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Quicksilver Cypher Heated Vest Review

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surferpatton
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Posts: 31
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2010 4:04 pm
Local Beach: Wrightsville Beach, NC
Favorite Beaches: South End, Wrightsville Beach, NC
Outer Banks, NC
Style: A bit of everything.
Gear: 2010 11m Cabrinha Nomad
2006 North Jaime Pro 129cm.
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Location: Wilmington, NC
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Quicksilver Cypher Heated Vest Review

Postby surferpatton » Mon Dec 20, 2010 3:13 am

Tried the Quicksilver Heated Vest today. Wind chill of 32, 20mph North Winds, water temp 49.

The Heating area is in the perfect place for a Kiteboarder, as the harness presses it up against your back. With only 2 hours of battery life on the low heat setting, I started out initially on low, hoping to ride for 2 hours with a warm back. The vest definitely produces some warmth. It's not super hot and toasty, but more like just a little warm. I found that the warmth just wasn't quite enough. The vest definitely did not meet my expectations, prior to the ride.

The battery is really the biggest problem with the suit. The battery is not only a battery, but also the controller for the heat. It is pressure activated, so as you push in on the top of the battery, the battery vibrates once to signal low heat. As you push the battery again, the battery vibrates twice for high heat. The battery is thicker than you would like (around an inch) and sits right in between your lower ribs and your harness. There is no way to describe this except VERY UNCOMFORTABLE. :o No matter how hard you try to move the battery under your wetsuit, you simply can't take away the pain of a blunt object being pressed into your ribs every time you lean back. On top of this, each time I loaded for a jump, the harness would apply enough pressure to activate the controls on the top of the battery. The end result, each time I went airborn, the battery (which was pressed hard into my ribs) would vibrate once or twice. WOW!

Needless to say, not a product for kiteboarders at this point. I got out of the water after 30 minutes, just to remove the vest and go back out. The warmth was noticeable, but not warm enough to be worth the discomfort from the battery. I won't wear it again. It's going on Ebay, ASAP! :bye:

-Patton

slingslut
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Re: Quicksilver Cypher Heated Vest Review

Postby slingslut » Mon Dec 20, 2010 4:05 am

I have several friends who have spent the winter in this vest both surfing and kitesurfing and rave about them. It was designed for the surf market, hence the battery position. Of course you can't attempt to kite with the battery in its normal position :lol: so most just pull it out of the pocket and leave it loose under the outer wetsuit and above the spreader bar, problem solved.Everyone I know says hot setting is too hot.

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surferpatton
Rare Poster
Posts: 31
Joined: Wed Dec 15, 2010 4:04 pm
Local Beach: Wrightsville Beach, NC
Favorite Beaches: South End, Wrightsville Beach, NC
Outer Banks, NC
Style: A bit of everything.
Gear: 2010 11m Cabrinha Nomad
2006 North Jaime Pro 129cm.
Brand Affiliation: None
Location: Wilmington, NC
Has thanked: 0
Been thanked: 0

Re: Quicksilver Cypher Heated Vest Review

Postby surferpatton » Mon Dec 20, 2010 8:31 pm

Dang, that's really weird. I wonder why your friends felt different about the vests heating capabilities? How cold is the water where you all surf/ride? Great idea on the battery movement. I was worried that if the battery moved around under my suit, it might stress the wire and possibly break something. Just being paranoid, I guess.

I'm from NC and have SURFED twice with the vest on as well in 49-51 degree water. Air temps were in the mid 30s. I felt the heat on low but only until I would get flushed by a wave while duckdiving. After the first duckdive, I could not even tell the suit was on me anymore. It was like the cold water flush was enough to cool the coils down. After that first good flush, the suit never really fully recovered its heat until I placed it on high.

When on high, it would still take a few minutes to heat back up each time I would need to duckdive a set. I felt the warmth on my back, but I was still nowhere near "hot" and would have loved an extra 20 degrees of warmth if I had the choice. I was wearing a 4/3, one season old, still in good condition, booties, gloves, hood. Air temps in the high 30s to low 40s both times.

-Patton


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