Torrent Dry Suit Review

It’s the attention to detail that sets this suit apart from the pack.

For years my favorite paddling jacket has been an old Palm top that has faithfully protected me from wind, and wave, so I was excited when the opportunity to test drive Palm’s Torrent Dry Suit presented itself. I was expecting good things, and I wasn’t disappointed.

The first, and by far the most obvious variation one notices with this suit is the location of the entry zipper in the rear across the shoulders. This is a low profile water tight zipper that the company calls a Ti-zip. I’ve always been use to a metal diagonal zip across my chest and was anxious to see if there was a noticeable difference. It was immediately apparent when I went to put the suit on; no Houdini straight jacket dance trying to get it over my shoulders. The next benefit of the rear zipper became evident after wearing the suit for a day in the surf; no hot spot across my chest from my PFD compressing the zipper.

There are two slight drawbacks to the rear entry zip. First the stiffness across the shoulders put me off for a bit, but that was quickly forgotten once I started paddling and with use, it’s no longer an issue. The second is solo entry/exit of the suit. I found it impossible to close the zipper by myself using just my hands, but I quickly solved that with a piece of flat webbing which I looped around the handle of the zipper, then using a hitch knot around something convenient (boat, log, bumper, etc.) it’s easy to open and close the zipper. I store the webbing in one of the two breast pockets. In my opinion the ease of entry/exit with the rear zipper more then offsets the need for a bit of webbing on those occasions when I’m suiting up by myself.

The material used in the suit is Palm’s XP150 3 ply waterproof and breathable 550D cordura®. I had no issues with either leakage or breath-ability with this suit. After a hard session in the surf with a lot of excursion, I was still warm and dry with none of the dampness you get with a non-breathable material. Like my trusted time tested jacket, the suit is also comfortable enough to wear on day trips. I’m not sure why it feels so much more comfortable then other brands I’ve tried, perhaps it the pre-bent articulate cuts in the knees and elbows, or lack of seams in all the wrong places, but it’s apparent to me how much more comfortable their product line is; if it chafes, pinches or creates hotspots, then I’m far less likely to be using it when perhaps I should. For me the Torrent was free of all these issues.

Now for the small details which help elevate this suit above the competition. The socks, which along with the relief zipper come standard, have double material on the soles to help protect them from puncture. The protective material along the wrist and necks are doubled over and sewn; I’ve seen the competitors’ suits which have a straight cut here, unravel while still on the hanger. Reflective piping is sewn into the suit along the neck and legs. Drain vents are placed in the neck protective ring. And finally, beefy well made elastic straps for sealing the protective material around the neck, wrist and ankle gaskets.

In summary I say this is an excellent suit and an awesome value by being so affordable. For just a few more dollars then some of the semi-dry suits on the market, you get a full drysuit with socks, and relief zipper standard. For those of you in south Puget Sound, Backpackers Supply currently has them in stock.

A quality and comfortable drysuit is inherently more comfortable then a wetsuit and will extend your survivability in the event of a swim. However, this is not the only benefit to owning a drysuit; I found that once I had a drysuit, I was much more willing to experiment and practice different rescues and paddle techniques as getting wet was no longer the shock it once was. Finally, I found myself on the water much more often with year round paddles in any weather a pleasure.