The best gear there is...

[saturday seth]

eVent's whole selling point is that their ePTFE membrane is more breathable than gore's P.U. membrane.[*]That's presumably why all the Rab gear is made from it.[/list][*]

• More membrane is less flexible, but more waterproof; different breathable fabrics have different mebrane thicknesses depending on the intended use.
• Different fabrics on either side of the membrane will handle water differently too also influencing water permeability
• Thus it's meaningless hyperbole to call any one brand of membrane "Drier"

[*]

• Plenty of manufacturers will repair suits, even after some time... I know IR and Palm both will, and will do it at their cost if it's judged to be not your fault, just like Kokatat.
• Even Kokatat state that they can't and won't repair everything, and their work isn't all that cheap (nor is the UK repairer Scottish Mountain Gear; who are to be fair *very* good).
• Whilst the 10 year's thing is a powerful meme and undoubtedly people do have suits that old - I think it represents a far extreme of longevity rather than an average age.

[/list]

So I looked into the eVent vs Gore argument a bit more. It seems that given the prevalence of these materials in walking jackets there is already some good comparisons available on the world wide web. There are tons of different ones but the one I read which layer it out best was this one

http://www.climbers-shop.com/Waterproofs.aspx

The long and short of it, if you don't have time to look through the article is that eVent is slightly more breathable (something I did not know before). However this brethability comes at a price. eVent technology (specifically the ePTFE layer) is easily affected by elements of the outdoors such as dirt, grime, oil and plant goo. However Goretex uses a PU layer integrated with a PTFE layer which does reduce breathability slightly but massively improves durability.

The other interesting point which cam up in this article is that eVent can actually make you a lot colder in cold weather. This is because of the efficiency of venting it doesn't allow air which is warmed up by the body to build up.

Breathable suits are definitely worth it, the question is do you invest a little bit more money in a Kokatat suit, which is comfy, breathable and warm (assuming you have the right base layers on) in all conditions. Or buy any other suit? Like Lowri says make your own choices but I am choosing to go with Kokatat.

[TheKrikkitWars]

Breathable suits are definitely worth it, the question is do you invest a little bit more money in a Kokatat suit, which is comfy, breathable and warm (assuming you have the right base layers on) in all conditions. Or buy any other suit which will most likely also be comfy, breathable and warm in all conditions? Like Lowri says make your own choices but I am choosing to go with Kokatat.

There, I fixed that for you.

[SimonMW]

I don't doubt that Kokatat make very high quality gear, but as others have said, there are many other drysuits that perform as well if not equally well. £900 for a drysuit is waaaaay out of my price league, and I can't say that I am a fan of the shoulder/front zip or the big black bands design on the arms etc. They probably perform exceptionally, but I am am just not a fan of their looks.

The Level Six ones look ace, even if they are expensive (but less so than the Kokatat's). I'm finding myself wearing my drysuit less and less, mainly due to seemingly having developed a slight allergy against latex, which I didn't have when I took up kayaking! Usually I prefer to support more local companies anyway, so most of my stuff is Palm, Peak, Typhoon etc. Haven't got any complaints about any of them.

[nicgaskin]

I have read through all this information with great interest and many thanks to all the contributors for their time and comments. As a relative newbie to the sport can I respectfully offer just one more piece of information which maybe of some use to some:
There is a small business in Bedfordshire by the name of 'Dam X'. A lot of the more experienced paddlers at my local club swear by them and on that basis 2 years ago I brought mine.
The suit is absolutely first class for my needs and has been faultless throughout. The service that I received was personal and of the best standard.
The guy that runs the company is Andi Riley and he can be reached on 01234267314. He will discuss with you all your requirements and will 'suggest' the type of suit that he feels will best suit you. Your suit will be made-to-measure and will cost, I believe, under £400 but you'd have to check current prices with Andi.
If you need a drysuit, give him a call and judge for yourself, that's what I did and I am extremely pleased with my purchase.