Have you ever used scuba equipment you absolutely hated!
- Thread starter 12th Man
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Interesting? I have a BP/W OMS...I had a buckle break...they sent me a complete new harness free of charge...This was a month ago...as I read through the post I realized I was dealing with the new OMS...I asked for help on thir facebook page and they called me...Then I got an email from Germany as well....Mine was a fluke quickclip buckle that broke....but they promptly replaced the entire harness
Back mount.
All back strain and general discomfort was completely eliminated by going SM.
No comparison.
Repetitive dives over two weeks had my back and neck muscles in knots. The next trip in SM started following a month of 12 hr. shifts. I was already sore. Even with no experience, I had no discomfort!
And I was actually considering booking fewer dives...
All back strain and general discomfort was completely eliminated by going SM.
No comparison.
Repetitive dives over two weeks had my back and neck muscles in knots. The next trip in SM started following a month of 12 hr. shifts. I was already sore. Even with no experience, I had no discomfort!
And I was actually considering booking fewer dives...
Don't necessarily blame yourself! My legs are quite strong, but the fins (for my diving, leg-length, exposure suits, kicks, and weight-while-air-traveling) suck. The design is not that bad, but the Deep6 variant works MUCH better for me. That brick-heavy solid rubber of the Jetfin is the problem.
I agree. I cannot stand anything but a black mask. Have eye issues, and find clear skirts and 3 window masks very distracting.
OTF
Coney Island Whitefish Biologist
Neoprene gloves that aren't "semidry". AKA anything with a velcro cuff instead of a seal. Less warm AND less dexterity than thinner semidry gloves.
Split fins obviously.
Wetsuits that have back zippers that spontaneously open. Cold if diving, and when surfing I once had one of them open while getting tumbled. It filled with water to the point of ballooning, that was scary.
Ill-fitting fins - endured them for years before learning my feet aren't supposed to hurt!
Split fins obviously.
Wetsuits that have back zippers that spontaneously open. Cold if diving, and when surfing I once had one of them open while getting tumbled. It filled with water to the point of ballooning, that was scary.
Ill-fitting fins - endured them for years before learning my feet aren't supposed to hurt!
Belzelbub
Contributor
The mask and fins I got for my first OW class.
First the fins. Jet fins, though to be fair, it may have been a size issue, or a footwear issue. These were the ones where the top and bottom of the foot pocket were the same length. This resulted in the bottom digging into the sole of my foot. I see some versions have an extended sole, so this wouldn’t be an issue.
Next the mask. IIRC, it was a US Divers mask. Clear skirt, but that’s already been addressed. What really sucked about it was it was a tri-window design. Two extra lenses on the sides. They were marketed as having a wider field of vision, which sounded like a good idea. Technically, that was correct. Above the water, they did just what they were supposed to. Below the water, the refraction and magnification resulted in there being a sizable blind spot between the front and side lenses. If something were to move past my field of vision, it would disappear for a bit between the front and side. It was extremely distracting and somewhat disorienting.
First the fins. Jet fins, though to be fair, it may have been a size issue, or a footwear issue. These were the ones where the top and bottom of the foot pocket were the same length. This resulted in the bottom digging into the sole of my foot. I see some versions have an extended sole, so this wouldn’t be an issue.
Next the mask. IIRC, it was a US Divers mask. Clear skirt, but that’s already been addressed. What really sucked about it was it was a tri-window design. Two extra lenses on the sides. They were marketed as having a wider field of vision, which sounded like a good idea. Technically, that was correct. Above the water, they did just what they were supposed to. Below the water, the refraction and magnification resulted in there being a sizable blind spot between the front and side lenses. If something were to move past my field of vision, it would disappear for a bit between the front and side. It was extremely distracting and somewhat disorienting.
I can’t recall owning any piece of gear that I hated completely, and immediately regretted purchasing.
Even though my BARE 7mm wetsuit wore a hole in my neck, it still did keep me warm in the temperate seas while I was fortunate enough to spend between 6 and 8 hours a day in either a submerged cage or in a surface cage for 12 days. (I purchased the suit specifically for the GW Shark trip to Mexico as neither of my dry suits would have worked for me.)
I have however had to USE some gear that I hated. I’ve done some stunt work for cinema and advertising and have had to wear masks that were simply horrible in all regards. Had to wear them because they were the same ones that the lantern-jawed movie stars would don just before entering the water. In another memorable instance I had to wear the “stars” dry suit for a couple of days of diving. The script specified that the dives were made in frigid waters off of Iceland, so I had to wear the same dry suit that the actor wore for his topside takes. He was much shorter than I am, and also about 40 pounds heavier. Thus, as you may imagine, the dry suit did not fit me particularly well. In fact, the neck and wrist seals were about as useful as screen doors on a submarine. The suit was full of water for the entirety of my time in the ocean. Fortunately, we filmed the underwater segments off the coast of south Florida in the summer, so while the suit was extremely clumsy to dive in, I was in no danger of suffering from hypothermia. The suit did not have a p-valve installed, but this proved not to be an issue of substantial concern.
Even though my BARE 7mm wetsuit wore a hole in my neck, it still did keep me warm in the temperate seas while I was fortunate enough to spend between 6 and 8 hours a day in either a submerged cage or in a surface cage for 12 days. (I purchased the suit specifically for the GW Shark trip to Mexico as neither of my dry suits would have worked for me.)
I have however had to USE some gear that I hated. I’ve done some stunt work for cinema and advertising and have had to wear masks that were simply horrible in all regards. Had to wear them because they were the same ones that the lantern-jawed movie stars would don just before entering the water. In another memorable instance I had to wear the “stars” dry suit for a couple of days of diving. The script specified that the dives were made in frigid waters off of Iceland, so I had to wear the same dry suit that the actor wore for his topside takes. He was much shorter than I am, and also about 40 pounds heavier. Thus, as you may imagine, the dry suit did not fit me particularly well. In fact, the neck and wrist seals were about as useful as screen doors on a submarine. The suit was full of water for the entirety of my time in the ocean. Fortunately, we filmed the underwater segments off the coast of south Florida in the summer, so while the suit was extremely clumsy to dive in, I was in no danger of suffering from hypothermia. The suit did not have a p-valve installed, but this proved not to be an issue of substantial concern.
David Wilson
Contributor
Modern full-foot fins that are labelled as being my size even when every one of my toes protrude from the front of the foot pockets, with the inevitable consequence that the walls at the side of the toe openings eventually tear. I have a pair of Cousteau-designed La Spirotechnique Otarie fins from the 1970s and they enclose my entire foot with plenty of room to spare.
All-synthetic, so-called "space-age state-of-the art materials" fins, whose only apparent advantage is their airline baggage allowance lightness. A couple of decades ago, I smiled when I spotted a pair slowly delaminating in a dive store bargain bin.
Silicone-skirted masks, the clear variety first becoming popular just because Jacqueline Bisset wore one in "The Deep"; and why assume anyway that all masks must be "non-allergenic" nowadays when other "allergenic" products like peanuts are freely available? I had to use a silicone-skirted mask once when snorkelling and I hated every moment it was on my face.
It's all down to choice when it comes to underwater equipment. And that choice is not always available nowadays in terrestrial diving stores in the home country, while e-stores abroad stocking the desired diving gear alternatives are not always prepared to sell these products internationally.
All-synthetic, so-called "space-age state-of-the art materials" fins, whose only apparent advantage is their airline baggage allowance lightness. A couple of decades ago, I smiled when I spotted a pair slowly delaminating in a dive store bargain bin.
Silicone-skirted masks, the clear variety first becoming popular just because Jacqueline Bisset wore one in "The Deep"; and why assume anyway that all masks must be "non-allergenic" nowadays when other "allergenic" products like peanuts are freely available? I had to use a silicone-skirted mask once when snorkelling and I hated every moment it was on my face.
It's all down to choice when it comes to underwater equipment. And that choice is not always available nowadays in terrestrial diving stores in the home country, while e-stores abroad stocking the desired diving gear alternatives are not always prepared to sell these products internationally.
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