My Freedive Recovery Vest arrived Tuesday, and I tried it out yesterday. I think its a big improvement on the first version- not in terms of safety, but in ease of use.
Instead of a bottle that needs to be filled from a 3000 psi scuba tank, it uses a couple of CO2 cartridges. Its a lot easier to carry spare cartridges on the boat.
Its much lighter and easier to get on and off. You just slip on some straps and attach a few quick release buckles. It doesn't have all that fabric soaking up water and making it harder to climb into the boat.
In the water, I never noticed that I was wearing it. Perhaps someone diving to 100 feet would notice some increased drag, but I couldn't feel any. The only difference was that when I started a dive, I heard a bubble sound, presumably as the unit high on my back went under water. There was no sound after breaking the surface though.
We didn't get to dive long, but when my buddies said they were ready to go home, I tested one function. I dove to 43 feet and did a manual activation by depressing the button on a band around my bicep four times. It inflated and gave me a rapid ride to the surface, where I was positioned on my back. I always remove my snorkel as I dive, but I know some people don't. After it took me to the surface, I put my snorkel back in my mouth, and it was well above the water.
I'll have to give it some thought, but one use occurs to me. If I was bringing up a big fish and was feeling at all dicey about it, I might manually activate the unit to give me some help.
There is only one thing I can think of that is not as handy as on the first version. On the first version, any time you were on the surface, you could change the trigger depth and time using the wrist unit. The Mk II has no wrist unit, so the settings are changed on the unit on your back. If, for instance, you found that your bottom times were much better (or worse) than normal, you would have to go back to the boat to change the trigger time, or maybe take it off in the water, or have your buddy do it.
If you want a nice overview, check this video.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-zYEdnSoK0]Freedivers Recovery Vest Mark II tests by Juan Palma in New Zealand - YouTube[/ame]
Instead of a bottle that needs to be filled from a 3000 psi scuba tank, it uses a couple of CO2 cartridges. Its a lot easier to carry spare cartridges on the boat.
Its much lighter and easier to get on and off. You just slip on some straps and attach a few quick release buckles. It doesn't have all that fabric soaking up water and making it harder to climb into the boat.
In the water, I never noticed that I was wearing it. Perhaps someone diving to 100 feet would notice some increased drag, but I couldn't feel any. The only difference was that when I started a dive, I heard a bubble sound, presumably as the unit high on my back went under water. There was no sound after breaking the surface though.
We didn't get to dive long, but when my buddies said they were ready to go home, I tested one function. I dove to 43 feet and did a manual activation by depressing the button on a band around my bicep four times. It inflated and gave me a rapid ride to the surface, where I was positioned on my back. I always remove my snorkel as I dive, but I know some people don't. After it took me to the surface, I put my snorkel back in my mouth, and it was well above the water.
I'll have to give it some thought, but one use occurs to me. If I was bringing up a big fish and was feeling at all dicey about it, I might manually activate the unit to give me some help.
There is only one thing I can think of that is not as handy as on the first version. On the first version, any time you were on the surface, you could change the trigger depth and time using the wrist unit. The Mk II has no wrist unit, so the settings are changed on the unit on your back. If, for instance, you found that your bottom times were much better (or worse) than normal, you would have to go back to the boat to change the trigger time, or maybe take it off in the water, or have your buddy do it.
If you want a nice overview, check this video.
[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-zYEdnSoK0]Freedivers Recovery Vest Mark II tests by Juan Palma in New Zealand - YouTube[/ame]
