which suit

[islayhawk]

Looking to buy a new all in one suit for the coming season. What are the members thoughts on the the various colours, round or fencing style veil etc. I am looking to spend up to £100 on one. What suppliers are the recommended

 

[kazmcc]

I prefer a round hat style veil, mainly because I worry the fencing style veils might fold back giving bees access to skin. I just like to know for sure I'm bullet proof. It means I don't have to worry about anything and can fully concentrate on the job at hand. Just my opinion.

 

[Mr C]

B b ware

 

[Robbo8916]

I have a full fencing style suit and a round veil 'top half' ( I forgot the name). Under both I wear a baseball cap. Stops stings through the material to the head and also keeps the fencing style from folding back.

Paid less than half your budget for both ��

 

[kazmcc]

Arran has the fencing style and that's what I use to make sure his face is protected, but he's not bending down and reaching and stuff. The round hat keeps them further away from your face from what I can see from Arran and Dusty's style. Also I started with the round style, and it's kept me safe so far so why mess around with what works?

 

[Newtobees]

Tried out my new bee basic suit today which i purchased at the Tradex show very happy with it very good quality and a lot cheaper than the top two makes. Which seem to be going up in price, having spent time looking at all the suits on offer there I couldn't justify spending twice the money for something which is no where near twice as good.

 

[Gilberdyke John]

Looking to buy a new all in one suit for the coming season. What are the members thoughts on the the various colours, round or fencing style veil etc. I am looking to spend up to £100 on one. What suppliers are the recommended

You could get two or even three economy white suits for £100. Much easier to keep clean. I've got two which I bought with round veils but the round veils won't go into the washing machine and required hand washing so I have bought fencing veils which do go through the washing machine door with the suits.

 

[WoodenBeam]

I have a full suit from BB Wear & a cheap smock purchased at one of the shows 2/3? years ago.
I would recommend a full suit to give you the confidence of not being stung (this isn't to say you won't - if they want to get you and your in t-shirt & shorts under your suit they will). Traditional or fencing is down to personal choice I would say, with better quality suits I don't think the fencing style falling back into your face is an issue & a cap worn underneath would stop this ever happening - I don't think it's required though. With the traditional style, cheaper suits can crease at the back of the neck when bending over and/or looking up which could lead to stings on the back of the neck - small chance but not one to lose sleep over.
With my original suit, now 8 years old, the mesh veil is still in original condition. The cheaper smock is now due for replacement - the mesh has broken down. Will I be buying a cheap version again? No, a little more spent now will last a lot longer.
Speak to your local association also - we benefit from discounted rates when purchasing as a member of an association.

 

[bontbee]

I've always used a fencing style and never been stung through the veil - or any other part of the "hat". I also have a round veil which I tried, but now keep for visitors. In addition to the washing aspect, I find that on mine anyway, because the material below the veil part (ie under the chin) is cotton, the visibility is restricted - I have to look sort of up and over the cotton. If it were mesh beneath the chin down to the zip, visibility would be greatly improved, but I'd be a concerned about stings to the chin/neck area. I also find that, as the round veil is a lot wider, it gets caught on hedges/shed walls etc, as I am moving about, and that's saying something as I am very broad in the beam!

I started with a sherriff (due to some very kind friends who clubbed together!), and last year I reverted to a sherriff. The veil is far superior - now that my eyes are fading, I find that the "extruded" mesh veils are too dense - and you sometimes get the sun shining off the plastic(?). The "woven" mesh that sherriff uses is excellent: the vis is so good, I have found myself wondering if that bee in front of my face is inside! (Needless to say, it isn't!)

Even the OH was convinced by the visibility and he doesn't part with money easily...

(PS I don't have any interests in sherriff).

PPS my original sherriff smock lasted decades (with one re-meshing of the veil and a few holes due to barb wire). In the end, I outgrew it!

 

[kazmcc]

I suppose it's because I'm used to it, it's all I've known so I don't find it restricting at all, but I do have the problem of washing it, the head part anyway.

As you all know ( although there are a lot of new people to the forum lately so I may as well introduce myself ) I am the UK's only phobic bee keeper, and all of my kit is really thick material to keep the little darlings and their pointy bottoms away from my delicate Irish skin. I think I would have to be dragged kicking and screaming into using any other style or material. I still use queens58's trousers she gave me way back when

 

[madasafish]

I do beekeeping on the cheap.
When I started in 2010, I bought a £35 camo jacket from ebay for £35.

New elastic cuffs and simple veil repairs and it still is perfectly acceptable for my needs. I also in 2014 bought a £5 hat and veil from ebay. Still going..

Did I say I am mean?

 

[Fraise]

I would recommend spending the money on 2 lower priced suits rather than a single expensive one.
A spare suit means you won't get caught out needing one while the first is in the wash or you have worn it while visiting a strangers apiary.

p.s. I got stung through a fencing veil on a windy day when the mesh blew against my face. For me its round veil every time now.

 

[Sadders]

I have been wearing wearing my first suit for 6 years now. It's from Omlet and extremely good quality. Thick cotton, lots of pockets and an adjustable waist.

Would highly recommend it. They don't do fencing style masks though.

 

[theeggman]

We use BB lightweight suits. Fencing style hood. Cooler in summer and dry PDQ. BBKA discount is applicable still I think.

 

[Geohorn]

I started off with all my kit from Fragile Planet and the suits were all in one white cotton, quite thick and with a fencing veil.
I have had two issues so far, I got stung on the cheek through the veil as I was pressing against a bush and unknown to me a bee had landed on me and stung me! OUCH!
The other problem was quality related, as the zips around the hood failed, so I had them replaced with a sturdier type of zip. They do wash easily and visibility is good. I wear a baseball cap now underneath to prevent a reoccurrence!

 

[REDWOOD]

When I was at the convention saturday I happened to mention to the lady on the BBwear stand that I had unfortunately made a small hole in my suit and she kindly offered to send me a repair kit FREE, so once again singing praises for that company

 

[peteinwilts]

personally I prefer the round veil type after stings on the ears.

The type and price should suit your style of beekeeping. I move hives around and I also help other beekeepers who have become afraid of their hives because they are too aggressive, so they have to be tough and hardwearing (stingproof would be nice!).

I have had 2 suits from the same supplier a year apart, one really good, the second crap because they had switched manufacturer.

I had to get one in a hurry last year, because I had to go on a photoshoot. for speed I bought one from T's, and am disappointed to say the least. It is extremely lightweight and will offer little protection. I keep it as a 'sunday best'

I bought another sand coloured beesuit at beetradex last year. It developed fluffy balls after the first wash and now even the friendliest hive despises it... this is now my autumn feed and medication suit.

I also have a problem with meshes. The light plastic mesh splits very easily, and being a rural beekeeper encounter hedgerows. (the latter, I may be asking a lot!)

I have tried beesuits online, and due to my height (6'4"), I usually end up with a squeaky voice if I bend over (many beesuit suppliers do not offer suits for my height), or look like a teletubby because height often also means extra wide (and I am not). I keep these suits for visitors.

you can enter your size on the Sherrif website, but do not like the veil.

... still searching for the perfect beesuit (for my style of use!)

 

[Swarm]

Get one from BB wear, the suit is quite lightweight but you can always layer up if needs be.
Incidentally, I've not found a sting proof suit.

 

[Obee1]

Between us my OH and I have 4 different types of suit. I find that the round veil full suit from bee-basic has a lovely easy to see through mesh - but when you push the hat back off your head it catches on every hedge or doorway you pass. However it is my go to suit when dealing with mean bees. The fencer style from bbwear I can barely see through the veil to look for eggs. My sherrif suit jacket is lovely. - good visibility. However wearing just a jacket with jeans is a recipe for stung legs - so I wear some waterproof leggings over the jeans - main advantage to ths is it's far easier to take a pee break when you don't have to remove a full suit. Now I just need to build a bathroom at my apiary in order to take that peebreak. Either that or use a she wee.

 

[allotment-bee]

We both have white suits from Buzzy. Local company. Well made , nice thick cotton. We have fencing style hoods.