Fluid mask...or mardi gra costume!

[ADR]

A friend of mine(Dave Goldie) used some fluid google lenses (thanks Eric) and then made a fibreglass mask shaped to his face by making a mould using dental moulding compound. The result is a self sealing fluid mask that does not move or dislodge and is really streamlined. His face is a similar shape to mine and as the fibregalss was thin the mask fitted well and I was amazed at the vision it provided.......it was perfect 20/20 vision with the only drawback being the narrow field of view which I understand is a function of a small lens. Interesting look underwater as the fibreglass gets more transparent and it looks like the lenses are stuck to his eyes somehow.....

Here are a couple of pics

 

[ADR]

....and a second....that's Dave!

 

[DeepThought]

Great idea!!
So is it in theory a much easier/cheaper way to produce liquid vision? Could it be that the liquid goggles idea will reincarnate instead of die?

You could also create a custom made extreme low volume masks that way.
And since they will be fitted to your face, you can make the lenses (borrowed from some other mask) much closer to the eye than a normal mask's one, and have a wide field of view (might wanna trim your eye-lashes).

By the way, that picture reminds me of an old sci-fi movie named 'Tron'.
And 'phantom of the opera' ofcourse.

 

[island_sands]

or freddie kruger??

 

[Alison]

Its Donald Pleasence with hair!!
Best kept in the water those me thinks

 

[efattah]

Interesting idea! However, one problem is that with this fluid mask, you can only see clearly underwater, and you are blind above the water.


Eric Fattah
BC, Canada

 

[ADR]

Eric is right, the vision above the water is almost non existent. This is probably a more expensive option than fluid googles as the cost of the moulding compound, fibreglass and mask strap is more than the goggles Eric uses. The main cost is in the lenses themselves and you get them from Eric. What I liked about the mask was how stable it is on the face and how easy it is to use. I tried it with a nose clip and enjoyed the wonderful world of hands free equalisation.

Andy

 

[ADR]

...Thought maybe I should clarify that this is a fluid mask and there is saline solution on the inside and therefore the mask does not need to be equalized.

Eric - Why is the vision so poor on the surface? It uses your lenses and the interior above and below the water is filled with saline solution. My memory of trying your fluid goggles is that the vision above the water was OK.

Andy

 

[efattah]

With fluid goggles the vision above the water and underwater is the same, because the interface (between the goggle and the air) is flat.

So, wearing scleral contact lenses, you see fine underwater, but you see nothing above the water, because the lens interface is not flat, so the lens has a different power above the water and below the water.

On the other hand, 'smart' divers wear goggles outside their scleral lenses, goggles with a flat lens, and fill the goggles with saline (this is what Robert Croft did way back when). Then, you can see above and below the water equally.

So, with the fluid mask, if you wore fluid filled goggles outside the mask, and the goggles had a flat lens, you would see equally above and below the water, but then, it seems overkill since you could have just started with fluid goggles anyway.

The first version of fluid goggles that I built had the lenses on the OUTSIDE of the goggle, and thus you couldn't see anything above the water. Putting the lenses on the inside fixed that.

Eric Fattah
BC, Canada

 

[ADR]

Ok...so if I put a thin lens on the outside with saline sealed in with a silcone bead the vision above water would also work?

 

[efattah]

Just make sure the outer lens is much wider than the curved lens, otherwise you lose peripheral vision, but yes, your idea is right.

Eric Fattah
BC, Canada

 

[ADR]

Eric

Next thing I need to do is mould my face to make my own which means I will also need to get some lenses from you. Do I buy the whole fluid goggles setup and remove the lenses or do you sell the lenses on their own?

Andy
Sydney

 

[efattah]

I do sell the lenses on their own.

Eric Fattah
BC, Canada

 

[tylerz]

I am not sure what types of fiberglass exist but I know that in general fiberglass is harmful to the body. The fibers of glass can enter the blood stream and be damaging internally. Since they are sharp, rigid, fibers, once they enter your body, they do not have a tendency to find their way out. I find every time I rub against exposed fiberglass, even the fiberglass used to make boats, I come away with a rash, itchiness, and the feeling of miniscule needles being stuck in my skin.

I would be very cautious with using fiberglass directly on the skin.

 

[efattah]

Guidone, the frenchman famous for making 'Guidone' monofins, had to stop production for a while because he became ill/allergic to the fiberglass.


Eric Fattah
BC, Canada

 

[ADR]

given that you can get fibreglass casts for broken bones and there are lots of other like applications I don't think it much of a problem AS LONG as the resin has fully impregnated the fibres. It is the unfinished fibres that potentially cause a problem and it is these that you get on boats etc usually and junction points where they have left unfinished......but thanks for the concern.

Andy

 

[tanteh]

Andy, this Thread might be interesting for you!

Fluid Goggles

Cheers,
Carsten

 

[Jeff06]

But Guidone has just started the fin production again

@+
Jeff