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morey000
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Orca Sonar review

  • Price Paid:$127.00
  • User rating:
    (4.8)
  • Would buy again from this company: Yes
  • Used product for: 3 months
  • # of logged workouts: 16

"Good quality, mid-level wetsuit. A solid performer."morey000

(4)

Ease of installation

I'm getting better at it. They're all hard to put on.

(5)

Quality of Construction

Every seam looks perfect. Zipper pulls smoothly. Velcro works well. Even some logo's inside and decent graphics. Seams are both stitched (on the inside) and glued (on the outside). That's how it's supposed to be!

(5)

Fit

I've read various reviews (elsewhere) on the Orcas that said that they run small and to size up. None of those people know how to put on a wetsuit. Follow the sizing guidelines on the Orca site. They are perfectly accurate. That said, I'm a little underweight for the size I chose. It fits in height and chest perfectly, and if I put on 10lbs of fat or muscle it would fit a bit better.

(5)

Comfort

Once the suit is installed properly- very comfortable. No chafing or pulling. I haven't used it in really cold water, but for water in the 60's it provides plenty of insulation. you feel invincible.

(5)

Adjustability

not much to adjust but the neck seal. The Sonar has a wide area of velcro, so this allows a couple inches of range to play with to seal up that neck area well.

(5)

Durability

I've used it in 3 races, and a couple practice days and one rough ocean swim. I may have a different opinion 2 years from now, but for now the suit is well made, durable and perfect.

(5)

Value

The suit retails for $329. I got last year's model on deep discount from an on-line retailer for $127. Performance wise- it does seem like a $300 class wetsuit. For what I paid- I consider it a screaming deal

(4)

Appearance

Looks mostly like a black wetsuit. It has a cool Orca logo across the chest and some graphics over the shoulder and down the arms. Nicer looking than some, but not overly cool. Could use some more striking colors.

(0)

Performance

I've only tried out the lower level wetsuits, so relative to those, it's a good performer. Not sure what it would feel like next to a $600 suit, but I'm definitely faster than without it.

Strengths

High Quality
Solid Construction
fast skin
pretty bouyant
very stretchy fabric in all the right places
comes off heels pretty easily

Weakness

graphics could be better
Sizing may not work for you if you have a very lean build.

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Buyers clubSonar
  • 13 people use
  • 38 workouts logged
  • 51.69 miles / 27.99 hours logged