Farmer John vs. full suit ?

[fog]

Santa didn't bring me one, so I am going to have to buy my own 7mm wetsuit. Just looking for opinions, which is better, a 2 piece wetsuit or a full wetsuit? Advantages and disadvantages of of one over the other?

[mwhities]

Never dove a two piece, can't say anything about them. BUT, I know for myself, one piece is easier to keep up with.

[RoadRacer1978]

A 2 piece farmer john gives you a double layer on your core, therefore it will provide more warmth in your core area. The downfall to this is more neoprene takes make weight to offset the positive bouyancy. The 2 piece might be a little more versatile, but I can't really see a need to wear a 7mm shortie with full arms, but I have worn my 6.5 mm bottom bibs and left the top in my bag before I had a thinner wetsuit. After diving both style wetsuits I prefer the one piece, but that is just a personal preference with a limited number of dives.

[CODMAN]

I prefer onepiece by far. I don't have extensive experience diving farmer Johns, but the few times I have I found there was not as good a fit and water rushed in a bit more (I was diving cold water, so believe me I coudl feel it!). I'm not saying Farmer johns are awefull or anything like this... Just that I prefer my fullsuit. I've got a one-piece 7mm fullsuit with a 7mm hooded vest that goes OVER it (so no infiltration problems). I am very happy with it like that.

Just my 0.02$

Originally Posted by fog

Santa didn't bring me one, so I am going to have to buy my own 7mm wetsuit. Just looking for opinions, which is better, a 2 piece wetsuit or a full wetsuit? Advantages and disadvantages of of one over the other?

[No Misses]

I will start out by saying that I am a warm water diver. I have 2 wetsuits - a 3/2 full suit and a 3 mil farmer John. I dive with the 3/2 all summer. In the winter (when you can not warm up between dives) I wear the Farmer John. This gives me 6 mil over my core and 3 mil on the arms and legs. When i do my annual liveaboard in June I take the Farmer John. If the water is warm, I dive with only the top half. If the thermoclines are too cold, I add the bottoms. This way I am prepared for any conditions. JM2C

[Shellback]

Originally Posted by fog

Santa didn't bring me one, so I am going to have to buy my own 7mm wetsuit. Just looking for opinions, which is better, a 2 piece wetsuit or a full wetsuit? Advantages and disadvantages of of one over the other?

I have both styles, 2 piece Farmer John with a Jacket and a 7MM sem-dry one piece suit with attached hood. I have to say that I was amazed at how much warmer the one piece semi-dry was and I was barely damp inside after the dive. FWIW if I had to dive in a wetsuit all the time, I would opt for a semi-dry all over again, best equipment purchase ever made, nothing like being comfortable during a dive in cold water.

[Znaught]

I agree with Shellback, a one piece, semi-dry wetsuit is a better choice over a two piece conventional wetsuit. I find the added buoyancy of a two piece wetsuit a bit annoying, as more weight is needed on the belt. The use of drysuit style seals in the extremities of a semi-dry wetsuit is quite effective, and the use of more modern materials like an insulating layer of titanium fabric obviates the need for really thick neoprene. I dive a Pinnacle Aquatics Polar semi-dry wetsuit in 50F water and have been very toasty.

[fisheater]

I think that it's best to ask experienced divers who regularly dive in your area.

For instance, around here (North Coast of Calif.), it's pretty standard for either a farmer john or a drysuit. Some will go with a one piece, but also a hooded vest.

In another area, with different conditions, the preferences would be different.

[cheebaweebie]

I have all one piece suits... a 7MM full, a 5/4/3, a 3MM shortie and I will be adding a 3MM fulll here soon. If I had it to do over again I would have never bought the shortie and just the 3MM full. I spearfish and bug hunt and am always bumping into rocks or knees in the sand etc... My arms and legs look like hell where the suit doesn't cover after a week in the keys.
Vs. the shortie, a pair of board shorts and a rash guard would suffice. Sorry for getting off topic but I totally prefer 1 piece vs. 2

[emcbride81]

I own the Bare Arctic 7 mil one piece, and the only complaint I have is that I need a little help getting the zipper all the way up. I have dived with a 7 mil FJ and I am just as warm in the Bare as I was in the FJ, plus it isnt as bulky and it doesnt require as much weight. I have taken my Bare to 41 degrees for 30 minutes.