installing drysuit kneepads and pockets

[matt t.]

The pockets and knee-pads finally arrived and after all my research I was ready to glue everything on. I decided to go with the McNett seal cement on the pockets and knee-pads. After a call to 5th Dimension and a few questions. It turns out that they recommend putting glue on the WHOLE pocket instead of just a 1" strip around the perimeter. The backing on the pocket appears to be neoprene instead of nylon (like the Halcyon) and seems like it would be a better surface for the glue. I outlined the pocket position on the suit with masking tape, and applied 3 coats (5-10 minutes between each coat) of seal cement, also doing the pocket at the same time. Applying the pockets is a 1 time deal, because after the 2 glued surfaces come in contact they aren't coming apart. I was really impressed with the strength of the glue! After the pockets were applied I pulled the outline tape off the suit, leaving nice clean edges around the pockets. Looked great. I then went about positioning the knee-pads. This was a little difficult. Do I place them evenly in the center of the knee panels, or do I put them where they'll do the most good? I ended up putting them a little to the outside to cover most of the worn area already present (outlining the area with masking tape again for nice clean glue lines). They look a little lopsided to the suit knee panels, but are glued on evenly, to each other, on the suit. For this application I applied 3 coats (to the pads and suit) of seal cement in a 1" perimeter leaving the center "glue free". DUI recommends this method and it makes sense because the knee area needs to stretch. I rolled the pads out with the wifes rolling pin and let everything dry for 24 hours. Three dives so far and everything is still on the suit! It was a fun little project that saved me $180 in labor.