a mate of mine shutting my car door on the metal zip, I had to send it back to them and explained what happened (truthfully) and I got a call a couple of days later saying that they would repair it and chuck a new zip on for free as long as I was willing to pay for the postage.

Good aussie product. :)

Hey Keegz is triple x an aussie product? I checked there website and it does not mention it, tried to email them but the link wouldn't work. I would really like to by an Australian made wetsuit, not from a fully owned Australian owned company that get them made overseas, if anyone knows of an australian made wettie please let us all know about it.

I thought they were anyway, They are based in Sydney from memory... I could be horribly wrong though.

I purchased from them based on the fact that they were an Aussie product.

Give them a call and find out, but the guy who fixed my wetty was somewhere on the East Coast of Aus... so presuming that he would probably make them around there too?

Just called triple X, none of there product is made in australia,shame. I'd pay a bit extra for a local wetsuit.

where do you surf keegz? The 2/2 looks pretty good for NSW temps except the dead of winter possibly. Hard to find ANY wetsuit made in Oz these days. Dunes are I think (factory is on the central coast but not sure if they make the wetties there or not) but all the material comes from overseas anyway so you'd never get a 100% Aussie wettie. I just don;t wanna pay Rip Curl and Billabong's prices, and they hardly need my money, I'd rather give it to an Aussie company at least.

patagonia 2mmm, all though Vicco winter, warm as (insert expletive of choice)!
But them im a relocated pom, so hard as nails!
Most people seem to recommend the R3 in patagonia's range for Vic winter, but i find that with the 1mm of merino wool over the entire inside the 2mm is enough, so super stretchy too.
Pricey suits saying that, but fit is perfect, i had one problem with a loosening of inside seam taping, but patagonia gave me a new suit 3 momths into the suits life. So i vote with my feet now and go this way. Eco to dont you know!?

In summer I surf pretty much in boardies and a radiator s\s thermal. When it cools off it's an O'Neill 3\2 and when it get really cool I slip the Radiator on underneath the wetty. Warm as toast ( plus booties)in the vicco winter..

Yo Logger!

whats the warranty with Patagonia's wetties? always been keen to buy one but balked at the $$$

I have been researching prices over in the UK and seems you can get E bomb shipped to Australia for $240 (Australian $ ) instead of paying $565. Im all for supporting the local surf shops but not if it means im spending an extra $300.

Has anyone else shipped from the UK? Im not really up to date with how VAT charges work etc.

By: "verner"

That is awesome, where are you getting them from?
Also, it is little dodgy, but get the seller to reduce the declared value of the product so GST is less (say like $10). I do it all the time when buying from overseas

Firstly I will acknowledge that I am actually a distributor of Derevko wetsuits, a South African brand manufactured in Asia. We don't try to hide the fact, its all there on our website.
I know of only 1 wetsuit company that actually makes wetsuits in Australia. They are called Anchor and manufacture in Tasmania. However, they are generally regarded by surfers down here as being pretty crap.
Its all very nice to say that you want to buy local, but with a global economy if you want to buy stuff at a reasonable price you just have to accept that its going to come from China, Vietnam or Thailand. I could write a 10 000 word thesis on why, but will summarise it down to labour costs in Australia vs Asia.
Dunes (who seem to market to bodyboarders) and XXX (owned by the Munro clan in the Gold Coast, its on the website) are both made in China.

patty,
not sure of the official warranty, but found the store in Torquay incredibly helpful, no drama;s with getting the suit fixed when the tape went the first time, then a new suit when the repair failed. They stated it must have been a fault and gave me a new one straight off the rack, no questions asked. That was after a near winter season use.
The new suit i have worn lots, and no problems, seams all strong, super warm. Its nice to be able to wear 2mm all year.
Also, if your a supporter of the ethos that Patagonia are striving for, then you are supporting a good, ethical company that cares about its products, our playground, and...it appears...its customers.

This almost sounds like a Surfpolitik speil Lostclimber - give us the thesis

thanks Logger!

It's Glen Casey who started up Patagucci in Torquay and he's a great guy. Appreciate the info.

Brendo,

I surf Flynns, Woolamai, Elephants, 13th Beach, Jan Juc, Bells.
Any of those are my usual victims..

Going to try and head up to NSW over the next summer and really check out the beaches there.. I hear good things.

come in winter, better chance of waves.

Just got my Billabong SGX 3/2 in the mail, does anyone know what the quality of the suit is like? have not surfed in it YET, but taking it out for a sesh this weekend.

SGX? It would have to be good for what it costs !! Why in the mail? Did you try one one first?

I bought a RC Dawn Patrol LS springy 6 months ago and it's been back to Rip Curl for repairs once already, not too happy about that but they did fix it all and have it back within a week. Warranty runs out at 12 months so hopefully it holds up in the next few months as we head in to winter when the steamer will come out.

It arrived in the mail because I won it off the Billabong site, fits like a charm and is super lite and stretchy, will hopefully be just the same when it gets wet. Really good knowing that i didnt have to
pay a dime.

bloody nice work !! Report back here then ater the weekend.

What about adrenalin wet suits, they seem to have all the features but are heaps cheaper? I'd be interested to hear if anyone has tried one. Been using an E bomb for the last two years, its been great but its just about rs and im due for a newy.