Big day for Kenny.
My turtles showed up (shown up? Shown Uped??) today. They smell like tires...its too funny. My office is like walking into a Pep Boys.
Now THATS a foot pocket. Tonight I install the spring straps (both from eBay - you gotta love that place...) and see if these will fit over the rock boots (I'm only a size 9...no prob) or if its wobble city. I can probably address the wobble better than I can the ballerina toes needed to work the XL Jets.
But the big news is the light came in. Its the 4.5 Helios 10w HID
Woah.
I'll be posting a light review later in the light board. Initial thoughts:
* eBay rocks.
* Canister is narrow and light - I like that. Simple - fat walled tube, hinges, webbing and pipe things... simple. Clean. Surely not the brains of the outfit.
* The charger is big and not so light...I was surprised at that. It has the power supply, then the "computer controlled charger" device. OK. I expected a smaller charging unit. No biggie.
* The battery pack - I would think a better design for the lid (maybe a recessed channel for the plugs) and you could get another couple of batts in the pack, and get more time.
* The cord - this is supposed to be the upgraded cord. Not sure what that means, except I like the fact that the light head can be separated from the canister by a connection in the cord (sort of like a wet-connection you see with a through-body flash unit for a camera, etc.) Is that the upgraded cord? With this cord, the light is not all one unit...I can keep the light head (and about 6" or cord) safely tucked and out of harms way away during donning, and then just plug it in. I like that. I also like the idea many of you have posted about keeping a Koozie over it while in transit.
* Light head - bigger than I expected. Its not prohibitively big, just larger than I expected. The 18w must be a lot bigger than this. Like the focus, like the adjustable Goodman handle (I'll try with gloves tonight...) Looks like a quality product.
* Hinges on the canister - TELL me I'm not the first guy that took a minute or two to figure out how to get these $@%^#% things open. Nice locking mechanism...just nothing in any of the literature about how to get these open. I'm confident more than one meathead has tried to pry them open.
This Sunday me and a few guys are in Avalon to drill (no coincidence the weekend before DIR/F) so it'll be cool to check out the finning of the stubbies and get this light wet.
This about ends the gear portion of our story. BP/W, long hose, SPG, DIR gas management config, light, stubby fins, etc. Next stop will be Bottom Timer as computer gets demoted to the pocket.
More soon.
K
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EDIT
I found out what the deal is with the E/O upgrade. Most of you prolly knew...but its all greek to me still. For anyone else new to the scene:
E/O Conversion
Extreme Exposure recommends that divers purchase the HID light head with an E/O cord assembly so that they can switch back and forth from HID to halogen light heads when they wish. The ability to use either light head can be a consideration when diving in overhead environment with dive buddies using traditional halogen lights. Although the HID bulbs are very durable, their high cost and the availability of replacement bulbs in the field make the E/O connector an attractive option when diving in remote areas or in harsh environments.
Many divers have expressed an interest in converting their existing Explorer Pro lights to utilize an HID light head. The conversion requires that a new E/O cord be installed on their existing lid. If the conversion is made, the old halogen light head can then be retrofitted with an E/O cord to provide the spare light head.
http://www.stingraydivers.com/catalog/catalog-halcyon.html
My turtles showed up (shown up? Shown Uped??) today. They smell like tires...its too funny. My office is like walking into a Pep Boys.
Now THATS a foot pocket. Tonight I install the spring straps (both from eBay - you gotta love that place...) and see if these will fit over the rock boots (I'm only a size 9...no prob) or if its wobble city. I can probably address the wobble better than I can the ballerina toes needed to work the XL Jets.
But the big news is the light came in. Its the 4.5 Helios 10w HID
Woah.
I'll be posting a light review later in the light board. Initial thoughts:
* eBay rocks.
* Canister is narrow and light - I like that. Simple - fat walled tube, hinges, webbing and pipe things... simple. Clean. Surely not the brains of the outfit.
* The charger is big and not so light...I was surprised at that. It has the power supply, then the "computer controlled charger" device. OK. I expected a smaller charging unit. No biggie.
* The battery pack - I would think a better design for the lid (maybe a recessed channel for the plugs) and you could get another couple of batts in the pack, and get more time.
* The cord - this is supposed to be the upgraded cord. Not sure what that means, except I like the fact that the light head can be separated from the canister by a connection in the cord (sort of like a wet-connection you see with a through-body flash unit for a camera, etc.) Is that the upgraded cord? With this cord, the light is not all one unit...I can keep the light head (and about 6" or cord) safely tucked and out of harms way away during donning, and then just plug it in. I like that. I also like the idea many of you have posted about keeping a Koozie over it while in transit.
* Light head - bigger than I expected. Its not prohibitively big, just larger than I expected. The 18w must be a lot bigger than this. Like the focus, like the adjustable Goodman handle (I'll try with gloves tonight...) Looks like a quality product.
* Hinges on the canister - TELL me I'm not the first guy that took a minute or two to figure out how to get these $@%^#% things open. Nice locking mechanism...just nothing in any of the literature about how to get these open. I'm confident more than one meathead has tried to pry them open.
This Sunday me and a few guys are in Avalon to drill (no coincidence the weekend before DIR/F) so it'll be cool to check out the finning of the stubbies and get this light wet.
This about ends the gear portion of our story. BP/W, long hose, SPG, DIR gas management config, light, stubby fins, etc. Next stop will be Bottom Timer as computer gets demoted to the pocket.
More soon.
K
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
EDIT
I found out what the deal is with the E/O upgrade. Most of you prolly knew...but its all greek to me still. For anyone else new to the scene:
E/O Conversion
Extreme Exposure recommends that divers purchase the HID light head with an E/O cord assembly so that they can switch back and forth from HID to halogen light heads when they wish. The ability to use either light head can be a consideration when diving in overhead environment with dive buddies using traditional halogen lights. Although the HID bulbs are very durable, their high cost and the availability of replacement bulbs in the field make the E/O connector an attractive option when diving in remote areas or in harsh environments.
Many divers have expressed an interest in converting their existing Explorer Pro lights to utilize an HID light head. The conversion requires that a new E/O cord be installed on their existing lid. If the conversion is made, the old halogen light head can then be retrofitted with an E/O cord to provide the spare light head.
http://www.stingraydivers.com/catalog/catalog-halcyon.html
