Voit camo suits

[nemrod]

Does anyone have a good picture of the old Voit suits from the early 60s that had the camoflage/tie-die/whatever you call it pattern? Some were green and some were blue, smooth skin and they had a unique mottled color pattern to the suit. Black is certainly vintage but suits and equipment came in many colors, some so unique they have not been seen in over 40 years.

I have seen some neoprene camo colors that are kinda nice and somewhat remind me of the old neoprenes but of course they are not smooth skin or any of that.

[nemrod]

I think it is the circa 1962-64 catalogs that showed two couples scuba diving on a California beach in these cool suits. I have seen them in person, the suits that is.

Things that define vintage to me in a suit

smooth or textured (shark skin/turtle skin etc)
beaver tail with snaps or twist locks
no large graphics or color inset anatomical panels
straight cut

In the 60s many people only wore the top with a swimsuit alone. In fact many such tops were sold without the pants at all and some had shorty sleeves. Pants were worn, if included, only when absolutely needed due to the great increase in bouyancy and complication that resulted in. I still have a smooth skin top with short sleeves and beaver tail however it has not fit me since sometime circa 1970 when I took on a growing spell. It is thin, 1/8 inch, smooth and soft/stretch neoprene.

[DavidRitchieWilson]

Voit seems to have used colours other than black in its exposure suits in the 1950s as well. The following page illustrates - sadly in monochrome! - two-tone blue full-length front and waist entry dry suits, a yellow neoprene "wet shirt" with green striping and a full-length black wet suit with green striping:

www.skindivinghistory.com/mfg_retailers/v/Voit/06.html

The next page has "a nice collection of funnily colored psychedelic suits made by Voit". However, as it's a Geocities site, it's down at the moment with that tedious error message about the site "exceeding its bandwith":

www.geocities.com/SouthBeach/Lights/7840/g-smooth.html

[nemrod]

I was speaking with a place that made a suit for me way back in Texas in the 80s when I saw some camo patterns on his site. I am not really happy with anything I am seeing. What I want is a bicycle length short, a bolero cut long sleeve top with detachable hood. I want this "outfit" for kayak diving. Wear the shorts with a rashguard and then slip the top on when on anchor. Most wetusits fabricated now are unsuitable for kayak diving. I thought it might be cool if I found some smooth neoprens but this stuff is hard to find in the 1 to 3 mm thickness suitable (pun) for a kayak diving suit. The old style beaver tail tops are an inspiration because redone in a stretch thin neoprene they would be easy to slip on while seated in a tipsy kayak. Just wear the swimsuit and rash guard and then when at anchor put the top on and prepare to dive. Why does this matter, well, you cannot paddle in a thick, heavy suit and you cannot get into and out of them on the kayak.

We have had threads like this before, sorry to rehash, but there really needs to be a source for old style with modern materials and I just don't turn much up. These modern graphic laden rear zip jump suits are very annoying.

Nemrod

[SeaRat]

Nemrod,

I just sent Harvey's Divesuits the following e-mail:

Do you make a custom wet suit in the older style, with a beaver tail and perhaps a pull-over jacket? Also, can you mix thicknesses of neoprene? Finally, can you provide a suit made of skin-in material (with the nylon on the outside)?

I have one of your suits from the 1980s, and intend to use it again as soon as I drop about 25 pounds. I've been saying that for a while now, and it may not be easy to do, though I have dropped a few pounds.

I have been diving since 1959, and would like to go back to some of the old tried and true ways with my next wet suit.

Thanks,

John C. Ratliff

Here is their website:

www.harveys-divesuits.com/company/contact.aspx

You too can write to them at:

[e-mail]

John

[Captain]

Interesting store stamp on the catalog. A time before the dive shop of today existed.
Give me a fill and a Bud.

Not vintage but is camo.

www.spearfishinggear.com/Merchant2/merchant.mvc?page=SG/CTGY/W

[scubadiverbob]

John,

I recommend contacting Cricket at Otterbay Wetsuits in Monterey, CA and get your old wetsuit resized. They are reasonable and do a good job. They might be able to come up with material to make a camo suit.

Robert

[nemrod]

Good luck with Harvy's, I doubt they can do anything for you. I contacted then several years ago. The old style suit without all the anatomical panels is a lost art. Terrapin may resize your suit but the thing is none of them have smooth skin neoprene and none of them are motivated to find any if it still exists. It is a sorry state of affairs.

Body Glove made a suit like I want now, I bought it in Macy's in Houston in about 86. It was a bolero top with hood and bicycle bottom. I still have the bottom but the top was lost along the way. It was not vintage but was functional for kayak and warm water. I hate those jump suits and shorty suits. I want two seperate pieces.

Imagine wearing a shorty with rear zip or jumpsuit on a kayak with the front pulled down and then falling in--can you say drowing incident? The common 3 MM is to thick anyways.


Nemrod

[shackle]

James, There is a web site, www.vintagesoulwetsuits .com. Have you checked them out?
Scott

[JES]

Here's the link Shackle mentions: www.vintagesoulwetsuits.com

[JES]

James,

These Voit suits look sharp. I'd wear the gray & black pattern in a heartbeat.

I'm thinking that this pattern in pink would go well with your pink Tekna gear collection.

[flafrog]

We bought these voit suits in varous colors while I was in the US Navy and assigned to Atlantic Fleet Mobile Photographic Group (later Combat Camera Atlantic Fleet) Underwater Photo team 1961-1966 they were very stiff even when new right out of the box, I replaced the snap fasteners which would open upon water entree with twist lock connectors on the beaver tail , the deal was "if it fits its yours", I wore mine a few times and got a lot of crap from other Commands we worked with i.e UDT/Seal/EOD, I took mine home and it hung in my folks garage for a few decades till it was thrown out.

Flafrog

[Captain]

N, this might be your solution. Custom made by Polaris DiveSuits in Santa Cruz, CA. Skin-2-Side, Rubatex GN-231N. PM Tahassamania on scaryboard, he is familar with them.

[nemrod]

I imagine Rob and Bryan would be awfully spiffy in those as well, OxyCheq will custom make wings if you ask nicely and even have the Mach V in urban camo. They will also custom make other colors such as international safety orange. I know those are not vintage but I am not always vintage, I seek a synergistic blend of old and new to bring functionality to a new and more holistic level (Geico inspired).


As to being stiff, were not most of the old suits stiff? Or is it that we are old and the suits are older thus requiring us to waddle around like penguins?


Joe, better watch out or I will start talking about your transgender pack--ha, ha .

Those beaver tail twist locks are probably still made and used in tarps and upholstery and such. I have seen them in marine catalogs.


Nemrod

[SeaRat]

Nemrod,

The older suits were not stiff, but may have gotten that way with age. Particularly, the single-sided neoprene with the textured surface (Tufskin, I think), were very flexible, but vulnerable to abrasion. I went to the skin-in (nylon-out) suits in the 1970s, and really like that type of suit.

By the way, I just received this reply from Nina Grohs, Sales, Harveys Suits:

Yes we can!
We can make a pair of farmer john pants and a beaver tail jacket we can also put a attached hood with an inverted zipper that you would pull on over your head and or we can put a zipper into the hood so you can put it on like a jacket so to speak. Mixed thickness yes but its hard to put 3mm and 7mm together in the panels of arms to body we can do it though and 3mm and 5mm works and so does 5mm and 7mm. And if your talking about using a 5mm johns and 3mm jacket we can do that too! We would be happy to help in anyways just let us know how we can assist you. Thank you for your request.

Nina Grohs
Sales

John