Hollis vs. Oxycheq

[Randy43068]

Hey Tobin,

I should have tempered my comment against reality. If wings and other scuba gear had a much larger market, there would be more economy of scale, making them lower cost.

I have no doubt they are expensive to design, manufacture and support. I'm sorry I made the comment without some explanation on my part. I also appreciate you taking time to let me know how much money goes into making these things.

The fact is, a wing is much more than a bag of air.

Thanks for keeping me aware of what goes into making quality scuba gear.


Randy

I wonder if your opinion would change if you actually tooled up to make them, inventory them, market them, and provide customer service.

You'd better budget about $200,000 - $300,000 if you want to acquire all the necessary equipment to produce wing and it's various components. Of course that does not include a barn to keep it all in or the ongoing overhead.

You could of course "job out" the task, or even purchase wings made "off shore" Of course that too will impact your margins, and potentially quality and flexibility.

There is a great deal of competition in wings. They are available from 6-8 sources, and the pricing is a fairly narrow range.

That's because that's what is required for the producers to provide the product and make a reasonable margin and return on investment.

The only other explanation is price fixing among the "players" in the game. I know that if I could make quality wings for less and sell them for less I would. A good portion of my time is spent trying to hold the line against rising costs. Lost costs and lower prices would provide me with a competitive advantage.

Tobin

 

[Hollis Gear Nick]

I have a 40lb Oxycheq Mach V Extreme. No gold lettering on mine. Ultimate in low profile. I added a pull dump valve because that is what I was used to on my old BC.

I am minutes away from San Leandro. They have a beautiful marina and parks on the East San Francisco Bay. I wonder if Hollis has a showroom to display their gear.

If anyone is in the San Leandro area and would like to stop by, we are always willing to give a tour of the facility. We are lacking a typical "showroom" but have a wide variety of interesting divisions within the building -- regulator machining, drysuit manufacturing, computer/instrumentation, bcd and scooter production, and more.

Best Regards,

 

[Clanggedin]

If Hollis's wings are as good quality as their SS plats then I may gave to get my doubles wing from them. I have a Hollis Backplate and I love it. I also have an Oxycheq Mach V Extreme wing (got it for a steal). The quality of the Hollis plate is awesome. It is polished SS and looks way better than my brother's Dive Right SS plate, even after doing more dives then him. While his looks old and gray, mine still looks brand new. Their prices are very comparable to what is out there and I am well pleased with my purchase. I really wanted to get a Freedom plate II, but that has never happened after waiting almost a year, I ended up getting the Hollis and don't regret it one bit.

 

[firemedic8082]

Oxycheq is a high quality product.

 

[divad]

You could get the already ridiculous Mach V Signature for $260.00, or the ridiculouser Mach V Extreme for $340.00 at golemgear.com for now and wait and see if the Hollis wing is the ridiculest and decide if you really want to get more ridiculous.