DUNES is one of the rare wetsuit companies building suits specifically for bodyboarders. (Their website is not up to date so keep on reading the review and ask your local shop for the latest DUNES products coz you wont find anything on their site). They’re sponsoring a couple talented riders… mmmh like Ben Player for example or Dallas Singer and they even released a Player pro-model which looks pretty good. Anyway, we’re reviewing the DUNES GLADIATOR 4×3 BACKZIP royal blue color today. Click below to read the whole review.
So we just tested the suit yesterday. It’s a 4×3, it’s blue and it looks incredibly cool and flashy with the new Dunes logo on the chest. The water was a little cold but not too cold. I would’ve been cold wearing a 3×2 so it was the perfect time to start wearing the DUNES Gladiator 4/3 and test it. Water wasn’t cold enough to wear booties… but almost, this gives you an idea. It means we haven’t tested the suit in deadly cold waters but it was cold enough for us to see if the suit was warm. I think it was like 15°C (about 59°F) which is the right time to wear a 4×3.
The suit is really flexy and the neoprene super confortable and smooth. The knee pads are perfect for DK and perfect for duck diving too. It’s the same material as the XCEL suits and they are my favorite knee pads. It’s not platic or resin stuff, it’s just solid black nylon that Xcel calls Duraflex.
The seams have a liquid tape outside the suit which prevents water from penetrating the seams when the seams stretches or when your suits leaks waters thru the seams. Almost all seams placement is good, there’s only one next to my elbows that felt stiff for some reason.
The suits has a backzip that works well, and a neoprene flap that you put you head in to prevent water entry thru the neck and the upper back. Works fine, although the flap could have been wider on the front, it’s a little short i reckon. Anyway, no water leaked inside, and the neck/collar worked fine. No problem with duckdives, no water got inside. Back zip suits tend to be a little stiff behind the neck, that suit was no exception but it was minimal, probably one of the best backzip i tested.
Being more skinny than fat i’m always looking for tight suits which fit well and have tight arms, legs and neck entry and this one was fitting pretty good. Arm and legs were tight and the suit was warm, i didnt feel cold at anytime.
It has no rubber on the chest so it’s probably cool for prone riders who like to be able to move up and down the board.
To sum it up. It’s a warm, flexy and confortable suit, it’s both basic and tech, since it’s a backzip but has liquid taped seams and super stretch neoprene all over the suit. I think you can trust this suit. We liked it a lot and it looks pretty damn good.
PS: They should release a ST (small tall) size for all tall skinny kids out there.
