rEvo modifications, tweaks and customisations

[Wibble]

The rEvo rebreather is an excellent machine which many people dive. It's clearly different from most other rebreathers, especially the cannister ones, all a product of the excellent Paul Raemakers who designed the unit.

As with any design, there's always scope for modifications, tweaks and customisations to the standard machine.

What modifications have you done and why? Does that modification work? Any issues with it?


Has anyone done any unusual configurations, such as using a cell splitter to show 3 cells on the Nerd?

 

[Wibble]

AI -- air integration/transmitters.

With the NERD2, comes AI integration. Need two transmitters of different types to avoid the clash of the transmitters which can result in the data not being updated. Use one grey Aqualung transmitter and the more expensive yellow Shearwater transmitter. These are added to a 50cm/20" (LENGTH TO BE CONFIRMED) HP hose lead up from the regulators, over the "tray" and cable-tied in place (where you can still get to the batteries).

Works well and the Nerd can display the pressures in the third O2 field on the centre row.

Batteries need replacing and more frequently for the diluent transmitter as the transmitters are powered on by gas pressure so it's transmitting when you're not diving.

SAFT CR3 batteries last 6 around months, although could be less if you forget to power down the diluent.
Typical battery failure mode is that you can't get the pressure when you're building the machine as the battery's flat. Keep some spares in "stock". Have once seen the display notify me underwater that the battery is low and the Nerd display changes the background to yellow with a message. Will keep working for the rest of the dive.

 

[Wibble]

Harness modifications

The stock rEvo harness is cliptastic, dangly, non configurable and non customisable. Thankfully it can be replaced with a standard one-piece harness, even an 'H' one as below.

Once the cliptastic harness is in the bin, the world's your lobster for your personal requirements on a one piece. Two chest D-rings either side; spare torch mounted in the normal place; harness 'break' loop to aid doffing in the water; shoulder pads for comfort when carrying the unit; sidemount bungees, etc.

Couple of shoulder pads for comfort:

Due to the design of the top backplate -- was designed for the above-mentioned cliptastic thing -- the normal grommet cannot be used. Thankfully it can be folded in a different way which fits.

Folding of the harness (and sidemount mod, see below)

Have also added a 15cm/9" length of stiff harness webbing, attached with a soldering iron to burn three holes, one in the middle where the backplate bolt passes and two either end where the sidemount bungees go.

Very pleased with this and it's worked flawlessly.

Did toy with re-designing the top backplate and getting it fabricated. Thankfully didn't need to do that as the original was easily worked around.

 

[Wibble]

Harness Break

A one-piece harness can be hard to get out of if not sitting on a bench, or if you're floating and need to get out of the harness. A harness "break loop" can help.

This example uses a DirZone adjustable buckle set. Works well if you need it and unobtrusive if you don't.

It takes a few attempts to thread it correctly. You need a bunch of tri-glides (as in 3 strips with 2 slots) with two at the ends. N.B. in these pictures, the top triglide is used for the lower D-ring and has the sidemount bungee retainer behind. The loop's about 22.5cm/9 inches and is held in place with a couple of rubber snoopy loops.

Lifting the buckle at the pointy end will flip it up and back through the rear buckle. Can be done in thick gloves.

Can see how much loop has now been freed off; can get your arm through even if the wing is fully inflated (e.g. if you're on the surface and need to get out of the unit).

Sideways on showing the two snoopy loops holding the loop tidy.

Completed, from the side

Whilst I haven't used the harness break in a while as it's unnecessary if diving off of boats with diver lifts/elevators, it is completely unobtrusive when not used.

Add this to my OC harnesses too. Have used it lots of times when diving a twinset/doubles off of a RIB.

The other use case for this harness loop is if one ever needed to get out of the rig in the water. Perish the thought of getting caught up inside a wreck, it could mean that it's possible to get on OC and get out of the rig. Would be a pretty bad day though.

 

[Minion_Diver]

Question about the transmitter location.

Do the transmitters not fit when screwed directly into the first stage? With them screwed directly into the first stage you get rid of the air spool failure point.

I have the older grey and new swift transmitter on my Optima. I do lose connectivity with the transmitters sometimes, but just swing my arm back towards the valves for a few seconds and it reconnects, although that would be harder if you are using the AI features on the nerd and not a wrist mount.

 

[Wibble]

Question about the transmitter location.

Do the transmitters not fit when screwed directly into the first stage? With them screwed directly into the first stage you get rid of the air spool failure point.

I have the older grey and new swift transmitter on my Optima. I do lose connectivity with the transmitters sometimes, but just swing my arm back towards the valves for a few seconds and it reconnects, although that would be harder if you are using the AI features on the nerd and not a wrist mount.

My logic was to get the transmitters closer to the Nerd. The 'tray' is at the top and it's within 30cm/1ft of your Nerd. The fear was that transmitters mounted lower down would have a weaker signal. That higher position would also work if using wrist-mounted computers as your arms are normally forward when diving.

I'm pretty certain that the transmitters wouldn't fit on the regs either as they'd touch the scrubber housings.

Routing them as above has been fine; no problems with reception nor snagging. A couple of cable ties keep the transmitters nicely in place.

 

[cathal]

I replaced the standard O2 HP 1.2M line with a 1.3M HP hose. This enables me to clip the O2 SPG and Dream to the back of my 50% stage and if it’s ever needed it’s now long enough for me to simply bring it around and clip it to my harness chest strap.

 

[cathal]

Kent Tooling Stand is an absolute must for boat diving imho. Can’t fault the workmanship.

 

[cathal]

Shrimp BOV, using it for 6 years now, no complaints.

 

[cathal]

Replaced rEvo Crotch strap with a standard size crotch strap.