Jim is a legend!!!!

[Newbie_spearo]

Sounds awesome, why bother with a mamba kit and all that fuss when you could buy a R.A. rail gun and have enough power to take down what ever comes your way?

[Newbie_spearo]

Mr. X, If you think your stuff is expensive in brittain, have a look at some Aus spearo online shops, you'll see what I'm takling about. $499 for Omer Ice Fins, Like $50 or $60 for a Zoom snorkel. I got my wetsuit, mask, snorkel, socks & gloves shipped from florida usa for less than the price of the wetsuit over here, almost $150 less, that includes shipping.

[blaiz]

Originally Posted by Mr. X

Blaiz sorry to hear the Alien is not an instant hit with you. I liked mine from the off but I think most spearo masks will cut down peripheral vision, I tried a few others first. I think the popular black/colour flanges tend to blend in with the wetsuit & help obscure your eyes from fish -- but I sometimes wish they were clear silicone, like my big ol' Visulator mask. Some spearos get spooked by lack of peripheral vision - in sharky waters, quite understandable. I don't miss the volume of the big mask though - diving with a low volume mask is far more comfortable, I think. Especially if you do it for 3 or 4 hours at a time. No doubt spearo mask design will continue to improve - they're good now but not perfect.

The mask I have is a low volume mask. Not even sure who makes it. I kinda buy things for the way they feel on me and this mask was verycomfortable, low volume, single lense, frameless, and a flat black. Its a little higher volume then the OMER Alien, but I found that it wasnt much of a difference. I might upgrade to the new AQA frameless, single lens mask. I have heard that mask is very low volume. Id like to try it first

[Fondueset]

The single lens masks are cool for a couple of reasons - one is some of them are really soft and comfortable - of course theres peripheral vision but the really unique thing is they allow more binocular vision right across the bridge of the nose. This makes a huge difference - esp in limited viz. You can test it by spotting an object you can barely see with both eyes when the water is fairly dark, then close one.

[Mr. X]

Originally Posted by Newbie_spearo

Mr. X, If you think your stuff is expensive in brittain, have a look at some Aus spearo online shops, you'll see what I'm takling about. $499 for Omer Ice Fins, Like $50 or $60 for a Zoom snorkel. I got my wetsuit, mask, snorkel, socks & gloves shipped from florida usa for less than the price of the wetsuit over here, almost $150 less, that includes shipping.

$499 -holy cow that's £243! Well, serves them right if all their customers go on-line and starting buying cheaply overseas then - you'd be daft not to. Oz used to have the reputation here of being like America, inexpensive & with stores like Wallmart. I'm surprised Australia doesn't make a lot of its own dive gear. Isn't Seahornet an Australian company?

[Newbie_spearo]

Well there are a few Australian Brands like Torelli and Pelaj, but their prices aren't really any cheaper than other brands from europe and the states that you'd find in a shop over here. The reason our stuff is soooooooo expensive is because of tax on imported stuff, they slog you a stupid tax when you bring in over $700 worth of anything and then the wholesaler has to sell it to the shops at a profit which is usually anywhere from 75%-100% of what they paid for it including the taxes and shipping costs, then the retailer puts their mark up on it which is around about the same depending on what it is. So That's the reason why our stuff is sooo expensive. And our government wonders why people by things from overseas instead of buying austrlian owned and made. Another point I think I should add, is that the Australian stuff isn't even made over here, the pelaj guns are made in South africa and I suppose are then subject to the same taxes and freight costs thereby making them the same price as a rob allen gun. Their wetsuits I believe are made in asia some where and honestly from what I've read aren't worth buying. They might be $200 cheaper than a cressi but you'll be buying 3 or 4 to last the time your 1 cressi does.

Anyhoo that's enough rambling and complaining from me, I've found where to buy my gear from with out getting robbed blind so I'll keep doing that untill the government starts trying to stop that too.

[fleshy]

My zoom isn't leaking, water just gets in through the top really easily. I think its the angle the snorkel is at, and the fact that it doesn't have a "wave guard" at the top. But no water gets stuck in the "J" and it is SILENT. Quietest snorkel i have ever had. Sometimes my upper lip gets uncomfortable after long dives (over two hours). My mask is killing me when I dive below 30 FOW, but I'm using a Scubapro "Ventana" I chose this mask because its all clear, and I dive frequently in addition to spearfishing. I want a lower volume mask like the alien, but I'm hesitant to cut my vision that much. I was attacked by a 4 and 1/2 foot snapping turtle once, and my peripheral vision is what saved my head from being crushed.