Wetsuit rips and tears

Cona

Bought a Zone3 Advanced last year but have really only started wearing it regularly since March this year. I now have two significant rips under the arms (armpit) that leaves in water and makes me cold. The rest of the suit seeems to have other little nicks and rips as well which I obviously done myself.

Is it common for a wetsuit to tear under the armpit? I don’t feel like I did this myself and am just wondering if the build quality of the suit was poor from day 1? Am prob going to buy another wetsuit but not sure about Zone3 considering the state this one is...

griffin100

I abuse my suits something rotten and have never seen a rip under the armpit. Nicks and cuts from fingernails yes but no rips.

EDit

I have exactly the same wetsuit and exactly the same problem with rips under the arms. Mine first appeared last year and I tried using wetsuit glue to fix them, but made no difference...I think as they are in an area of regular “stress” (or stretch) that gluing just won’t hold the rips together with regular use.

I should note that, while the top neoprene layer is ripped on mine, the kinda fabric layer underneath is intact.

Cona

Thanks for that...whilst I will admit to not handling and taking utmost of care of the suit I didn’t expect to see those type of tears. Either way, I won’t be buying Zone3 again.

Any advice on a decent wetsuit, seeing as I need a new one? Thinking Orca S7 next...?

P2C

It shouldn’t rip under the arms. Check to see if it’s on a seem. They are stitched and then a patch is glued over on the inside to stop chaff. I would take pictures and send back to zone 3. By the way I have been swimming open water for over 20 years and have had multiple suits. They all get nicks and splits from taking off and putting on. The best suit by a country mile has lasted over 3 seasons of racing and training is a Zone 3 Aspire. I have had €700 euro suits last a season

mackeminexile

I pretty much rip the neck on my wetsuit every T1. Use dental floss to stitch it and then Black With wetsuit glue to seal it. Works a treat!

EDit

P2C wrote: »

It shouldn’t rip under the arms. Check to see if it’s on a seem. They are stitched and then a patch is glued over on the inside to stop chaff. I would take pictures and send back to zone 3. By the way I have been swimming open water for over 20 years and have had multiple suits. They all get nicks and splits from taking off and putting on. The best suit by a country mile has lasted over 3 seasons of racing and training is a Zone 3 Aspire. I have had €700 euro suits last a season

I think it may be a case of Zone 3 scrimping on the quality of their entry-level suits. If you look at reviews on Wiggle (for example) for the latest version and older versions of the Advance, there are multiple comments about it ripping too easily (there is even one noting that it ripped in the armpit region) and it being too delicate. In contrast, their higher priced suits don’t have any negative comments about quality or tears/rips.

Personally, when I get around to replacing mine with something more high-end, I won’t be ruling out Zone3 options as the fit is perfect for me

patmahe

Typical I'd spot this thread today, just bought a basic zone 3 suit and took the tags off last night. Hopefully I'll be luckier than you guys, suppose I'd better be careful of how I transport/store it.

peter kern

EDit wrote: »

I think it may be a case of Zone 3 scrimping on the quality of their entry-level suits. If you look at reviews on Wiggle (for example) for the latest version and older versby ions of the Advance, there are multiple comments about it ripping too easily (there is even one noting that it ripped in the armpit region) and it being too delicate. In contrast, their higher priced suits don’t have any negative comments about quality or tears/rips.

Personally, when I get around to replacing mine with something more high-end, I won’t be ruling out Zone3 options as the fit is perfect for me

This is a tough one but it's not really skimping the issue here is that thinner material rips easier.
Pretty much all more or less known brands use the Same neoprene ie yamamoto
So if you want a durable wetsuit on the cheap make sure it's 38 or 39 yamamoto neoprene and ideally 3 mm... Of course that means less flexibility.
I would suggest that the issue could easily be that the user is not pulling up suit enough and there is too much strain in that area.

woody1

patmahe wrote: »

Typical I'd spot this thread today, just bought a basic zone 3 suit and took the tags off last night. Hopefully I'll be luckier than you guys, suppose I'd better be careful of how I transport/store it.

on my second zone 3 advance, the first one i got a bit more than 2 years out of , in the water twice a week at least from june to september and the few races . no rips in the armpits , but plenty of just general nicks ,

newer one i have about a year admittedly not getting a lot of use so far this year , but no sign of anything in armpits or at seams, so you might be fine ..

chavezychavez

Got a zone3 advance last year. Exact same thing happened after 5 or 6 swims under the armpits, non stop black witch after swims, coincidentally enough I just got my replacement from the shop last weekend. Had gone in last year to show them the issue and they ordered the replacement with no quibbles but the shop closes off season so I had to wait till now to get the replacement. Took the hit and paid extra to go for the aspire with the value of my original one.
Guy in the shop says that the entry level zone3s are notorious for it, although they were reported to have gotten better in last year's stock. Remains to be seen with the rest of them, maybe I got an old stock one last year.
Best thing is that zone3 will replace those affected by defects like that no hassles.