A Mask Hunt

[BatRay]

After nine years of faithful service, my Omer Alien mask bit the dust due to my forgetfulness and my sister's dog's love of chewy things The reflective lens coating was beginning to crack and come apart before this unfortunate incident, so I had already begun to consider the possibility of needing a new mask. It is more of a priority now.

I was wondering if anyone has any recommendations. I liked my Alien, but I would be willing to try another mask. I have high cheekbones, which can cause some fitting issues, so I'm particularly interested in any masks that work for people with that feature. The local dive shops have a limited selection. In the past, I also liked my Cressi Minima, but would like something with a better field of vision.

In any case, I'd be curious to hear any and all perspectives.

 

[Kuya]

I really rate my Omer Zero 3. It's a fairly new mask. Great field of vision and very low volume. I don't dive that deep.. up to about 30-40ft.. I have never had mask squeeze and equalized it.

 

[Apneaddict]

Tusa panthes, sporasub mystic or micromask (or a copy / knock-off).

The new Cressi Nano is also a strong contender with a lot of promise, for a new mask.

 

[BatRay]

Interesting. Thanks for the responses. I haven't been mask shopping in many years because my Minima and Mimetic were great masks. It's nice to get an idea of some of the newer masks.

Has anyone tried the Cressi Perla? It looks similar to my Minima, which was extremely comfortable, and it looks like it has a better field of vision.

 

[Mr. X]

I use a Seacsub Combat mask. I got a good deal on it (& the snorkel) as a friend is a reseller. I've use it since my Alien mask sprung a leak (now fixed) and decided to stick with it. It's very similar to the Alien in use but it has several features that, for me, make me think it is a bit better than the Omer Alien:

1. Cheaper (mine was but apparently that is not always the case).
2. Black flange (less conspicuous with a black wetsuit than my green/camo Alien).
3. Came with a good plastic mask box.
4. Hinged plastic arms at side seem look odd & unnecessary but seem to allow it to fit easier & more comfortably.
5. From new, the glass lenses don't fog up anywhere near as much/as readily as the Omer Alien.
6. Adjustment is a tad easier.

The only minor gripe: the mask strap is a little short for my large bonce, which means I need to be careful when adjusting it.

This is the one I use (although I usually prefer to use my flexi Beuchat Tubair snorkel with it) - it is superficially rather like the classic Cressi Superocchio / Sumarai masks in shape:

http://www.divingdirect.co.uk/spearfishing-c127/masks-c134/seac-combat-spearfishing-combo-p716
But it looks like they might have changed the design - more like the Alien/Cressi Matrix?

http://www.mikes-diving.co.uk/seac-sub-one-combat-mask--snorkel-set-835-p.asp

 

[spaghetti]

Batty my daughter swims with a Cressi Perla and loves it, but she's 8 years old...do you really have no chance to try mask fit in a dive shop? Anyway my Cressi Focus fits quite right with my (relatively) high cheekbones ;-) and it's got a broader field of vision vs Minima.

 

[BatRay]

Sadly, the local dive shops exclusively stock masks that do not interest me at all. I liked my Minima until the frame cracked. Is the Perla similar in fit? If it doesn't work for me, my husband may use it, as his face is much narrower than mine.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

Please take a look at our new Minimus Mask.. We call it the MAKO Mini. We have recently released this mask and we are already getting a lot of positive feedback.

We think you will find the "MAKO Direct" pricing to your liking as well..


Dive Safe!

Dano

http://www.makospearguns.com/product-p/mmm.htm

 

[AZ Rob]

aqua lung wraparound. I found this old school mask still being made new and bought it. I love this better then the new style flat soft masks.

I tried a few like this one, but I like the feel of the aqua lung.

aqua lung sport frameless mask

Don't get me wrong I like this one too, but I like the feel of the top one better. I can see out the sides better.

 

[BatRay]

That's one that I didn't even consider. I'd like to give it a try if the local dive shops had one available.

 

[The Free Spearo]

The mares xvision makes has an amazing field of view but it has a higher volume. I have two mask the mares liquid skin star and the mares samurai. Both are very low volume and fit nicely but the star has a better range of vision I find.

Regards

James

 

[im_frenchie]

I have the Mares Star Liquidskin, and love it.

Had a bit of trouble finding a mask thats fits because I have high cheekbones like you, but eventually tried that one and bought it.

As for price, it is a bit more expensive than other brands I'd say 50-70$, but the materials are really nice.

The bi-silicone (liquidskin) makes it the most comfortable mask I ever tried and the volume isn't bad at all either. It's quite comfortably positionned on the head because it's attached on the lower part of the silicone.

Dive shop that carry Mares products usually have them, so you should give it a try and see if that works for you.

Hope it helps.

 

[Apneaddict]

There is also a Mares Star copy on eBay for like $18!

Haven't tried it yet, but might be worth a shot!

 

[sasa]

a bit pricey.. but hard to beat

 

[ThomasB]

a bit pricey.. but hard to beat

I second that.

 

[Apneaddict]

If you like the micromask, I'd try out Mako's Minimus mask. Looks great and some suggest the silicone is softer them the Micromask.

 

[ReefTroll]

I find masks are hard to buy as most leak on my face, but I've found joy with the Beauchat Micromax.

 

[Dk_Fatman]

Tried a few in my 5 years of spearfishing, and the Sporasub Mystic i found far better than all the others, both when it comes to field of vision and low volume.

 

[Speardiver1]

BatRay, some of the mask recommendations were in the micromask class. While these masks have extremely low volume, there are disadvantages. First being that they fit a much smaller range of faces, most often allowing a leak under the nose. The best in the micromask class is the new Cressi Nano, it fits a wider range of faces with no leaks.

Second, I prefer the option of being able to breath from the mask on ascent as needed. It's little air to begin with, so you will not get much out of a micromask. For these reasons, while Speardiver offers two masks in the micromask class, the Speardiver Aim and Speardiver Micromask (which are clones of the famous Aqualung Micromask), for spearfishing I personally recommend the Speardiver Stealth mask. It's a low volume very comfortable fitting mask due it's soft skirt, and has great field of view along with other nice features.

 

[MAKO Spearguns]

We have had excellent feedback from our customers with respect to fit on the MAKO mini mask. We have not had one return or an indication that the fit was not satisfactory. It is an excellent mask and our (MAKO direct) price is very tough to beat.