Any suggestions? Looking for something sleeveless - definitely! Thanks for the advice…
I second the sleeveless, a must IMO for a swimmer. I use a QR sleeveless, not the high end one, it is a few years old and works just fine for me. I can get you the style type if you need.
I appreciate it - I’ll look the QR Sleeveless up online - thanks!
Why sleeveless?
My first wetsuit was sleeveless because I thought I wanted to added ‘feel’ of the water, and the unrestricted upper body movement.
Those in the know all say that with everything else being equal, a full suit is faster.
I have been using a DeSoto T1 for about 4 years now and really like it. The top is super supple and easy to get on right so it doesn’t restrict my stroke.
I was a decent high school and college swimmer, and swim sub 30 for a 1/2 and sub 55 for an IM.
If you want the “Best Wetsuit for an experienced swimmer” you will not get a sleeveless suit. Suits with sleeves are faster. I was stressed about this at first also, as I swam from age 6-22; however, once I put on a full sleeve suit for the first time I was completely blown away. If you insist upon no sleeves, then pretty much all of the suits are the same, so go with the cheapest.
There is a reason 95+% of the pros wear full-suits when wetsuits are allowed; fullsuits are faster.
DeSoto T1. The two piece design will give you the best range of motion. Besides that the Aquaman MetalCell and QRoo Superfull seem to have the most flexible cut through the shoulders, and are the suits that most of the top swimmers I train with use. I also know some very fast swimmers that love the BlueSeventy Helix and the new Orca Apex2. There are a lot of great suits out there. Give them a go. For the one piece suits, it seems to be very dependent on body type.
After reading these replies I guess I am thinking a bit more about my thoughts when I bought my suit.
First I was on a big budget, and was worried about flexibility of cheaper full sleeve suits, and was not going to pay for a top end suit. I think I paid about $100 for my QR at the time. If memory serves a top end full sleeve was close to $400 so there is a big price difference.
Second I am a big time overheater- so I actually wanted the sleevless to try to keep a bit cooler in the water.
There is a reason 95+% of the pros wear full-suits when wetsuits are allowed; fullsuits are faster.
Ahhh, but they don’t have the same temp cut-off as us ag’ers, so overheating not an issue with the pros. I’m currently looking at some full sleeve suits, though have never been in sub 74 degree water in a race, so not sure it’s worth risk of overheating and shoulder restriction, at least at HIM and IM distance. OD a different animal.
My T1 has no shoulder restrictions, IMO.
I have raced in water probably 80 and was okay.
Dave
I’m looking mainly for OD, 1/2, and ultimately full distances. I jsut don’t want the shoulder / arm restriction. If there’s a full out there that doesn’t restrict my movement - then I’m all for it.
For Ironman events, the Pro’s DO have the same wetsuit cutoff - 78. There is actually a petition to change this to be inline with USAT’s 72F cutoff. This is why Clearwater last year was wetsuit legal, which was AWFUL. Hawaii is, as far as I know, the only Ironman that is non-wetsuit on a regular basis.
Jordan,
Where is the love for Nineteen? 
Our Frequency tests very well shoulder to shoulder, pun intended, with all the top wetsuits from other manufacturers that you mentioned.
We are certainly not the biggest, but we are growing rapidly and one of the big reasons for that is the fit and flexibility of the Frequency.
I agree with you that body type is key for one piece wetsuit fit.
I keep reading about all these people that think a little arm restriction is worse than death. If something ‘restricts your arms’ by 10%, but gives you an 18% increase in speed, isn’t that worth the hassle? (I am just throwing % numbers out there - you could call it 5% vs. 10%)
It was before breakfast! And I still can’t forget the first summer I showed up in Victoria and I was basically the only swimmer not in an Aquaman… I do know of several good swimmers that use Nineteen (Jonnyo, Kyle Jones, and of course, uberswimmer Andrew McCartney). And last time I was in FrontRunners, I checked out your sleeve & shoulders and they were very nice.
if that’d be the case, then yes - I’d take the trade - but not sure if that’s the case. Also, it’s a matter of comfort and “feel”.
If you read the posts above - you can be sure that is the case. If you want comfort and “feel”, you are welcome to stick with a Speedo for the least restriction and greatest feel, followed by a sleeveless wetsuit, and you can continue to be slower than you would be in a top-o-the-line fullsuit with the proper fit.
I don’t intend to be harsh (sarcastic-usually; harsh-usually not), but you would be the exception to the rule if you are one of the very rare people who is actually faster in a sleeveless. Most of the people that think they are faster in sleeveless had a poor fit in the fullsuit, or did not put it on correctly (everybody needs a wedgie sometimes). I have had several friends (both strong swimmers and weaker swimmers) that hated their fullsuit until I stood over their shoulder and made them pull it up higher and higher in the crotch until they didn’t have pressure on their shoulders. World of difference for most people.
One of the best internet write-ups for wetsuit installation I have ever seen is on Bikesport Michigan’s website. Say what you will about Tom Demerly and his articles, but that one should be printed out and included with every wetsuit purchase.
I recently tested my present sleeveless with a top of the line full suit, doing 2 x 200 and 1 x 300 scy in each. Recorded time and ending hr. Intended to do more but underestimated the time (and energy) requirement to change suits. Water was warmish at 82 degrees.
Sleeveless: 2:43/113 2:44/122 4:12/122
Full: 2:32/125 2:37/128 4:06/131
My baseline time for non wetsuit 200 is 3:00. After the first 200, I was ready to make the switch to full, though didn’t like the trend by the time the 300 rolled around, especially with the heavy feeling in the shoulders.
It should be pointed out that whatever suit you get, you’ll need time to adapt to it, so you will be a little slower (or at best only a little faster) at first. But soon you adapt and find your new swimming centre of gravity - only then can you be sure if you are relatively faster regardless of type.
yes - given. Anything new takes time to adapt - thanks!!
As long as we are on the rader-screen of the Rappstar it’s all good for me!