Three months chasing a slow leak that was just a cracked valve housing

I picked up a used dry suit last winter for a harbor inspection job in Norfolk. The exhaust valve kept letting in a slow trickle of water, just enough to soak my base layer on every second dive. I blamed the neck seal, then the zipper, then the dump valve gasket. I spent about 8 weekends taking the suit apart and testing each piece with soapy water. Finally I borrowed a buddy's pressure test kit and found a hairline crack in the valve housing itself. A new valve assembly cost me $65 and took maybe 40 minutes to install. No more leak, and I feel dumb for not checking that first. Has anyone else chased a phantom leak for way too long before finding the obvious culprit?

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