John Bantin has been a full-time professional diving writer and underwater photographer since 1990. He makes around 300 dives each year testing diving equipment.
Superhawk Is A High-Flyer- Scubapro Seahawk NT BC
You instinctively know when something is right. The Scubapro Superhawk NT is one of those items.
This is a wing-style BC unashamedly aimed at technical divers but normally supplied with a more modest spec to suit wannabes like me.
A lightweight hard backpack with a soft cushion is shaped to sit where you put it.
This is fitted to the tank using Scubapro's unique camband arrangement (called the cinch-strap), which is fine if you always use the same tank but can be a pain if you swap between tanks of different diameters.
A wing-bladder extends forward over the shoulders so that the two dump valves – the one on the right activated by a toggle on the end of a neatly integrated cord, the other by pulling on the corrugated hose – are always in the right place and no air gets trapped. The bladder comes in one fixed size with a maximum buoyancy of 22kg.
The BC-style harness does not inflate but makes a very comfortable fit with its pre-adjusted cummerbund and overlying webbing and big pinch-clip. There's a sternum strap too, which stops the shoulder straps slipping apart.
Two sensibly strong crotch-straps ensure that everything stays where it should during acrobatic entries into the water or when you are descending headfirst.
There are four big stainless steel D-rings on the shoulder facings and another two at the waist. Two small zipped pockets almost complete the package, but we must not forget the excellent integrated weight system.
Weights are fitted in pouches which are inserted into specially designed compartments. The pouches are closed by velcro and held within their compartments by further large helpings of the same material.
It works, although I was able to stow a maximum of only 8kg of lead in block form.
However, I never felt likely to drop any weight inadvertently, and when I got back up to the platform of the dive boat I was able to pull out the pouches slickly and hand them up so that I could climb aboard unhindered.
You can opt for weight pouches to fit on the tank camband, which helps when using an aluminium cylinder. It is also possible, with the right accessories, to rig the Superhawk for twins.
In the water this BC was a pleasure to use. How often do I say that? I never felt compromised by any excess bulk, nor did the Superhawk and tank slip about. This BC moulded itself to me and became part of me.
When it came to dumping air, the downfall of many a BC, I never had to give the action a second thought. Air was fed in and dumped at will. My will.
The Scubapro Superhawk NT is available in sizes S, M, L and XL and costs £498.
- Scubapro UK 01256 8126
| PLUS | MINUS |
| + Ideal for tekkies and wannabes + Perfect buoyancy control + A well made item that fits perfectly | – Scubapro camband system not ideal when changing tank sizes |
Bio-technology or nature's way?- Apollo Bio fins
When I visited Mares, maker of the brand-leading Plana Avanti Quattro fin, in Genoa, the first question I was asked was whether I had tried the new Japanese Apollo Biofin. I deduced from this that Mares was at last concerned about having some competition.
Diver received the first pair of Biofins from the UK importer in time for our most recent fin comparison, and although I had some reservations about the weight and even the smell of them, they were up there with and better than most of the highest performers.
That first pair came in traditional black rubber. Then the importer sent me two other pairs, one in a more acceptable black silicone rubber and the other in a very bright, fish-frightening, day-glo yellow thermoplastic.
I chose to take the more conservative black ones with me on a dive trip. The novel split blades of the Apollo Biofins are labelled “Nature's Wing”.
The idea is to emulate the fins of fish, especially the sort of split tail-fin arrangement that is employed by those fast-swimming jackfish.
No one can doubt that fish are very good swimmers. However, from casual observation (and I make no claim to be a marine zoologist) fish seem to be built very differently from me.
For a start, their fins are joined directly to the muscular part of their bodies. Mine are attached to the end of long, some would say “lanky”, appendages called legs.
Fish have the ability to produce a very high-frequency finning action. My action is more akin to someone lazily paddling a canoe.
Apollo claims that the diver can use a fast flutter-kick and that, because this is always within the volume of water pushed through by the diver's body, there is no counter-resistance caused by water pressure against the back of a fin at the outer limit of its arc of movement. This should be reflected in more efficiency.
It's all very technical. I put the Biofins on, enjoyed the fact that the foot-pocket was capacious and comfortable, and pulled the straps tight with the help of the quick-release buckles. I entered the water and started finning in my usual way.
Scuba-diving is not a competitive sport; I wouldn't do it if it was. I hate coming last at anything.
I did employ the fast flutter-kick technique, but only when I wanted to accelerate. The Apollo Biofins seemed to work admirably, though I can't say I remember speeding effortlessly past other divers.
I used the fins for consecutive dives over a period of a week and thought little more about them, except when the two parts of a fin-blade would touch. This had the effect of making me think I had kicked something – always disconcerting for the conservation-minded diver.
That apart, the Biofins couldn't be faulted. I couldn't say that they were the best fins I have ever tried and I did get fed up with hearing continual comments that my fins had split, from people who should have known better
I think a diver using these would have more credibility if the price was inscribed in large white letters on each blade. They cost £130 per pair!
- Apollo Europe 01202 677128
| PLUS | MINUS |
| + High-performance fin that's equal to the best. | – Expensive and heavy – Split fin-blade design attracts ribald comments |
Bright idea proves tamper-proof- Kowalski Xenon lamp
Movie-makers long ago dispensed with the idea of using straight tungsten lights when working in daylight.
Tungsten gives a warm light, but now they use electronic lights called HMIs, which pulse in sync with the movie camera to give a radiance that matches that of daylight.
The Kowalski Xenon light is claimed to be of a similar type. It looks superficially like other Kowalski underwater lamps but its bright, white, even light makes it ideal for those who shoot video underwater. An alternative spot reflector is available for those who simply want a penetrating beam.
The importer was being optimistic when he told me that the light could be used instead of electronic flash for underwater photography.
This might be so if you are using extremely high-speed film but, bright as this Kowalski is, its light is nothing compared to the intensity (and colour temperature) of my Nikon flashgun.
It could be used for close-ups, but only if the animal you are trying to photograph is first treated to a pair of Raybans – or dipped in batter.
The importer also said to me: “No matter how you abuse them, Kowalski lamps never flood.” I cautioned him against saying that too often!
The torch recharges at any state of existing charge by means of a natty electronic (almost any voltage supply) charger. A light at the back of the lamp unit glows red or green to indicate whether it needs any more time.
A full charge from flat takes only three hours, then it automatically switches to pulse charging so as not to damage the ni-cads.
I took the Kowalski Xenon diving, and its bright, even beam lit up an otherwise colourless scene.
It took a little time for the lamp to reach full brightness; like an HMI it needs to warm up, so you must refrain from turning it on and off.
Alas, the example I had been given turned itself on and off, because it appeared that the lamp element had somehow shaken loose from its connector.
I might not be the most careful person when it comes to diving gear, but the lamp had travelled in my hand luggage and the only rough treatment it could have sustained was vibration from short boat rides.
Kowalski lamps are factory-sealed, and it is unnecessary to break them open to charge them. Two connectors from the charger unit plug on to the permanently exposed charging points at the back of the lamp.
In this way the lamp will never flood through incorrect reassembly after charging, and this is a positive strength of the unit.
However, in this case it was a positive weakness, because you need to remove some tiny grub screws (an Allen key is provided, but it is so small you will probably lose it before you get to need it) and nervously wrench the thing apart. It's not the thing to do when out at sea in a small boat.
Once the xenon lamp was reinserted in its connector it was up and working again – but I didn't trust myself to take such an expensive and borrowed item back under water!
So I took the Kowalski 1250-S-Speed diving instead. This is smaller, only 20cm x 7.5cm in diameter, and is more useful as an everyday diving light. It has all the Kowalski advantages and recharges similarly to the Xenon but costs half as much.
The Kowalski Xenon costs £680 and the 1250-S-Speed £340.
- Lighthouse Diving 01285 810814
| PLUS | MINUS |
| + No need to open it to charge it + Simple charging system + Even white light + Very bright | – Almost impossible to open to change the bulb in an emergency – Must not turn off and on more than is necessary |
Belt and braces for DFBs- Seaway braces
In 1979 my friend Mike had a magnificent 52in chest. Something happened in the intervening years. Now he has a 52in waist! He's a DFB.
Look around any popular dive site – it's a familiar state of affairs. I'm told it does not affect the ability to dive, only the ability to keep a weightbelt round the waist rather than finding it round the knees halfway through the dive.
An expensive weight harness could be the answer. Or this cheaper set of braces, used in conjunction with the weightbelt you bought before you drank all that beer!
It's a simple device – some 25mm webbing combined with a pinch-clip at the rear and adjustment buckles, like mini-weightbelt buckles, to aid in getting the weights on and off in an emergency.
The weightbelt is passed through the loops so that there are two at the front and one at the back. I found it best to put the belt on with the braces attached at the back. Pass them over either shoulder and clip them to the pre-positioned loops.
There is nothing quick about trying to locate a pinch-clip located in the small of the back – especially if you have the build that is likely to benefit from such a piece of equipment.
The idea is that you release the buckles at the front and the braces are pulled through under your BC and over your shoulders by the weight of the loaded belt.
Seaway Direct insists that the device has been extensively field-tested but I discovered that once all the other paraphernalia of diving is in place you have no chance of a quick release in an emergency. Does this matter? Probably not – for a correctly weighted diver with a BC and probably a drysuit.
I couldn't find a DFB prepared to be pictured in the braces so I settled for a slim Nicholas Cage look-alike instead!
The braces cost £21 including p&p.;
- Seaway Direct 0800 0748016
| PLUS | MINUS |
| + Good for those without a waist + Uses your existing weight system | – No real quick-release – Friends might call you a DFB! |
What a blast!- Buddy Blast
Have you ever found yourself bobbing at the surface with your safety sausage or flag, only to see the crew of the dive-boat steadfastly looking in the other direction?
It's irritating, isn't it? Especially if the wind is gradually increasing the intervening distance.
And it's funny how the most penetrating yell, the sort that would startle the referee at a Chelsea match, seems to be blown away on the slightest breeze or lost among the sounds of the waves.
What you need under these circumstances is a whistle. What you really need is a siren. Something that will let rip with as good a blast as the A4 Pacific Sir Nigel Gresley used to emit as it emerged from the Oakleigh Park tunnel.
Sir Nigel, incidentally, is the famous steam locomotive that can now be seen at Grossmont on the North Yorkshire Railway.
AP Valves is known for making BCs that are as substantial and long-lasting as one of Sir Nigel's engines. The new Buddy Blast should not be compared with the feeble attempts of other manufacturers to make something similar.
First impressions are of an item which, if it could be easily disconnected from your regulator, would best make an impression on those on the dive boat by being thrown at them. In fact you could easily sink the boat with a good shot.
But AP Valves forestalls such impetuousness by attaching the Blast semi-permanently to a medium-pressure hose, attached to your regulator in the normal way.
The other end comes in a variety of fittings to suit a happy marriage with a standard BC direct-feed control, or that of a Buddy AP200 or AutoAir.
There is no button to operate. Squeeze the two halves of the Blast's body together and it emits a screech that will shake the wax from your ears.
I recommend that you duck your head under the water when you do it, or you might not be able to hear the engine of the boat as it approaches.
The Buddy Blast costs £45.
- AP Valves 01326 561040
| PLUS | MINUS |
| + Very loud, attention-getting whistle | – As hefty as something designed by Sir Nigel Gresley |
Appeared in DIVER – January 2000
