Mares HUB and aircraft....

[wytch]

If you liked the Airtrim go for a Morphos Pro

I did like the Airtrim....
Morphos Pro it is!

 

[c_m_wood]

Does anyone know whether the mares avantgarde HUB uses a standard 1st stage? Im being offered the opportunity to buy one for a fantastic price with mares orbiter 2nd stage and axis octo (apparantly they were added after purchase). Im thinking of stripping off these and selling the BCD to fund buying say a mares vector or similar instead as I dont really like the HUB. For the price though I certainately want those regs and hopefully 1st stage if I can use it with a standard BCD. So can I use the 1st stage that it will come with with any other BCD or am I limited to just the HUB. Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[terrasmak]

LOL Mark.

I think you should put a big sign that says "EXPENSIVE DIVE GEAR - KEEP AN EYE ON THIS ONE - DO NOT STEAL ME!" on it and hope for the best *cough*

Thats what i would do , but only after i had insurance for it. Probably easier than trying to sell a HUB

 

[Cobra852]

I suggest you wear it, that way you wont get charged excess baggage.

When you get on the plane, just take it off and ask a steward to hang up your "coat"

Best advise ever!!!

 

[brucekrymow]

For Mark Asquith: Over engineered??! Are you riding a wooden-wheeled stagecoach drawn by horses? Is your boat oar-powered? Do you NOT use a dive computer??

I did not think so.:14:

The HUB may not be for every diver just as an Infinity G35 is not for every driver.

:sappy: The HUB is superior & simply perfect for boat dives which is mostly what I do...pull it out, drop on the tank, airlock, done! No crap all over the deck & no wrestling w/ gear in between clowns on a boat. I've used it for dives in Mexico, the Caribbean & Aruba wrecks. No hose entanglement means worry-free penetration. NO system offers easy maintenance & storage after diving. And it is self-contained so everything is stored in one place, safe from loss, damage and/or misplacement.

The dual compartment wing & vest bladders trim perfectly & dump in any position, unlike the silly low-pressure hose flopping around, if you can find it.

The HUB comes w/ the the Proton Metal V32 which is one of the best regulators in the world, not to mention small & light in the mouth.

For Wytch: Take the weights out & it is easy to carry on - I have repeatedly stuck it in the overhead compartment w/o issue. I do take off my Aeris AI computer (via quick-disconnect) & toss in my camera bag which I also carry on.

For CM Wood: The first stage is specifically designed for the HUB - no other first stage, Mares or other brand, can be used in the HUB. It properly delivers pressure to the hoses that are interconnected in between the BC & connectors behind the backplate.

Science & technology will continue to evolve consumer driven products in diving as it has done & will continue to do in all aspects of our life.

If you don't like the HUB, that's OK - just sell it.

POST SCRIPT EDIT:

After reviewing archived threads, I see there has been discussion regarding the Avant Garde H.U.B. dating back to 2001. As with many of the threads in this forum, most of the posts are heresay with little if any personal, direct experience. This item has undergone a lot of changes & has come along way since it's inception. I don't skimp on dollars when it comes to life support - Mares products, the current H.U.B. in particular, holds the highest quality, testing, grade & warranty as compared to other less admirable products I would defer to rely on. As there are pros and cons to any product, it boils down to personal preference.

 

[Azza]

<snip>The HUB is superior blah blah <snip>

You are taking the piss right?

 

[brucekrymow]

Hi, Azza ~

Not familiar w/ NZ colloquialisms.

Come again

 

[Tassie_Rohan]

Mate - allow me to translate: he thinks you're coming the raw prawn and wants to know if you're fair dinkum...

 

[Azza]

Hi, Azza ~

Not familiar w/ NZ colloquialisms.

Come again

Sorry mate. I was wondering if you were serious?
Please don't take offence at what I have to say but I thought I would reply to what you have posted. FWIW I really don't care what different rigs divers use as everyone is different.
You said

The HUB is superior & simply perfect for boat dives which is mostly what I do...pull it out, drop on the tank, airlock, done! No crap all over the deck & no wrestling w/ gear in between clowns on a boat.

I don't see how that makes the rig superior. It just means that you don't have to be as organised with your equipment. I mainly dive from boats as well, inculding my own which is a little fizz boat with 4 other divers on board, and have no problems with my BCD and Reg or space. I think defining a rig as "superior" because of it's "topside" bonus is a little silly. It's how the rig behaves in the water that is of real concern.

Last time I looked at a hub the octi was held inside a pocket. That doesnt seem a particularly clever place to put a potentially very important peice of life saving equipment.

Does the HUB provide a multitude of places to distribute weight for different divers of different body shape and composition to attain good trim?

No hose entanglement means worry-free penetration.

If you route your hoses properly you will have no problems with entanglemnt anyway. I have probably over 250 penetration dives on/in various wrecks (some with very tight spaces) and have never had a problem with my hoses snagging.

Can you mount a Long Hose on a HUB? I would never consider doing a penetration dive without one. This lesson was learned from experience.

Also having all your hoses "inside" the unit means that you have to make a concerted effort to check the hoses for wear and tear. With a normal reg you can visually inspect every hose and connection, hassle free, every time you jump in the water.

The dual compartment wing & vest bladders trim perfectly & dump in any position, unlike the silly low-pressure hose flopping around, if you can find it

I never have a problem finding my LPI. Its sitting in the same place everytime I use it...held against my webbing near my nipple with a piece of bungee.

Mares products, the current H.U.B. in particular, holds the highest quality, testing, grade & warranty as compared to other less admirable products I would defer to rely on.

According to whom? Who says it's the highest quality? Who tested it and what dive and servicing experience do they have?

Over engineered??! Are you riding a wooden-wheeled stagecoach drawn by horses? Is your boat oar-powered? Do you NOT use a dive computer??

I believe it is over engineered as well. Dive manufacturers are always trying to reinvent the wheel in a bid to promote a more attractive piece of kit to divers to make more money for themselves.

To simplify things a little, a BCD and reg have 3 purposes
1. To hold your tank
2. To allow you to attain buoyancy under the water
3. To reduce the air from your tank to ambient pressure and allow you to breath it.

If your reg needs a service or you have a failure of some kind with the BCD, you have lost both until they come back from the service tec...

I believe in the Keep It Simple Stupid method for diving. The more complicated you try to make something the more that goes wrong with them.

Please don't be offended by what I wrote. This is merely a discussion and not me "having a go".

 

[brucekrymow]

Snap.

No offense taken.

And kudos to you for doing things proper. You've told us how and why you personally do things, but that does not necessarily hold for all or even most divers. I would say you represent a sampling of the better divers as compared w/ the more common sloppy diver.

I mainly dive from boats as well, inculding my own which is a little fizz boat with 4 other divers on board, and have no problems with my BCD and Reg or space.

Most "cattleboats" boats have more than 4 divers and space is typically a problem, especially w/ those who pack their gear back in the wrong order, if in any order at all.

I think defining a rig as "superior" because of it's "topside" bonus is a little silly.

I agree with you - defining any product by merely one feature would be silly.
It is, however, a combination of smart features that make this BC superior for this diver.

Last time I looked at a hub the octi was held inside a pocket. That doesnt seem a particularly clever place to put a potentially very important peice of life saving equipment.

Have you ever had the "pleasure" of having to utilize an octo outside of training exercises? I have - I can pull the bright yellow velcro rip pull and whip the octo into your mouth as fast if not faster than most can even recover theirs. Many divers have it dragging across the coral or sand or scrunched up into a BC strap. In a moment of duress, it is not as easy to pull it out when threaded through the cummerbund.

Does the HUB provide a multitude of places to distribute weight for different divers of different body shape and composition to attain good trim?

NO BC does that for ALL divers of ALL shapes & compositions. It does, however, allow for this diver.

If you route your hoses properly you will have no problems with entanglemnt anyway.

Yes, you & I both know this, but many divers do not.

Can you mount a Long Hose on a HUB?

Yes. 1st stage is of standard length & the octo hose is yellow & 33% longer, but you may install others.

Also having all your hoses "inside" the unit means that you have to make a concerted effort to check the hoses for wear and tear. With a normal reg you can visually inspect every hose and connection, hassle free, every time you jump in the water.

In my opinion, any diver that makes less than a concerted effort to check & properly maintain their gear is a diver with whom I'd rather not dive. There is no such thing as 'hassle-free' when it comes to life support systems. It's par for the course. It's a little more work to check the hoses on my G35, but I'd rather not drive a Chevy.

I never have a problem finding my LPI. Its sitting in the same place everytime I use it...held against my webbing near my nipple with a piece of bungee.

That's great! But that is you. Traveling abroad you never know who is going to end up on the boat. Many divers seems to have the LPI flopping all around & often times completely disconnected! Boy, I'd sure like to be on dive trips w/ folks like you all the time!

I believe it is over engineered as well. Dive manufacturers are always trying to reinvent the wheel in a bid to promote a more attractive piece of kit to divers to make more money for themselves.

All manufacturers surely are desiring to stay in business, but I think it is somewhat cynical to believe they are purely profit-driven to simply 'reinvent' stuff. It used to be pretty technical to run a computer. With the advent of the GUI & doing away w/ compulsory scripting & command lines has paved the way for more people to use & enjoy such tools. Diving is now safer, easier and is made to appeal to a broader base than it could've in the past. If it wasn't for ever-evolving technology, we'd be diving the way my grandfather did in the Navy - no BC, no gauges and a J-valve at best.

If your reg needs a service or you have a failure of some kind with the BCD, you have lost both until they come back from the service tec...

Not necessarily the case, at least for both. But with any gear, if it is out for repair or service, you still are out the use of the equipment - and the remedy for that applies to both situations.

As I said, there are pros and cons to any product, diving or otherwise, and people think what they think, want what they want, and believe what they may - regardless, it boils down to personal preference.

Cheers!