Because of the way I get onto my board, and 'collect' the wing, I have worn through the elbows of two wetsuits , perfectly good ION suits but I've managed to trash the sleeves.
Anyone know of a wetsuit brand that does a suit with Elbow patches? I know knee pads are common, but Elbow pads?.
Thanks.
Kiteboarders wear trunks above their wetsuits to protect them.
I guess you can just use a long sleeved lycra above your wetsuit.
Just glue some on with contact cement. Problem solved for a lot less $ and you aren't limited to a suit that might not fit as well.
I had the same problem. Bought some cheap elbow pads on Amazon and now wear them all the time and have saved several wetsuits from early deminse.
I posted this in a similar topic last year, although I fixed the issue with them coming undone by adding a couple of additional "hook" pieces of velcro. No sewing, just overlap the the straps.
www.seabreeze.com.au/forums/Wing-Foiling/Wind-Wings/Wetsuit-elbow-neoprene-gets-off
I have this issue as well. Had it happen on two older wetsuits - I thought it was just the material breaking down before I realized what was probably happening.
Bought a couple "ACE Brand Neoprene Elbow Support, Adjustable Brace" for about USD$10-15ea and wear them over my wetsuit. Probably looks a little goofy but it seems to work so far. The only issue is they tend to come undone during a wipeout so they flap around until you have time to re-adjust.
So far it seems to be helping and I figure it's more cost effective to sacrifice a $10 brace than repair a nice wetsuit.
Added bonus - seems to be help a little to keep the minor tennis/golfer's elbow soreness at bay.
I have an old wetsuit that i cut a couple of 'tubes' from and use them as elbow sleeves. They often fall down when crashing so i need to spend 3-4 seconds pulling them back up if needed.
I also tried gluing and taping (with wetsuit iron-on tape) some patches, One is still holding after ~10 sessions and the other is half-way to falling off. I've taken to putting the sleeves over them again.
I might try sewing and gluing on the patches next.
Last stop will be a pro repair...
Read this yesterday
> The protection is placed in sewn-into pockets in the shins and knees down, with a much tougher finished neoprene employed to take impact and prevent abrasion. All seams have a tough blind stitch with no internal taping.
www.thefoilingmagazine.com/test-center/ion-harness-and-long-john/?utm_medium=email&utm_content=broadcast2
Select to expand quotekiwiupover said..
I have an old wetsuit that i cut a couple of 'tubes' from and use them as elbow sleeves. They often fall down when crashing so i need to spend 3-4 seconds pulling them back up if needed.
I also tried gluing and taping (with wetsuit iron-on tape) some patches, One is still holding after ~10 sessions and the other is half-way to falling off. I've taken to putting the sleeves over them again.
I might try sewing and gluing on the patches next.
Last stop will be a pro repair...
Likewise. In cold water, we tend to get new suits annually, so there's usually a pile of old ones that eventually get to point of unusable and unsellable...chop off the arms and legs (new summer shorty), then use those to protect your good suit. You can chop to the right diameter, tight enough to not come loose, not so tight to cut off circulation.
Select to expand quotejuandesooka said..kiwiupover said..
I have an old wetsuit that i cut a couple of 'tubes' from and use them as elbow sleeves. They often fall down when crashing so i need to spend 3-4 seconds pulling them back up if needed.
I also tried gluing and taping (with wetsuit iron-on tape) some patches, One is still holding after ~10 sessions and the other is half-way to falling off. I've taken to putting the sleeves over them again.
I might try sewing and gluing on the patches next.
Last stop will be a pro repair...
Likewise. In cold water, we tend to get new suits annually, so there's usually a pile of old ones that eventually get to point of unusable and unsellable...chop off the arms and legs (new summer shorty), then use those to protect your good suit. You can chop to the right diameter, tight enough to not come loose, not so tight to cut off circulation.
Tangent: I also use the spare sleeves as extensions for my 11 year old daughter's wetsuit's legs. She's super lanky and thin so this gets her into a properly fitting wetsuit body while keeping the legs long enough. No wetsuit/booty gap 
.
There's a NZ company (forgot the name) that does suits with elbow patches. IMO, the stretchier the neoprene, the quicker the elbows wear. My top of the range O'Neil Psychotech was like this after 9 months.
