Question about U.W. Scooters

[ohi]

Does anybody own an u.w. scooter? If so, what brand, model etc. I am thinking about buying one and want some feedback. I have seen the Seadoo scooter and want to hear any feedback on that brand.

 

[DennisS]

I have a Tekna and a Mako, performance-wise they're about the same. They don't make the Tekna anymore so parts could be a problem. I bought a second one cheap for just that reason. I'd check the specs on the seadoo and see what kind of time/range you have with it. They are fun! I do beach diving and the extended range they give me is incredible. My float is big enough to attach the scooter and tow it back, if its mechanical or electrical it will fail.

 

[Warren_L]

I don't own a Seadoo scooter, but I've had a chance to fiddle around with one on dry land. It's light and inexpensive, but it seems a little flimsy, especially the handles. I don't know what the model number was, unfortunately. It was pretty easy to open up and remove the battery.

 

[MaxBottomtime]

I have a Mako. It's a lot of fun for wreck diving. On one of my favorites, I can make two laps around the 280' wreck without using a single fin kick. It certainly helps with air consumption.

 

[Scuby Dooby]

Does anybody own an u.w. scooter? If so, what brand, model etc. I am thinking about buying one and want some feedback. I have seen the Seadoo scooter and want to hear any feedback on that brand.

I played with a friends seado for a couple of dives. In my opinion, it's not a very serious diving tool at all. It has limited power and wouldn't be able to pull me against much of a current. The one I used also had a depth restriction of 60 feet. It might be a bit of fun for someone snorkelling around or as a big toy but I don't think it is very useful for diving.

I have also used a friends apollo scooter (sorry, don't now the model but it's a pretty common one I've seen around) and that is a truly useful piece of equipment. Plenty of power, 2 'speeds' and a long lasting battery - unfortunately I think it also came with a 1K+ price tag

 

[Uncle Pug]

If you dive in cold water you need a good drysuit and quality undergarment to drive a scooter.

 

[ShoalDiverSA]

I don't personally own a Seadoo (or any scooter for that matter), but there was a review in our local diving magazine, Divestyle. They also raised the flimsy issue that Warren mentioned. The depth restriction might (will) be a problem. The reviewer felt that the power was *just* enough to help you get around. The gist was that he enjoyed it, but I didn't get the feeling from the article that he was going to run to the shops and buy one. Note: this is what I can remember of the review - don't have it in front of me. In the unlikely event that I find the article, I will give you some quotes from it.

Wish I could afford a Silent Submersion scooter... (or Gavin, or Mako).

www.silent-submersion.com

Cheers,

Andrew

 

[ShoalDiverSA]

Update:

As I hit the post button, I remembered that my Dad took a Seadoo for a demo ride at Sodwana Bay. He enjoyed zipping around (claims he saw a shark that no-one else did -hmmm). However, the Seadoo has a gearbox and the strongest impression from him was that it was pretty noisy (and irritating) underwater. To quote - "it's get very invasive.

The Silent Submersion scooter (or its ancestors) are direct drive, so they will be a lot quieter.

Cheers,

Andrew

 

[ShoalDiverSA]

Divestyle May/June 2003

Sea-Doo Scooter
By Jim Fraser

I've been very fortunate to have the use of the new Sea-Doo scooter for the last month. When I first saw the scooter I thought of the excellent wet-bikes manufactured by the same people, and anticipated breakneck speed on the scooter ala wet-bike. Naturally it would never be possible to manufacture a scooter that has the horsepower and speed of a wet-bike unless you were looking for a torpedo and had military budgets. In this case, however, your pockets are not going to be emptied to acquire one of these unique machines. Why I say unique is because of a very lightweight design (a quarter of the weight of the competitors' products), carrying kit bag, charger and foot pump that are included. Throw the scooter into the bag after charging and you're off with a compact lightweight propulsion unit.

The charging was quick and easy, after reading the manual of course, and the battery compartment has a double O-ring seal for watertight operation. Maximum depth for use is 20 metres, which may seem a little restrictive, but is understandable because of the lighter materials used for user-friendly operations and connections. The scooter worked well throughout the dive. I hung on like a brick, trying my best to be as obstructive as possible, and being quite a large diver, especially in a two-piece 7mm suit, I expected the scooter to take serious strain, but the power is constant and the speed, fair. If you streamline yourself and fin a little you will move along at a good speed, (max speed 3 km/h). It is comfortable to drive the unit with one hand, the grip does twist though, which gives you the sensation that the handles could break easily. In fact, with both hands on the grips, the handle can be twisted. I gave them a thorough work over but the nylon is tough stuff. Chad Henning also used the unit for a little freedivig, and found the Sea-Doo very useful. He did mention some modifications to carry a camera, etc - but he shot down to eight metres in seconds.

Between us the unit was used for a solid 60 minutes and the power pack still had good energy.

The unit is positively buoyant and weight must be placed in the sealed buoancy chamber that forms part of the nose of the scooter. I used two weightbelts one kilo weights and this was sufficient to change the nature of the scooter to almost neutral, although it is explicitly spelled out in the manual that the scooter should be kept positively buoyant at all times. You could use the scooter to power down and then cork on your ascent, or just leave it on the surface between dives. Either way it will be great transport to areas that are further away, and for lengthy dives.

Overall the Sea-Doo scooter is a lightweight and very affordable unit. The inclusion of the carry-bag, charger, silicone grease and rubber bands for operation is very nice, and the unit provides user-friendly operation for scuba, freediving, and snorkelling. A larger (heavier) long-life battery can be easily ordered and purchased.

Copyright Johnnic Publishing Ltd

Cheers,

Andrew

 

[ScubaFriend]

Hi

i have used the sea doo a lot they are fine against the current and they will do about 2mph they are great fun.

Yes as mentioned before the handles are a little flimsy but if you dont pick them up or carry them by the handles they are fine, there is a new sea doo out called the turbo which i havnt tried si i cant make any comment about that.

I know a dive center that has sea doos and the estimate they have done about 100 dives on them without a problem.

Disavantages are you wont spot small stuff
Advantages you will get the chance of seeing big stuff as you will travel a lot further than normal

They are not diving but they are fun