O'Neill TB3 Psycho Tech 5.5/4mm Women's Front Zip Hooded Wetsuit

O'Neill TB3 Psycho Tech 5.5/4mm Women's Front Zip Hooded Wetsuit - At a Glance

If you live in the PNW and want to get out on the water throughout the year, a warm suit is a necessity. It could be a matter of life or death, but mostly it’s just about comfort. Sessions are longer and more enjoyable when you’re warm and comfortable and the psycho provides both comfort and warmth in spades. I’ve been getting out on the lakes, rivers, bays and oceans here all four seasons for more than 20 years. I’ve worn out many wetsuits from many manufacturers, but the suit I keep coming back to is the Psycho Tech. The first psycho I used had TechnoButter 2 insulation. It was impressively light and stretchy. I still own that suit which is still working well when the water isn’t frigid. In fact, it really feels more like a 4/3 than the 5.5+/4 stamped on the sleeve. Reviews at the time warned that the psycho’s weren’t as durable as other brands, but I didn’t find that to be true. If you’re careful pulling it on and take care of it, it will last hundreds of sessions. Since purchasing my first psycho I have picked up others in TB3 and the latest in TB4. Comparing the suits from various model years it’s clear that they have only experienced minor refinements and tweaks in panel layout and shaping, most likely to increase the durability and life of these outstanding suits. Stitching and seam welding has gotten more robust with each generation. The liner has been upgraded too, includes some recycled yarn and is now super soft and dries faster than ever. The suit is actually noticeably stiffer in a few panels than the TB2 and it is a little harder to get on and off. I suspect some of the increased stiffness is due to the greener recipe used in the latest neoprene (which somehow incorporates recycled oyster shells), solvent free lamination, more extensive stitching and the plasma cuffs that seal out water. The tradeoff of the extra time needed to get in and out of the suit is its unsurpassed warmth. One thing that keeps me coming back are the details like the FUZE entry and Redzone zipper. I’ve found the O’Neill zipper to be very robust and reliable and easy to open and close. I appreciate that you don’t have to try and align a zipper car under my chin when it’s cold and I’m wearing gloves. The psycho isn’t cheap, but quality like this rarely is. If you spend a lot of time in cold water, the return is well worth the investment.