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A LONG TIME AGO, so long ago that I prefer not to think how long it was, I bought my first new vehicle. At the time I was considering a Renault 4 van. A passing acquaintance at that time, a chap called Michael Green, advised me not to waste my money, and to get a Rolls-Royce. I thanked him for his advice and pursued my original idea. Today, I am a diving journalist and he has just given up the chairmanship of Carlton Communications.
You think small and you stay small! The people at Atomic Aquatics have taken the grander view on how to run their business. Instead of quick profits from products made down to a price, they entered the marketplace with a top-spec regulator, the all-titanium Atomic T1.
It was so good that everyone wanted one, but so expensive that few could afford to buy it. But it got them a reputation, and after proving what they could do with titanium, they went on to do the same thing with Monel and stainless steel, and produced the Atomic M1 for use with nitrox.
It virtually cleaned up the opposition in terms of desirability during Diver's last comparative top-of-the-range regulator test.
The key to the success of the Atomic brand seems to be not to make things particularly different but to make them better. Naturally, that comes with a price premium. I am particularly fond of reminding people that companies such as Rolex did not suffer at the time of the Japanese quartz-watch revolution, when many lesser traditional Swiss watch manufacturers went under.
That's because there will always be a buyer for a better product, and that long-term business view is paying off for both Rolex and Atomic. Atomic claims that the past 12 months has seen its business boom, and the Atomic B2 has now been added to the product line-up.
The B2 is a second-generation design which combines a new second stage that has an all-titanium mechanism with the previously available B1 chromed-brass and 316 stainless-steel first stage.
At first glance the Atomic first stage looks superficially "old Scubapro", with its tall turret flow-through piston-type design, but even the no-expense-spared quality of the chroming gives away the difference.
Inside, there is a unique high-pressure piston-seal system that is self-lubricating and virtually leak-free. It is supplied ready for use with nitrox mixes up to 40% and is rated for 300 bar use, provided you specify the appropriate DIN connection.
The compact second stage has a thoughtfully shaped exhaust-T that is wide enough to push exhaled air past and away from your mask. The soft front shroud allows access to the purge, and no doubt proud owners will be constantly unscrewing the front to show off the quality of the internal components to their friends.
Because high-performance regulators are often unstable, with a tendency to free-flow easily, some other manufacturers add venturi± switches and other controls so that the divers can stabilise them if they need to.
Atomic has designed in a pressure-sensitive aerofoil positioned within the airflow that automatically adjusts as the regulator is taken deeper, thus adjusting performance and stability of the regulator to suit. In effect, it tunes itself to match conditions.
Another detail that can make all the difference to your satisfaction levels is the way the seat in the second-stage poppet valve of the B2, in common with its siblings, makes contact with the valve orifice only when the regulator is pressurised.
Other regulators leave the poppet permanently positioned up against the hard edge of the orifice and held there by the spring. This has the effect of wearing a groove and can often explain why a regulator, put away in perfect working order at the end of a season, can leak air when you get it out again a few months later.
There is a neatly designed breathing-resistance adjustment knob which can be used to increase the cracking-pressure needed to pull open the valve - or you could just inhale more gently.
With so much in common, what is the advantage of the B2 over other Atomic models? Using titanium in parts of the second stage makes it extremely lightweight in the mouth, and corrosion-free. The lower gas pressures present in a second stage mean that it is still suitable for use with nitrox up to 40%.
Another very visible innovation is the highly polished stainless-steel swivel-joint positioned in-line where the hose meets the second stage. This idea is not new, but in the past such swivel-joints have tended to ruin a regulator's performance.
This one is much bulkier in outward appearance than those that I have seen previously and I am assured that it would not impede the air-flow.
I am inclined to believe this assurance. I am not an ANSTI machine, but I could detect no loss of performance while under water, whereas I certainly could the last time I tried a lesser version on another brand of regulator.
The swivel joint allows the hose to take a natural curve without dragging the regulator mouthpiece from your grip. Not that the beautifully designed mouthpiece is difficult to hold on to. Atomic has even designed its own, which seems to be just that bit nicer than any other manufacturer's.
Only lash out on this purchase if you are serious about diving, and also prepared to lash out on getting to places where the water is colder than a flooded slate quarry in winter! Atomic owners can afford that.
Without doing a side-by-side comparison with any other regulator, it is difficult to judge exactly how good the Atomic B2 is.
However, it is one of the best I have used in terms of comfort and general ease of breathing. It seemed to give me a dry breathe at all angles, even when I was completely inverted, and exhaled bubbles were always nicely routed away from my face.
The only fault I could detect was a faint whistling emitting at times from the first stage.
I never found this regulator wanting in the amount it could supply, yet it was discreet and subtle in its delivery. There were no sudden and dramatic rushes of air - it flowed. It was sublime.
Added to the fact that it is a jewel in the way it is made, any purchaser is likely to be a proud and long-time owner. Atomic is confident. It offers a life-time warranty to the original purchaser. Think big.
Get it to special order and expect to pay around £450.
Atomic Aquatics, 001714 375 1433, www.atomicaquatics.com
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+ One of the very best in almost every way
+ Original buyer's lifetime manufacturer's warranty
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- Expensive
- Not intended for use in cold fresh water
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A mask is a mask is a mask, right? Well nearly. Most masks originate in Taiwan, but some are still made by the manufacturer whose name is on the frame. And some even have a unique selling proposition.
The Cressi Big Eye became very popular with the diving public when the Italian manufacturer came up with a low-volume design that used large lenses tilted at an angle, so that the diver got a better downward view of equipment mounted in the chest area. It seemed that every other manufacturer then went back to the drawing board to come up with something that was supposed to be as good but, presumably, did not infringe Cressi's patent.
Still trying to stay ahead of the pack, Cressi has redesigned the Big Eye and come up with what is now called the Matrix. It works in exactly the same way but Cressi has managed to shave a bit more off the internal volume by altering the design of the silicone skirt, and lightened it by making the frame slimmer.
New buckles make the thing sit on your face comfortably, no matter in which position you place the strap at the back of your head.
I cannot pretend to be too excited about the Matrix. It is not radical in the way that the Big Eye was. However, it is an improvement on the original, a fine honing of that design, and as such is to be welcomed.
So don't say Big Eye, say Matrix. It's a good mask.
The Cressi Matrix mask is available in five colours and costs £50.
Cressi-sub 01484 310130, www.cressi-sub.net
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+ Lower volume than the Big Eye
+ Comfortable fit
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It was not the coldest of February days, in fact it was quite balmy. The water at Stoney Cove was as clear as I have ever seen it and as warm as a bath - a bath drawn by an Eskimo and left outside all night to chill. I was wearing a drysuit borrowed from Typhoon's bull-necked export manager. It fitted me perfectly - apart from the neck seal.
People argue about the merits of auto-dumps versus cuff-dumps. I had a neck-dump. As long as I stayed with my head at the lowest point of my body I stayed dry, but that was impractical. So whenever I looked up to see where I was going, the air from my suit gushed out and water gushed in.
I swam over to the wreck of the Stanegarth and some distance beyond before boredom overtook me. We were about 20 minutes into the dive. I signalled to my buddies that I was going back and they followed. I never had to worry about dumping air. My gradual ascent seemed to be accompanied by as many bubbles from my neck as from my regulator's exhaust valve. After 40 minutes I was so wet that my underwear was chafing and finning was uncomfortable. It was time to get out.
Was I cold? Well, no. I was wearing Typhoon's new IceBreaker electrically heated vest beneath my undersuit, and my test revealed that it will probably work as well with a wetsuit!
In fact I was so warm that I wished I'd had the foresight to put some PG Tips inside my suit. They would have brewed nicely by the time I got out and, instead of tipping half the Cove onto its carpark, we could have all had a nice hot cuppa!
I've tried electrically heated undersuits before. They have proved comfortable and effective but as they needed the intelligence of a micro-processor always proved beyond the financial reach of the leisure diver.
Hi-tech meant high retail price but the IceBreaker is hi-tech in design but low-tech in operation. It uses a flexible intelligent polymer containing thousands of conductive carbon particle chains in panels within a neoprene vest which, with the aid of Velcro-covered sections, can be adjusted to fit almost anyone.
You wear the Icebreaker under your drysuit undersuit and over a cotton T-shirt.
Power is supplied as a rapid pulse. The designer promised that it could be completely soaked and, as it contained no electrical components, would still work safely. Well, I proved that correct!
The current flows and it gets warm. It's that simple. It uses so little power to heat up that a relatively small 4A/h lithium-iron battery is used. That holds enough charge for around 70 minutes and more.
"Ah," I hear you tek divers say, "I dive for much longer than that." Well you don't switch it on until the last part of your dive, or you carry more battery power.
"Well, what if I leave it on and it burns me?" That's where the rocket-science comes in. Loading the polymer at the heart of the heating component with conductive particles enhances its conductive properties and results in the element exhibiting a positive temperature coefficient when heated. A characteristic of the material is that its resistance varies according to its temperature in a non-linear way.
Once the material reaches a certain temperature, it self-regulates. The conductive particle chains in the suit vibrate when the current flows. They get warm but the hi-tech material that forms the heating element will not exceed 42°C. That's warm, but not warm enough to cause discomfort. So my tea would have been tepid!
With no thermostat, how do you turn it on and off? You must adapt your drysuit by punching a 13mm hole through its outer fabric to fit the electrical connection. On the inside of this waterproof bulkhead connector is a lead and plug that connects to the heated vest's lead. On the outer side is a two-pin (plus guide-pin) waterproof connector. Mount the battery-pack where you wish and feed its lead to this. Connect when you get cold. Disconnect if you feel too warm.
The wet-connector comes with a blanking plug-end to the battery lead to stop unwanted discharge through the water over the longer periods when it may not be connected. The battery-pack is small enough to fit a BC pocket. The best place to fit the bulkhead connector is on a thigh, as you can see it and get to it easily. My borrowed test drysuit had it mounted on the chest, which meant stripping away the cummerbund of my BC to find it. Not so convenient, but in the circumstances I preferred to leave the heating on.
So 10 out of 10 to Typhoon for the IceBreaker heated vest but 0 out of 10 for not supplying a suitable drysuit with which to try it. I can't wait to try it again but with a suit that will keep me dry as well as warm.
There will be many applications for this product outside diving. People may soon get in the habit of saying to those who work outside in winter, "Are you pleased to see me, or is that just a battery-pack in your pocket?"
The Icebreaker retails for around £499, including battery-pack, connection kit and charger.
Typhoon International 01642 486104
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+ An affordable heating system
+ Proved to be safe when wet
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- You need to turn it on and off manually to suit
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Brian is a careful man. He is a safety advisor on gas installations in the North Sea and goes diving during his weeks off. He may live south of the Humber but he exhibits the sort of carefulness in his purchasing decisions often associated with those who live to the north of that river.
I let him borrow the expensive pair of Apollo Biofin XTs I was using during a Red Sea trip. They were fitted with optional stainless-steel sprung fin-straps.
Why am I telling you this? Because Brian wanted me to sell him the fins after he had used them. In fact, he was quite persistent. But then, they weren't mine to sell; neither would I have swapped them for money if they were. They've become my favourites, too.
We both agreed that they gave less stress on our leg muscles because we felt we were getting more performance for less effort. They also look likely to last for a very long time. Biofins are tough and they are fitted with these straps, which make other fins look positively temporary! The Apollos have cleaned up consistently in our past three fin comparison tests and they seem to be as tough as those old rubber Jet-fins all we dinosaur divers once possessed. The addition of these almost indestructible fin-straps simply adds icing to that particular cake.
They are fitted to the fins by means of stainless-steel bolts through two holes drilled on each side. There are spring-holder bases, strap-plates and top covers to spread the load. Washers stop the bolts from chafing the rubber. All the fittings are stainless steel, too.
The springs pass through thick rubber heel-protectors, which in turn have designed-in loops to give you something on which to tug when pulling them over your heel.
The whole thing makes for a very workmanlike job, and presumably these spring-straps can be fitted to a wide range of other fins, too.
In use, you simply pull them over your heels and forget about them. No more embarrassing moments sitting in the boat and waiting to go over the side while holding a short length of broken rubber helplessly in your hand. The only thing likely to break is the rubber loop with which you pull them on because, of course, the rubber tends to stretch more than the metal.
During finning, I found that the pressure of the springs pushed my boots further into the foot-pocket of the fins, so that they really felt like extensions of my legs. The addition of these straps leaves me in no doubt that these are my favourite fins to date. That is, until something better comes along!
The Apollo stainless-steel Spring Straps cost £54.95.
CJ Evans International 01202680533
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- Only the additional cost
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