Request help identifying snorkel make and model

[beyeriii]

Hello DeeperBlue members,

If you would be so kind, please help identify the make and model of this snorkel.
The snorkel is at least 20 years old and the diver down sticker is (probably) not stock.


Also any suggestions for a snorkel currently in production with similar characteristics is appreciated, i.e.
* Crescent shaped tube (i.e. the tube is not round, see close up of end of tube)
* Integral mask strap retainer or clip-on retainer
* No purge valve
* No ribbed / flexible parts (that trap water)

What I like about this snorkel is:
* the crescent shaped tube vibrates less during quick descents,
* it does not have purge valve that can get stuck open,
* it does not have ribs in the tube that trap water,
* the integral mask strap retainer doesn't get stuck to hair.

Thanks very much in advance for any assistance.

 

[beyeriii]

It is a SCUBAPRO circa early 1980s.

Just noticed the original label is still under the diver down sticker and using a flashlight was able to see the label thru the diver down sticker.

Sure do wish they would make them again...

I am currently using a Cassi Island snorkel, but will hopefully switch back to the SCUBAPRO
after losing some weight and able to do faster dives.

 

[DRW]

When I spotted your message, I browsed my scannned Scubapro catalogues to see whether I could date your snorkel more precisely. The distinctive feature when determining chronology is the "handle"-style snorkel keeper on the side of the barrel where the mask strap is threaded through.

Here is an example of a silicone-mouthpieced snorkel from 1983:

Note the more traditional snorkel keeper. What Scubapro called their "quick-clip snorkel retainer" appears to have been launched in 1993:

The design was still around in 2001, minus the tag attached to the "handle":

So your own snorkel may even be just a couple of decades old. Is there any reason why you can't continue using it? If you like the feature I highlighted, the "handle"-style snorkel keeper, the only model I can think of at the moment is the Seac Classic:

And yes, I do recognise that it will not fulfil your other criteria because it not only lacks a contoured shape and the special bore you are after but its U-bend at the bottom is also likely to trap water. I found the image on the Scubastore website at SEAC C EPDM, where its price has been reduced. Hope this helps. I have the still-available SEAC Silner flex-hose model in my snorkel collection (below) and I have occasionally used it for snorkelling:

Postscript. Seac does a silicone-mouthpieced snorkel with the handle and a more contoured shape, also available from Scubastore:

 

[beyeriii]

Thank you for the information about the SEAC Z Siltra Grande.

I am currently using a Cressi Island which is very similar to the SEAC,

but have ordered two SEAC Z Siltra snorkels because the Cressi Island is not the best fit for me

Thank you also for the scanned pages from the 1983 The SCUBAPRO catalog.

The SCUBAPRO snorkel I have might be from the mid 1980s,
Here are some photos of a similar SCUBAPRO snorkel found on eBay. It is the same snorkel except it has a purge valve.

The nicest thing about these old SCUBAPRO snorkels is they do not flutter nearly as much during rapid dives as regular snorkels.
This is because the tube is a foil shape instead being round.
The foil shape causes the tube to plane towards the mask instead of fluttering next to the mask.

Right now I am too fat to do rapid dives (without a weight belt), but soon hope to be back shape.

 

[beyeriii]

Thank you for the information about the SEAC Z Siltra Grande.

I am currently using a Cressi Island which is very similar to the SEAC, View attachment 57219

but have ordered two SEAC Z Siltra snorkels because the Cressi Island is not the best fit for me

Thank you also for the scanned pages from the 1983 The SCUBAPRO catalog.

The SCUBAPRO snorkel I have might be from the mid 1980s,
Here are some photos of a similar SCUBAPRO snorkel found on eBay. It is the same snorkel except it has a purge valve.

View attachment 57220


View attachment 57221

View attachment 57222

View attachment 57223

View attachment 57224

The nicest thing about these old SCUBAPRO snorkels is they do not flutter nearly as much during rapid dives as regular snorkels.
This is because the tube is a foil shape instead being round.
The foil shape causes the tube to plane towards the mask instead of fluttering next to the mask.

Right now I am too fat to do rapid dives (without a weight belt), but soon hope to be back shape.

 

[beyeriii]

I wrote to SCUBAPRO and asked them about this snorkel.

They replied the same day and said is from the 1986 catalog.

They also included these scanned catalog pages.

It is part of the "SLIM LINE" series of snorkels.

Kudos to SCUBAPRO for the help ...

 

[DRW]

That is indeed excellent service on the part of Scubapro, not only for the speed and quality of their response but also for the fact that they had a library of historical catalogues to hand.

I am an avid collector of diving equipment catalogues from the 1950s to the 1980s, starting my collection during those decades and supplementing it later with acquisitions via diving book retailers and online auctions. Catalogue collecting can be quite an expensive business and only a minority of such collectors scan what they have and make it freely available online. I practise what I preach with my own modest collection accessible at Catalogues. There are no Scubapro catalogues present, however, and for those I depend on the generosity of others, notably Bryan Pennington who runs the Vintage Double Hose Forum. Go to that page and click on the "Manuals and Catalogs" link at the bottom, which will take you through to the enormous collection of scanned diving literature he freely places at the world's disposal. His Scubapro collection has at least twenty Scubapro catalogues. Luigi Fabbri provides access to a smaller collection of Scubapro catalogues on a couple of pages of his website starting at Cataloghi completi.

Sadly, to the best of my knowledge, no diving equipment company has ever posted a complete run of its catalogues from the foundation to the current year on its website. I fully accept that the purpose of any commercial company is to generate revenue by selling the products it makes now and not "back in the day", but even greater client loyalty might result if customers could be reminded once in a while about the items they bought from the firm and cherished in earlier decades.

Finally, many thanks to you for reporting back about your very positive experience with Scubapro, which still had in their possession a 1986 catalogue not scanned and posted elsewhere. I am glad that we now have a definitive and appropriately sourced answer to your original question.