What's the best way to not damage dysuit seals?

I'm going out wakeboarding tomorrow and was hoping someone could give me some good info on the best way to put on the drysuit without damaging the seals.

Would you recommend using a water-based lubricant on the seals to help them slide on easier??

Little help??

Never pull the seal from the opposite end from which it is attached to the suit. This way you will avoid tearing the seal away from the suit. For example, when putting your hand through the wrist seal grab the end of the seal with your fingers and pull it over your hand. Do this as opposed to just trying to slide your hand through the seal.

For ease in getting into the suit use babypowder. Also, should you tear a seal, replacing the seal is very easy. There's no need to pay a fortune to send off your suit to be repaired. Find some seals on-line and replace them yourself.

second the powder

Never heard the baby powder idea. Great idea!!

I have a tear in the seal around my neck on my Bare drysuit. How easy is it really to replace a seal? It's still under warranty so I'll probably send it in for a repair. However, it would be nice to know how to replace a seal. I'm sure it's easy to describe how to, but is it really easy? And dependable?

best way? buying a wetsuit.

Anodyne...you beat me to it!

Not baby powder, but pure talc powder. I use food grade silicon on my D.U.I. drysuit. Do not use aerosols at all. Do use wax on the zipper too, but not bees wax.

Of course for wakeboarding I prefer a wetsuit over a drysuit.

Carry along a plastic bag...Put your hand/foot in the bag and slip the suit on. You might want to carry an extra bag sometimes they rip.

Use spray-silikon if needed. And i prefer my drysuit over a neopren fullsuit anytime. It so comfy I take it on when I go on board and take it of when the sun sets. No changing, no freezing no sweating (goretex) on water or on the boat and the comfy baggy feel.
I like drysuits.

Use spray-silikon if needed. And i prefer my drysuit over a neopren fullsuit anytime. It so comfy I take it on when I go on board and take it of when the sun sets. No changing, no freezing no sweating (goretex) on water or on the boat and the comfy baggy feel.
I like drysuits.

PAM actually works really well- Not PAM the chick, although she may help..... PAM the cooking spray. Another better idea is the plastic grocery bag like suggested above. Not for PAM the chick, unless shes ugly

^ Bad advice. Definitely NOT PAM. It is an aerosol, and without even looking at the contents, I doubt it would be good for the seals anyhow. No oils of any kind allowed. They recommend cleaning off your skin oil after every use and applying a conditioner to the seals.

Kraig,

If your suit is under warranty and you can afford to be without it for a few weeks, go ahead and let Bare fix it. I have a Bare as well that is not in warranty. For Bare to replace two ankle seals and the neck seal, they wanted $180 plus shipping! That's why I opted to fix it myself.

I ordered a neck seal, two ankle seals (they only come in pairs) and the cement directly from Bare. All of that was right at $75 with shipping. To repair a seal ( the neck seal for example) I found a pot in my kitchen that was the right diameter to allow the neck hole to slide over it. First I cut off the old seal all the up to the suit. A professinal repair would remove the seal entirely from the suit, sand the adhesive off of the suit, and re-apply the new seal. My repair wasn't quite as thorough, but it works and looks good.

Anyway, after you have cut away the old seal slide the neck hole over the pot (pot coming up through the hole from inside the suit just as if it were your head coming through). Then take the new seal and slide it over the top of pot all the way down to where it overlaps the old seal portion that still remains on the suit. Get it in place exactly where you want it to be. Then fold the new seal up away from the suit. Add cement to the suit and to the new seal. Fold the seal back down over the suit and let it sit for an hour or so. That's it!

http://www.oceanictech.se/pdf/Drysuit.pdf

Here ya go if y'all actually need instructions on how to put on a drysuit. Remember if you pee in it it won't neccasarily keep you warmer

If you want to know how to repair a drysuit read here http://www.ossystems.com/ They also have parts available, and the glue PB300 is one of the best in the industry. MEK can be purchased at most any hardware or paint store. I have done countless seals without any issues.

I used a die grinder and a soft wire brush to remove the old glue and latex.

The jig used is just a piece of melamine that the drysuit gets clamped too.

thanks for the responses...a little late, but that's alright. Here's a little feedback.

The ankles are the only seals that are a bitch to get on and off...off being much more difficult than on.

Wetsuit: Why am I not using a wetsuit? Because the water was 42 degrees on Sunday. Perhaps a good quality full wetsuit will keep you warm enough while in the water, but call me crazy, I'm not a big fan of being wet while it's in the 40's outside and then trying to warm back up while driving the boat for your friend who is taking his turn. I prefer to stay dry in these conditions.

Baby Powder: Worked pretty good getting the drysuit on, but can't use it when it comes time to take it off. Plus the powder is hard to keep from getting all over the place.

Plastic Baggy: Again...good idea for getting on...but doesn't help with removal.

while a little weird...I can't help but think a dab of KY on the inside of the ankle seals would help them off. (save the stupid one-liner jokes...unless they're really funny of course)

KY?? No no no my friend, AstroGlide! She'll thank you later......

some pics from Sunday