I know this has been beat to death but....

[Witch]

I hate my current snorkel....
been a while since I have used it, and this morning took it in and it drove me nuts.
I am not sure what it is (old and well used) but I am in the market for a "Good" freediving snorkel..
Sorry to beat the dead horse with this but, I have a few questions:
1) purge or no purge valve?
2) What diameter?
3) What company to look for my next one....

I did a search already and read some info but thought I would start new.....
Any info would be a great help.... Thanks in advance...Witch

 

[laminar]

Hi Witch,

What kind of freediving are you doing?

My favourite snorkel by far is the old Impulse II snorkel by Aqualand. The rigid model, not the flexible model.

I freedive without my snorkel attached to my mask strap because I find it drags too much and often breaks the seal. Recreationally, I take the snorkel out of my mouth and swim with it in my hand. I've gotten so used to this that once during a competition, I actually brought it down to my target depth with me! :duh I've been thinking of attaching my snorkel to a float with a nice big "diver down" flag so that I don't have to bring it down with me.

But the best thing about the snorkel is the mouth piece: you need no effort to keep it in your mouth, it is like a mouthguard for contact sports (not as big). It has silicone on either side of your teeth so that the snorkel rests comfortably with your mouth with your jaw relaxed, not clenched. The rigid tube keeps the snorkel out of the water and the special drip guard keeps water out even in big waves. I can truly relax while I'm breathing up. The snorkel tube is also fairly wide, which is another plus.

I know that most spearos would find this snorkel too bulky and that they prefer to have their snorkel close by if they need to struggle with a fish on the surface and are quite happy with smaller more flexible models. I have never found them "dry" enough because of the flimsy mouthpiece. I seem to always be biting down on them to keep them in my mouth.

Cheers,

Pete Scott
Vancouver, BC

 

[Witch]

Hi Pete,
Thanks for the info....
Here in Northern New England we only have a few fish to hunt so Mostly in the past I have been on shallow reefs and ledges for stipers.....
but currently I am gearing up for Blue water hunting the BFT.... see my post in the beach bar "Intro to myself"

 

[icarus pacific]

All you need to do is ask...

While I'm widely known here as the guy that will buy up any Farallon snorkel due to their performance and being out of production for 20-some years, AQA is making a few dead-on knockoffs of these very, very good snorkels. Rotating mouthpiece, bent tube and a fairly, though not as big as the original, large bore. They even offer them with purges if you don't do the water in the snorkel thing. Head over to the Hana Pa'a website and give them a look, find one you like then call 'em up and tell Kimmy that Sven sent ya.

 

[cdavis]

Thanks for the info Sven, My spare farallon died and haven't been able to find another. The good one may be next, might need a new one that is close. Even close would be very good indeed.

Connor

 

[Witch]

Can some one give me a link to Hana Pa'a, the site I get to has dive gear but nothing listed under snorkel....

 

[icarus pacific]

www.hanapaahawaii.net and go to the online store.
Kimmy's # is 1 800 274-0482
AQA's # is 808 845-3202

 

[Witch]

Thanks Icarus.....

 

[Ben Snuzin]

Hi guys
I'm new to the site as you can see by my post number. Don't really dive anymore but it's kind of like being a Marine, once you are one.... I was NAUI advance certified in the late 60s through the early 80s when I quit scuba. I was an avid sport diver for years and a working diver for a while however free diving was maybe my favorite. I grew up here in Puget Sound and enjoyed crabbing and spear fishing until I decided spear fishing was like cheating. Enough about me though, my day has passed.
I see interest in the Farallon big bore snorkle. Shortly before I stopped diving, my old mask/snorkle gave up. So I bought the best mask & snorkle I could find. I have a Farallon mask and BB snorkle in excellant condition. It's been inside my dive bag (but on top of all the other gear) in a dry basement for 20+ years. Yeah, I drag out the dive gear every 5 years or so but somehow my wetsuit shrunk. Last time I had it on there was no one else home and I near panicked getting it off. I used to be thin. Dead serious, don't let it happen to you!
The mask is your picture window style with the little side windows however it fits very close to your eyes. Probably not quite what I'm now seeing called "low volume" but very close. It's black rubber skirt and yellow plastic frame are in excellant condition. Heavy duty. I liked the BB snorkle because it breathes easy, tucked around the back of my head well and the formed fit teeth pads were cool. Back then many snorkles had a straight tube that fluttered on the ascent. We used to chop them a couple inches to reduce that but this one worked well. The moldable teeth pads naturally are formed to my mouth. Can they be re-formed by boiling water? And the mouthpiece swivels like IP has indicated.
I ran accross this site as I was "researching" new masks. Taking the family to Kaui/Maui for a couple weeks and am purchasing gear for the trip. As you can imagine, hitting a dive shop is still like a candy store (or a jewelry shop for the wife girls). Bought some of the silicon masks for the family and finally one for myself too. But am contemplating which I like best. The new masks (this one's a Mares X-vision) are light (both weight and lighting) fit well and seal out water better it seems. But the Farallon certainly has a lot going for it. The new ones are like toys by comparison to a professional piece of gear. But I'm not sure I'll continue using it so I may consider selling it. I'm no longer the macho guy I remember I guess.
Sorry for being long winded. If I post again it'll be short since I splayed my guts out here already. Nice site though, I may lurk from time to time.
rgds, Dave

 

[icarus pacific]

Yes, the moldable inserts can be formed after their initial use- just put them in HOT water for a couple minutes and chomp down. Be careful, just like the plates at the Taqueria, they're hot. And don't chomp down real hard, you just want to dimple the tabs, otherwise your jaw gets tired for the positioning.

Mask-wise, all the masks today are better than what we had back in the day. Of course they're three times as much, but that's progress.

And if you do decide to sell that tube, lemme know via PM here.

 

[Jon]

I haven't checkd out AQA yet, but I have found a short term substitute. The Farallon's are near impossible to find anywhere, but the old, original, Scubaro Shotgun snorkle's come up on ebay almost every week. They are very close to the Farallon design, without the bite tabs and with a purge valve. It has become my favoitre snorkel for freediving, spearfishing, and underwater hockey.

I own all of the other ones, Impules 2's, omer's, sporasubs, blah, blah, blah; and don't like them for a variety of reasons- too bulky or too narrow a tube for a good breath-up. Most dive companies are obsessed with dry snorkels and spilt fins to actually make something simple that works- no money unless there's a gimmick I guess? :vangry

Currently I'm looking for a purge snorkel with a small enough mouthpiece for my two year old and am open to suggestions.

Jon

 

[Ben Snuzin]

Thanks Sven
I was surprised to find this dive shop (one of the best around) didn't have something a bit more beefy for masks. But maybe, with the new materials, they don't need to be. I'm not likely to work one hard at this point though.
I'll keep the tube in mind.
Thanks again, happy holidays all.
rgds, Dave

 

[Tompa]

Time to wake this old thread, =) Ben, if you still got your old snorkel I'm interested!! And Jon, you say that Scubapro Shotguns come up Ebay every weak...i've been looking there but so far no luck, if you should find one please send me the link! //Tompa