May 1999

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.

Back in the driving seat

• Back in the driving seat - Apeks TX100 reg
• At last - the Swiss Army dive knife - Diva knife
• Wighted to perfection - Cressi-Sub Safety 104 BC
• Mr Hires bright idea - Dive Rite Wreck Light
• Tears of a clown - Clown Diver Safety Board

It seems a very long time since I first tried a regulator from the British manufacturer Apeks. Back in the late '80s I didn't really go for what it produced, but then the company seemed to get a sudden injection of design ideas, and I was given a new model, a Reflex T50, to try.
To my surprise, that regulator was so good that we used it exclusively while making the second Diver video.
In the early '90s Apeks produced the T50D. Deciding that I would really put this one to the test, I equipped it with four second stages and asked four divers to breathe off it simultaneously as they descended a line. I wanted to find at which depth each diver in turn had to return to his or her own regulator, until only one diver was left.
We were all amazed. The Apeks regulator kept delivering air to all four divers better than each individual's own regulator could, well beyond the 50m limit.
Remember, this was at a time when the danger of "beating the valve" (demanding more air than it could give) was still enshrined in British diving teaching.
Astutely, Apeks used the Diver test report in its advertising, and the rest, as they say, is history. The Apeks T50D immediately became one of the foremost regulators in the British diving marketplace.
Since then the company has gone from strength to strength with regulators like the TX40 and TX50, each of which performed consistently well in Diver's regulator comparison tests, which evolved from that first experiment with the four divers on a line.
Then, at the beginning of last year, we embarked on another regulator comparison. Apeks had just produced a few initial examples of the TX100, its new top-flight model, and it sent us an example together with a less-expensive TX40.
To our disappointment, the TX100, although good, proved to be a poorer performer than its cheaper sibling the TX40 during the in-water trials. Before we got to complete the tests with the ANSTI machine, we received a fax from Apeks stating that there was a defect in the example it had sent us, and would it be possible to substitute another?
We decided that to be fair to the other regulators involved in the tests we would stay with the example we had, but include Apeks' disclaimer in our report. As the boss of Apeks later said to me, in the company's haste to get a model out in time for our test, it had shot itself in the foot.
It's refreshing to encounter such a philosophy when discussing the results of our tests with importers and manufacturers who might have been disappointed in them, and it probably goes some way to explaining the Apeks success story.
Now, I have tried a proper production-run version of the TX100. It has proved once again to be one of the easiest breathes I have come across, with a total work of breathing of around one joule/litre, as deep as I will ever want to go.
When I found myself swimming through some caverns with a lot of tidal flow coming the other way, I had to work hard, preferring not to pull myself along the bottom because of all the scorpionfish and rays basking in the flow. I usually find that I can control the air-flow simply by adjusting how hard I pull on the valve - after all, it is a "demand" valve - but in this case the breathe was so easy that I even contemplated turning up the cracking pressure with the BRA knob.
This design feature is incorporated in most top-of-the-range regulators and is usually derided by yours truly. After all, why would anyone want to increase the effort of breathing? How silly!
The first stage is a dry-sealed diaphragm design with four medium-pressure and two high-pressure ports. Hoses route off in a convenient manner. It is finished in an attractive satin chrome.
The second stage does not look very pretty and seems quite large compared with those of some other makes now appearing in the shops. However, it is lightweight, feels unobtrusive in the mouth and exhaled bubbles did not interfere with my vision. Apeks offers either a standard or Comfobite mouthpiece option to cater for all tastes.
There is the usual venturi +/- switch which can disrupt the airflow to avoid annoying free-flows when first entering the water. There is also a breathing-resistance adjustment which will alter the effort needed to crack open the valve and inhale.
This is one of the best-performing regulators you can buy. The dry-sealed design is ideal for use in our colder inland waters, and the heat-exchanger incorporated in the second stage should protect it from freezing, a problem encouraged by high levels of air flow.
The TX100 first stage comes with a spare Viton tank O-ring attached to its dust cap, for use with ordinary mixes of nitrox. If you want to use a TX100 with higher levels of oxygen in your breathing mix (up to 100 per cent), Apeks can supply a version of the TX100 with a distinctive yellow and green second-stage front, assembled in a purpose-built oxygen clean room using safe components and lubricants.
Apeks was recently acquired by Aqua-Lung. It is no surprise to hear that other regulators from the Aqua-Lung range will now be made in Apeks' big, modern new factory in Blackburn, Lancashire.
It's good to hear of a British success story. Apeks claims that its regulators are now used by more UK divers than any other make, and they are marketed under the Zeagle brand in the USA.
The Apeks TX100 in the form tested costs £339.

Apeks Marine Equipment 01254 692200

PLUS	MINUS
+ Top performer + British-made dry-sealed design	- Old-fashioned-looking second stage

At last - the Swiss Army dive knife
It all started with those hardhat divers, fed from the surface and tethered with a stout rope. In case the rope became tangled, they carried a knife the size of a bread saw with which to cut it in an emergency.
Later, scuba divers took to carrying similarly large knives. This had become part of the diving tradition. Good for slicing a hemp rope, these weapons were of little use when it came to cutting fishing net or monofilament line. A pair of kitchen scissors were much more appropriate - but which macho diver would be seen entering the water with a pair of scissors strapped to his thigh?
At last Markat has entered the retail market with a tool that might satisfy a leisure diver's every need. The Diva knife has a bayonet-length blade (15cm) with a point that would frighten a Gurkha; a saw edge that could hack the head off a horse; a line-cutter that might save your life if you got caught in monofilament; and, unclip its handles to provide a secateurs action, which I found easily chomped its way through discarded fishing net. The handles even contain a useful set of pliers.
The Diva has a double-action retaining clip to keep it safe in its holster until the moment you want it, and a hole for a lanyard if you still fear losing it.
Made from 420 stainless steel, this tool can be honed to eye-surgery levels of keenness, and seems unlikely to snap when used in a cavalier and uncompromising manner. As such it is not completely rust-resistant. The one I tried had rust spots after only a week in tropical salt-water conditions.
However, it cleaned up easily, and a little care and attention and a certain amount of oil will keep it as new for many years. Keep a packet of Band-Aids nearby, and don't get caught by the police taking it anywhere but on a diving trip!
The price is £43.

Markat 01935 815424

PLUS	MINUS
+ Multiple cutting abilities + Secure quick-release holster	- Will rust if not cleaned and oiled

Weighted to perfection
A competent diver should be able to control his buoyancy with nothing more than an upturned plastic carrier bag, injecting small amounts of air into it to match his average lung volume until he can hover neutrally in the water.
Because this is not the most convenient way to do it, we use adjustable buoyancy life-jackets, buoyancy compensators, advanced diving vests or wings to get the same effect. Then we get choosy about where this buoyancy air is positioned. It's all about trim.
As a rule, ABLJs put the air at the chest and around the neck to give a face-up, head-supported attitude at the surface. BCs put it at the waist to give upright support at the surface combined with a more comfortable horizontal attitude when swimming underwater. Wings give the best buoyancy control for swimming underwater, though they sometimes have a tendency to tip the upper body forwards at the surface.
Of course, it isn't just down to the buoyancy-control device. Weighty items such as cylinders and lead alter our trim. So some equipment manufacturers are now providing us with products that allow us to adjust where we carry the weight.
The Cressi-sub Safety 104 is a top-quality, traditional-looking BC that has four sets of integrated-weight pockets to allow the user to do just that. Two are at the front, the others positioned high on either side of the cylinder at the back.
The rear weights slot into pockets, while those at the front are located in zipped pouches and inserted in pockets which are closed by velcro and a press-stud. The quick-release mechanism takes the form of a simple fastex clip and buckle. This allows easy removal of the weights easily once out of the water, so that the whole set does not fall forwards during upright stowage of the cylinder, a problem with many BCs with integrated weights.
I was not sure how readily one could shed the weights in the water, should one want to, though I guess that dropping one set at one side only would have the desired effect.
I had been suitably impressed by the Safety 102 when I tried it, and the 104 has gone further in developing an item that gives you armchair comfort at the surface when fully inflated. It has the same stretchy waist-strap, allowing the air-cell to expand outwards without causing any torso squeeze. The cummerbund is also separate from the air-cell, which goes a long way to keeping things more comfortable. It has the usual zipped pocket for small valuables.
The Safety 104 has a hard backpack with a single-tank camband, but this comes with two height options to accommodate the different trim characteristics of either aluminium or steel cylinders. It also has a crotch strap with a novel split fastex buckle so that it is attached to both sides of the lower front of the BC. This was useless! The velcro attachments just pulled away under load, but even without it there is no chance of this BC riding up and, refreshingly, it really does become part of you.
The two large gusseted front pockets have inverted zips, and you can get things in and out of them easily under water. Seven stainless steel D-rings make it easy to stow gear ready for use.
A single bag design made from tough Cordura 1000 holds the air, and this is fed in by means of a nice-looking but simply designed direct-feed mechanism. I never had any problem pressing the right button, even when I first used the Safety 104 and it was unfamiliar.
Then it was a question of jettisoning air. This is the area where so many BC and wing designs let me down. In this case I found that a tug on the corrugated hose was enough. There was no question of the air-cell distorting and leaving air in the other side, but if it had, an instant solution was to hand. Cressi provides a pull-cord dump with its cord integrated into the front facing of the right shoulder strap and a toggle positioned parallel to the direct-feed control on the other shoulder.
And if I found myself needing to dump air when upside-down, another valve at the bottom of the bag has a little velcro fastening that stops its toggle getting lost up inside the BC.
This BC affords the surface support of a conventional jacket and, with thoughtful positioning of weights and camband, the buoyancy feels almost as perfectly positioned as with a wing underwater.
The Safety 104 costs £345 including optional weight pockets, and comes in sizes S, M, L and XL.

Cressi-sub 01484 310130

PLUS	MINUS
+ Almost as good as a wing + Intelligently designed integrated weights system + No torso squeeze	- Not a wing! - Crotch strap ineffective

Mr Hires' bright idea
Things that look attractive in the dive shop can sometimes disappoint in the water. Lamar Hires is a well-known US cave diver who has turned his hand to making and selling diving equipment. Because its design is based on actual diving experience, his stuff tends to work rather well.
The Dive Rite Wreck Light is a simple lamphead and umbilical attached to a battery pack. It can be tank-mounted by threading the BC camband through a convenient slot, or hooked onto a couple of suitably placed D-rings on a tech-style harness.
This is a mini-version of a normally bulky style of lamp, so it should attract overseas travellers. The lamphead measures a mere 12 x 5cm and the battery pack 23 x 9cm.
A 20W quartz halogen lamp gives a burntime of around an hour, which compares with larger lamps of brighter output.
The pvc battery canister is sealed by means of two cammed latches that cause the lid to bear down on a large, loose O-ring. Inside is a sealed lead-acid rather than a ni-cad battery. Its mains charger unit automatically switches from bulk charge to trickle charge, so theoretically you can safely top it up without much worry between dives. A full charge took around 14 hours.
My first impression on opening the canister was of wasted space. However, it seems that clever Mr Hires has left this airspace to neutralise the buoyancy of the unit.
Mounting the unit with the top downwards made it easy to follow the lamp lead to the switch, itself a sealed unit which protects it from igniting gases that might be given off by the battery. To recharge the battery you simply remove it, leaving the canister mounted.
The lamphead is made of tough aluminium with a military-spec coating. I accidentally found it resisted damage from being dropped, but wished there was somewhere to fit a lanyard.
It proved convenient to stow the lamphead in my BC pocket. Inadvertently switched on while stowed overnight, it was insufficiently hot to do any damage. Don't try this at home!
The Dive Rite Wreck Light is a practical and straightforward product that lives up to its promise.
It is competitively priced at £199.

Sea & Sea 01803 663012

PLUS	MINUS
+ Lightweight for its type + Proven practicality + Tough	- No lanyard fixing point

Tears of a clown
The Clown Diver Safety Board is the sort of thing Australian dive-boat skippers will clamour to buy - if, that is, we are to believe those media stories that suggest they make a habit of leaving divers behind when they head for home.
The idea of the board is that each diver has a tally bearing his or her name, level of certification and number. There is also space for the diver to write (with a wax pencil) the time in, maximum depth and dive-time expected.
On the back you include a phone number for next of kin, and there is a space headed "Medical details". While the diver is diving, his tally is inserted in the board alongside his dive plan - if it is there, it means that the diver is not.
The tallies come in a selection of colours depending on certification level. There is a clip to attach them to a BC when the owner is not diving.
The board sent to us was the small four-diver job - there is also a 12-diver version - but it was still a substantial affair, with two layers of perspex screwed to what looked like a half-inch slab of medium-density fibreboard (MDF). Not the sort of thing you can stick in your dive bag and forget.
Keeping track of four divers on a RIB by eye alone should, one might think, be reasonably straightforward. Why not just count 'em out and count 'em back again? It is when you have 20 divers boarding and rapidly dispersing about a larger vessel that mistakes can be made.
The 12-diver version could be a useful fixture on the aft deck of a commercial hardboat, but would probably be too cumbersome on a RIB. And inland sites or those places that allow unlimited day and night shore diving could make use of a similar system.
The smaller Clown Diver Safety Board looks to be a rather over-engineered solution to a simple problem - and it's not cheap.
It costs £65, and the bigger one £130, but on top of that you have to pay £14 per boat tally and £9 per BC tally!

Clown Products 0976 933939

PLUS	MINUS
+ Better than soggy piece of paper	- smaller version only slightly better than soggy piece of paper - £157 just to cover four divers!

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Appeared in DIVER - May 1999

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