Paddling tips, tricks, news and gear reviews from an Unsponsored point of view

Palm Atom Drysuit – First Look

Hot for 2016 is the new Palm Atom Drysuit. We saw one of these at Paddle Expo back in September 2015 so are very pleased to get hold of one for review on Unsponsored.

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It’s been a few years since we last tried a Palm suit here at Unsponsored HQ which gives us the opportunity to take a fresh look at what Palm Equipment have been doing to develop their suits.

I’m 6ft 2″ with a 42″ chest, and size 10 (UK) feet. The drysuit I have here for review is a large. I tend to wear large drysuits or drytops from pretty much any manufacturer. Based on the details on the Palm site I should really be in a size LT which is longer. However even wearing “normal” clothes (jeans, shirt and T shirt) I still had enough room to spare to be comfortable.

Specification:

XP 4-layer fabric • 4 layer 320D reinforced panels
YKK AquaGuard zipped chest pocket
Latex gasket with 1.5 mm neoprene outer collar
Latex gaskets with velcro adjustable cuffs
Velcro adjustable neoprene waistband
XP 4-layer socks with Nylon 320D soles
Flexible TiZip MasterSeal rear entry and relief zip
Retaining inner neoprene waistband
Reinforced elbows‚ seat and knees
Reflective details

First and foremost the 4 layer breathable XP fabric feels tough and has been pieced together to reduce the number of panels (particularly in the legs). Even tougher fabric has been placed on the knee, seat, elbows and shoulder to re-enforce key wear areas. You can see this in the images as the colour of the fabric in those key areas looks different. It is much harder to tell with the naked eye.

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Now one of the biggest changes is the removal of a Velcro flap to protect the TiZip Masterseal zips. As it happens the performance of the zip is not compromised by the removal of the flap. In the end if it isn’t there it is one less thing to mess about with when putting on or taking the suit off. It also means that this area across the shoulders has a much lower profile, is not as bulky and will therefore be far more flexible/comfortable.

Palm have two versions of the Atom drysuit. The mens version with a front relief zip and a womens version with a drop seat.

The zip used across the shoulders seems to be perfectly positioned and the full shoulder (and pretty much all other panels too) has been sewn/shaped to fit really well. Initial impressions are good.

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As with all of Palm’s gear that include a TiZip Masterseal zip some TiZip lube is also included. This suit came with two tubes of the stuff attached.

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The neck and wrist seals are latex gaskets with a neoprene outer cover. The wrist outer covers are Velcro adjustable.

The waist is also Velcro adjustable as is the outer part of the ankle. For your feet there is a fabric sock that has been double taped. There is plenty of room in the socks and they are well shaped.

The inner part of the suit also has a neoprene waist to aid keeping your suit in place if you are only wearing the bottom half. There is certainly no need to wrap the arms of the suit around your waist as a make shift belt to keep the suit up. I also hate suits that use braces, so this feature is a winner straight away.

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The RRP for the drysuit is £499.95 but I have seen them listed for £450.

I’m looking forward to trying this out over the next few months.

Palm Drysuit page – Click here.

6 Comments

  1. Michael

    How have you found the large size in use? I’m a similar size, and think the XL is just too much. I don’t think they make this one in LT which would be perfect!

    • Unsponsored

      Large is spot on for me. Looking at the specs I was worried that it would be too short. I have a long body and arms but it is great. Enough room for some layering. Good standing and sitting down.

  2. Michael

    Thanks for the quick reply!

  3. Luis Machado

    Does the outer waist band work as a tunnel to help seal the spray skirt?

    • Unsponsored

      It does.

      • Luis Machado

        Thanks for the quick response.

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