Price: £200 / €250
Flex/Comfort: 8/10
Warmth: 7/10
Overall: 7/10

Tested: 30/04/14 Capbreton, France
Water temp: 15 deg C
Air temp: 13 deg C
Surf: 2ft onshore slop
Dry weight: 920g
Tested by: PE

In summary: Overall tres comfortable, with a super warm torso, but chillier legs.

Brand overview

Bob Hurley, then at Billabong, helped create the zipperless suit before breaking off to form his eponymous brand (not shy then!). It’s probably true to say in Europe, Hurley wetsuits have yet to enjoy the ‘traction’ they enjoy in the US, perhaps more down to ‘distribution’ than anything else. Anyway, enough of that ol’ shit, on with the test!

HURLEY FUSION 302 a Surfing video by surfeurope

The Test

First off, the entry is pretty simple in terms of design. The Fusion 302 employs a less intricate system than the others, relying on the stretchiness of one basic piece of rubber with a hole in. How that bad boy holds up would be key to the longevity of this suit. I found it pretty hard to get off, again, I had to ask my neighbour, Jean-Pierre, for a tug. The third time this week! In terms of fit, she felt great. Legs felt pretty slim fit, which is super, and the leg rubber felt super supple. Overall ride comfort was very respectable indeed.

I did find the zip was pretty fiddly. Without meaning to harp on about it, Xcel/ONeill’s having it joined at one end and just side her down is by far the superior design, rather than fucking about trying to get the slot in the slider. The zip paraphernalia felt maybe a wee bit cheap compared to others… Also, the slider is on the top piece (typically they are on the bottom), which felt extra fiddly, kinda like I was doing it left handed.

One very minor detail I did love was that the draw string to tighten the seal was textured bumpy, meaning the slider wouldn’t slip easy. I have had suits in the past where eventually the draw string toggle slides open on its own, thus undoing the seal and letting it flush. So whoever came up with this, bravo for attention to detail, or in American if you prefer, ‘kudos’, whatever the fuck that means.

The Fusion is taped all throughout the inside. I did get trickles walking out, before I even jumped on my board to paddle. Given that these are summer suits though, that’s not fatal, but you wouldn’t want the same thing in a winter suit that’s for sure. There is a clear advantage in staying ‘dry’ so to speak, that this suit didn’t offer.

It was a chilly onshore morning, the surf was cold and crap with a bit of nasty windchill. In fairness the Fusion is probably meant for warmer conditions (there were still soft lads in hoods, boots, gloves etc), but still, it was good for a thorough test. Overall, I’d say the chest/torso area, (lined with something very similar to Bong furry shit) feels a lot warmer than the legs. It almost felt like two different suits, in terms of upper and lower body.

To borrow from Franck McCourt’s in Angela’s Ashes, ‘upstairs was Italy, downstairs was Ireland.’

One other very minor point was the loop in the key pocket was pretty wide, I couldn’t get it through my bike lock key. After some ten impatient seconds of trying, I just left the key in the lock. Kind of like how mobsters never lock their car, right?

In terms of the look, the two thigh stripes made me feel kinda slightly cross-dressing homoerotic, or is that just me? Like I was wearing stockings, like that time at that party when…. oh never mind. Looks-wise, this is probably not one for the soul surfer, with more logos than a Formula 1 car, bright aquamarine blue (they call it cyan, I call it bright) and the garter belt thing, your acquaintances will probably spot you coming a mile away, and their hearts either sink, or soar with joy, depending.

In Summary

The Hurley Fusion is a nice wetsuit if you like bold design at a reasonable mid-range price point, but not threatening Rip Curl/Xcel/O’Neill’s rubbery supremacy, in my humble opinion.

Hurley Wetsuits