Many where the artisans at the Medi Show, in Rome Italy, the spearfishing and freediving saloon. Wetsuits where displayed with Polo Sub, Top Sub and Monkey Sub.
But also carbon fiber fins (excluding Pathos, of which AP has already talked) with Cetma andGFT, to the spearguns, with Seawolf, Seahawk andTorpedo, and many others. Some have brought to the show interesting novelties, so AP has gone to descover them. Let’s start with novelties in the wetsuits!
AP has chatted with two very strong and expert artisans, Polo Sub and Top Sub, and also with the young Monkey Sub: three pholosophies with somehow big differences in the approach.
Top Sub
The company of Silvano Agostini, born in 1984, based in the heart of the diving district in Italy, Genoa, is supplier of Italian Marine Military forces, State Police, diving Carabinieri military force, Fire Fighters, Coast Guard and and National Safety Society; not bad! The fact that Top Sub is now since more than 30 years in the wetsuit production world, does not stop them from constantly improving their products.
At Medi Show AP has had a chat with Silvano Agostini, who has presented to us some improvements applied to the smooth exterior and open-cell interior wetsuits, the most professional and comfortable wetsuits, but for sure also the most delicate. Particular attention has been put in the sternal support area, that now has a externally lined neoprene that goes down to the waist of the jacket, in a way that strengthens the area put under stress when loading the speargun. Moreover, some people load puttying the grip of th speargun on the chest, some others find it easier to put it on the tummy. In addition, also the internal part of the sternal support are is with lined neoprene, avoiding that the soap used to put on the wetsuits determines the open cell neoprene to slip when loading the speargun on the chest; a situation that increases risks of the neoprene tearing apart.
Polo Sub
It must be said that it the wetsuit field it is quite difficult today to invent something, so generally what we find is fine tunings. In this case Polo Sub, the company of Rome, led by Giuliano Tagliacozzo, has aimed on a totally aesthetic novelty, with a “vintage” solution, which uses red stitching, but also other very nice looking colours. Moreover, the M21 wetsuit, in externally lined and internally open cell neoprene, used in open water spearfishing in the blue, has been modified in the mimetic, which is mainly blue, subsituting light blue areas with grey-white ones. These take inspiration from the techniche of fishing with”flashers”, light reflecting elements that attract fishes.
Top Sub Supercaccia SH3 vs Polo Sub Forza Tre
The Supercaccia SH3 di Top Sub and the Forza Tre di Polo Sub are two models of wetsuits that utilize and specific neoprene solution made as a sandwich, which is actually the name given by Omer-Sporasub to the wetsuit, which uses a similar solution, launched for 2016 and called Sandwich, already presented by AP three weeks ago. The neoprene sheet is made of two layers of smooth exterior and open cell interior neoprene, and an internal layer of very elastic texture. But, in reality, the differences between the Top Sub solution compared to the one of Polo Sub are important.
More specifically the SH3 is a matrial made of a 0.8 mm thick neoprene layer and another layer of greater thickness, which detrmines the toatl thickness of the wetsuit. Between the two is a superstretch texture, that will make the material extremely resistant to tearing. Top Sub manufactures its wetsuits mainly with ultra resistant be-component glues, to obtain maximum comfort and elasticity. But this is not all. It is important to point out how the thicker layer of neoprene is positioned externally, while the thinner is internal. This choice has been made sinc ethe thicker layer is more resistant to tear or cuts against the rocks, and better protects the internal layer of texture, which, if soaked, decades and spoils the sandwich material. This is, in fact, the main limit of this kind of interesting neoprene type.
Polo Sub makes a different choice: first of all the wetsuit Forza Tre is sewn. To do so the 0.8 mm layer needs to be external, so that the thread from outside down to the texture, that works as a strong support, without having to make stitching that pass through the whole material. This solution would, in fact, make the neoprene no more water tight, and would be uncomfortable for the diver who would feel the sewings.
In synthesis, more protetion to the internal texture and greater softnss in some areas for Top Sub, greater resistance in the sewed and glued connection for Polo Sub.
But not only: the philosophies of the two companies differ also in the area of certification. Silvano Agostini has strongly wanted, also due to the important institutional customer of Top Sub, a certification fo the neoprene he uses, mainly Yamamoto and HEIWA. Giuliano Tagliacozzo, instead, states that the different supplies of neoprene differ significantly one from the other, so certification does not really have much sense. It will be him, time to time, to choose the right sheets of neoprene depending on the request of the customer for a more or less soft wetsuit.
Monkey Sub
As Polo Sub, also Monkey Sub è based in the capital of Italy, Rome. Born only 3 years ago, it is the smallest of the 3 companies. Monkey Sub offers different kinds of wetsuits, and has its particularity in the 100% sartorial manufacturing. Practically, while Top Sub and Polo Sub, on the base of the measures of the body of each diver and cuts the neoprene using specific templates, Monkey Sub restarts from zero each time, just like a tailor, cutting the neoprene parts with specific shapes for each single customer.
