Staying Warm

Grizzly · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 6:33 am

........... I am writing this in hopes of gaining some imput from the guys out there who wear the warm weather suits to stay warm in the cold fridgid winter months on the water, and the ice..
I have always been pretty much old school when it comes to this issue with some advantages and also a few disadvantages..... Ive been one who dresses in layers, with the use of wool. I feel the advantages are you can always take off a layer when you start to overheat. and the disadvantage would be the bulkieness. that sometimes comes with these many layers......... and we wont even get into the whole flotation effects that some of the new suits offer these days.
My question would be to many is......... what in your idea would be the best all around suit to buy for our sport? . example.... last week canadian Tire had a sale on a float suit $175 bucks......... was a china knock off of the mustang suit. I tried it on, it felt snug, and rather bulky to me........ all i could think to myself was what if I buy this cheep knock off, and find it just dosnt keep me warm out there in the canadian cold. sure I saved 100 bucks but at what cost?
I have resurched and have found there seems to be more than a few suits to be had on the market now days Mustang, Bouy, Henly, Ice armour, to name just a few, some are one piece, and some are two piece suits, they all will boast them self up to be the best, or best for the price so to speak, it still leaves me to wonder what would be the best all around suit to buy so i got to thinking what better place to find out than right here with all the guys who read these threads, and use suits to stay warm.
Any imput would be great not only for me, but im thinking many others would bennifit from the responces here who are also looking to outfit them selfs with warm (Cold) weather gear. please respond with what you use, and what you like, or dont like about it, some guys have gone thru a process of olimination and to me thouse guys words would speak louder to me knowing they have tried different brands over the years and know the differance between one suit over another for various, and different reasons only they would know.. Thanks for any responces, and im sure as I said it would also be helpfull to many others...... grizz

martycoo · **Joined:** Tue Jan 03, 2006 9:50 am **Posts:** 1793

Hey Grizz!
I wear a mustang model ms-195 I got it for around $350 when BPS was having a sale in the spring on them.... last year after going through at pointe anne in my regular coveralls I had to go get it! with the milder winter's upon us noones 100% safe out there and you could be the most knowledgable angler and still not be 100% safe..... I found it stiff off the bat so I went camping with it for opening weekend she was broke in after sleeping in it the first night.... I find it very warm now and have tested the waters and they float! I wish it had an inside pocket for cell phone camera and such and I'm a fan of the neoprene wrists but they get stinky and hard to get the smell out of that one area...... People say wow you'll get an extra 15 minutes to float around when you go through but after the suction I felt on me going through I'll take 15 minutes over being sucked down asap!!!!
Mike

mountainministries · **Joined:** Sun Dec 30, 2007 10:59 pm **Posts:** 304

I have the Helly Hanson suit. I can't remember what I paid for the thing, but I think it was around $300. I like the peace of mind that it gives me when going out on the ice, knowing that I'll be able to float, however I wish I had shopped around.

This suit is a one piece type, and though the upper part is warm, the legs tend to get a little cold after sitting on a bucket long enough. Also, I find that the jacket isn't nearly as warm as my "snowboard" jacket. For me though, I never bought it for the warmth factor, I only bought it so that my wife would stop worrying about me on the ice, and would instead let me go fishing.

Also, when you spend that type of money on fishing, it makes it easier to convince your wife to let you go. If she ever says that she doesn't want me to go, I can always respond with "It's not that I want to go hunny, its just that I don't want that $300 suit to go to waste. It would be a shame to have spent all that money on nothing. Oh and speaking of money, I would probably be able to get more use out of that suit if you let me buy that new flasher and auger that we saw!!"

Anyways, long story short. Floater suits are more about floating than about warmth. If your looking for warmth I would look into snowmobile suits, they're built for warmth. However standing on thin ice over a strong current, I would opt for flotation and layers any day.

RaZoR · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 10:52 am

I also have a Helly Hanson not sure which model but it has the bib in it, i can drop the top portion and it has suspenders in it to keep it up. I would have to disagree with the warmth factor. Maybe i have a different model but i find the suit excellent for heat!! Over heat actually, that's where the suspenders come in. You do have to wear them to work them in and you'll get used to it eventually(depends on how often you wear it). I have a pair of thermal under wear(climbing stuff) which wicks any moisture away from your skin. I wear one pair of track pants a hoodie a good pair of thick socks good boots and that's it. Bring on the big bad canadian winter!!

OVFisherman · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 10:52 am

Nice post Grizz,

Like you, I am kind of old school when it comes to dressing in layers, so when I see the different suits advertised it can get kind of confusing. I do own an extreme weather parka (military issue) as well as the fleece and mukluks, but I find the parka to be very bulky and heavy. On the plus side, I can wear very little for layers under it and stay warm. I have since begun to use my hunting jacket and pants (my parka, mukluks and fleece are "on loan" to my brother who is at CFS Alert), as they are lighter, not as warm, but if I move around a bit, they seem to work well, and my Sorels, well I wouldn't trade them for anything.

I have been fortunate to not break through the ice (knock on wood) but upon hearing of how many times a year it happens at the BOQ, even to local anglers, it makes me wonder more and more of which floatation suit to look into, as I would like to ice fish the BOQ on a more regular basis in the future.

It will be interesting to hear responses from users of different brands.

The Eye Dr. · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 11:44 am

I have the Helly Hanson one-piece suit. I went with a one piece mainly because I had 2 piece snowmobile suits before and didn't like the cold air and snow going up my back when i laid around or got playful with the kids. It floats, keeps me warm enough sitting in -20 temps all day on a pail. I do wear a one piece long underwear that are 50 percent polyester, 25 percent wool, and 25 percent cotton, which helps. I always like to go with one piece everything, because being a tall guy, i find when I bend over to skim a hole, my shirts no matter how long they are lift up and untuck exposing my back to colder air, even inside a suit! With the proper under clothing this suit will be plenty warm enough for you! Another bonus, although the suit is orange the knees and butt have the material in black so they don't look filthy after being knelt on or sat on a thousand times! It has great pockets, one inside up top for something like a cell, a urinating zipper, emergency whistle in a sleeve pocket, a decent hood, velcro cinches around wrist and ankles, a handle strap behind the neck for pulling someone from the water, (like some else mentioned) inside suspenders, and probably a few other things I'm forgetting right now! I think the suit went for around $285 at Lebarons. I know it was the cheapest price of anywhere in North America! The day I bought the 2 suits and a bunch of tackle at Lebaron's, I also saved a couple hundred dollars by buying the $25 membership card! They let me use it the same day, for the discount!!

The only downside to the suit is that it is HEAVY! But I look at it as a positive. I really get a work out when walking thru 3 foot drifts dragging an auger and takle!

Hope this helps some!

Good fishin!

Glenn

polliwog · **Joined:** Thu May 01, 2008 9:12 pm **Posts:** 160

Grizz if you are going to use this on your boat you might want to consider making sure it is approved for both Can. and U.S. , You would have to spend more to get into a solas rated suit but it might be worth it if you boat on both sides of the border and it would be a really nice suit.

Grizzly · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 2:55 pm

SOLAS ??? ok forgive me im really not up on the lingo or what SOLAS means, but that does bring up a good question while we are at this....... im taking it its not required to have a suit on the boat in cold weather,, but there must be an advantage, I am thinking that if its coast guard approved that would mean you do not need a life jacket on the boat as long as you and everyone on board is in a suit. would that be correct??
and thanks guys im learning alot here, thats great . hope others are as well. keep the info comming please.... grizz

the ziffel · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 3:48 pm

Perhaps he is referring to Salus. It's a company that makes PFD's, flotatation suits, & other stuff. Their flotation suit is yellow. My brother just got one & was happy with it. Personally I wear a Buoy o Buoy that is quite warm. Only problem I've had with it is material getting stuck in the zipper on the leg. I actually broke the zipper pull up thing completely off because of this. Sewed in some velcro to get me through the winter fish, then will replace the zipper or pull. Whatever it needs.

West Lake Willows · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 4:34 pm

Griz.

SOLAS is "safety of life at sea" here is a wikipedia link
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/International_Convention_for_the_Safety_of_Life_at_Sea

I think your best bet is going to be getting a suit in the US, as it tends to be cheaper for outdoors stuff.

For any locals interested. Salus http://www.salusmarine.com is a Canadian company that makes some high end life jackets, rain suits, and float suits. They have put out a new float suit that is SOLAS rated. It retails for $449 but right now I can get them in for $349. I haven't felt one yet, but Salus doesn't put anything out that isn't top notch. I will be working the fishing show next weekend and will be looking at them there. I'm thinking about getting myself one so if anyone is interested let me know.

Scott

walleyed assassin · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 5:24 pm

Grizz, you don't need a special suit you need a "Command Post" You are hard core. You aren't a local so you make the best of it all day out on the ice. I know you prefer fishing outside, you should consider getting yourself a small camping trailer. Park it out on the ice and live right out there. An Ice Bungalow if you will.
I promise we won't turn it into a Tavern. Gary

West Lake Willows · **Posted:** Wed Feb 04, 2009 5:29 pm

I was up fishing Petawawa way a week or so ago, and there were tons of little trailer huts. I'm assuming you have seen these Gary.

I've always wondered with our fishery, why the ice bungalows aren't more popular here. I guess the truck owner and ATV owner know the answer. :lol:

I'm certainly not man enough to stay out on the ice all day without a hut to keep warm.

Scott

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Staying Warm

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