"Best" cave mask

[Puttzer]

OK: I'm looking for a mask with the best possible vertical view, followed by lateral and then lower. And a good fit wouldn't be bad.:-)

It seems all the reviews I have found are full of lower view, lateral view but nothing about upper view (where the ceiling is)

I'd really appreciate hearing from all of you with your opinions.

[HomoErectus]

I always know where the celing is, I either hear it or feel it :roll: :roll:

[waterborne]

IMHO, the way to go would be a frameless mask. Last summer I bought a frameless mask, the popular design that most companies brand as their own. It sits much, much closer to my face than any framed mask ever has. My field of view has improved at least 50%. After using this new mask, I feel like my view is very restricted using my original mask. There are now newer styles of the frameless masks out that mimic the x-vision style of masks, with a drop-style bottom of the lense to further improve the field of view. Anyway, it's one thing for you to look into at least. Your mileage may vary though.

[jammer]

Well honestly I dive the Hydro-Optix mask and i love it. It looks funky as hell but I will be the 1st to highly recomend it as I have tried lots and paid lots for all types and the view you get with this is awesome and with no refraction at all if it looks like you can touch it guess what you can, no more guess work. I have bought lots and I have never ever liked one like this one. I wear contacts and with diving I haad to get prescription mask to be able to dive and they started getting exspensive so my friend let me test his out so I took up the offer and bought one the next day. The mask is what you would probably consider a High Volume mask and I must admitt it is not pretty to look at but I dive to be comfortable not to be a fashion statement. I was affraid to try it at 1st cause of the High Volume but it turned out to be fine. I have dove Devils Ear, Devil's Eye, Little River, And Telford with it and I have never had a problem with it trying to pull off the mask or anything as a matter of fact it is better in High Flow systems than any other mask I have used. And man oh man what a field of view. Now if you do not wear glasses or you do not have an Astigmatism you probably won't want to try it cause you have to wear a Neg- 5 pair of contacts but if your sight is inpaired then they are awesome.

Check them out at http://www.hydrooptix.com/

[Tegg]

This is a great line... off of the Hydro Optix site... :-D

Flat Masks Block over
75% of Your Vision
Your flat scuba mask relies
on 1,000-year-old technology.
Glaucoma patients on full
disability have better in-air
vision than what divers experience
underwater with flat diving masks.



Guess I better apply for disability... :wink:

[Tegg]

BTW... if you have 20/20 vision, those HydroOptix masks require you to wear contact lenses...

um, no thanks... I'll stick to my low volume "flat mask"... 8)

[normblitch]

BTW... if you have 20/20 vision, those HydroOptix masks require you to wear contact lenses...

um, no thanks... I'll stick to my low volume "flat mask"... 8)

While on the subject of Masks, just what is the attraction of "low volumn styles"...I can see their application in extreme Free Diving; less lung gas to equalize squeeze...

All Tech gear rooted in the Hogarthian tradition is (usually) easily fathomed (excuse Pun) as to reasoning, but I've never seen a logic-based argument for the minimal mask...Is it the lower x-section in high flow stuff?

FWIW, my first favorive mask in the early '80's was the Dacor "drooping dogbone"...tres' rakish; looked like the wearer had just arrived on a HALO drop from a Herkie at FL 300...leaked like a sieve, but I thought I looked MARVELOUS!

Norm in Jax
(having come from the time in which Silicon Masks were marketed and used BEFORE we discovered SoftScrub)

[ARY]

I have never had a problem with it trying to pull off the mask or anything as a matter of fact it is better in High Flow systems than any other mask I have used. And man oh man what a field of view.

Well this is very intriguing although for high flow i would test it in Manatees or Alexander since LR is just a breeze not a real wind. Another thing is its size looks kinda bulky? And when some passage looks 34% larger than it is in reality it calms down my stress so my thumb stays in fist not sticking out early :-) I would like to try this product though.

For those of us who need glasses classic DR, OMS or similar design two window low volume mask is the best IMHO. One reason: correction lenses are safer than contacts, the last can be washed out by accident (mentioned high flow). Also aging makes a need to have magnifying pieces to see instruments-another reason for 2-windows. I personally stick for a while with Oceanic Shadow frameless (the only mask or backup when doing solo) and wear contacts. It's only because of cost to install correction lenses in my other mask (insurance covers my contacts but for some reason they don't pay for mask lenses :-) ). After i will have lenses installed my Shadow will serve as a good backup mask since it is very compact.

[OFG-1]

Richard, I prefer this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&category=4103&item=3936464217

[normblitch]

I have never had a problem with it trying to pull off the mask or anything as a matter of fact it is better in High Flow systems than any other mask I have used. And man oh man what a field of view.

Well this is very intriguing although for high flow i would test it in Manatees or Alexander since LR is just a breeze not a real wind. Another thing is its size looks kinda bulky? And when some passage looks 34% larger than it is in reality it calms down my stress so my thumb stays in fist not sticking out early :-) I would like to try this product though.

For those of us who need glasses classic DR, OMS or similar design two window low volume mask is the best IMHO. One reason: correction lenses are safer than contacts, the last can be washed out by accident (mentioned high flow). Also aging makes a need to have magnifying pieces to see instruments-another reason for 2-windows. I personally stick for a while with Oceanic Shadow frameless (the only mask or backup when doing solo) and wear contacts. It's only because of cost to install correction lenses in my other mask (insurance covers my contacts but for some reason they don't pay for mask lenses :-) ). After i will have lenses installed my Shadow will serve as a good backup mask since it is very compact.

When I started the re-cert trail on '03, I realized that I had "run out of Arm" visually...Although I've worn glasses since '58, UW the refractive index had bailed out my vision for gauges and such. During OW re-cert, I rapidly found out I could not read actual gauge numbers, and my Vyper was an expensive wrist charm...when I first housed my 5050, my composition style was to put the bright blur on a Golden Third sweet-spot against a dark blur, and fix framing with PhotoShop topside...

Asking around the cognescienti in Jax, I was refered to a DYNAMITE Optician who, it turned out, actually worked out of my Opthamologist's office...pricey, but this dude would not fit me until I brought in my mask and housing...the inserts are bifocal in the sense that there is a whole lens correction, AND a second 'script smaller and lower SPECIFICALLY for gauge and camera use...my, oh MY, the UW world looks better NOW!

Norm

[crazyduck]

Mask are a very personal choice for diving and its one of those things that if it makes you happy then hey great.

At the last DEMA I meet up with this company.
http://www.prescriptiondivemasks.com/
Prescription Dive Masks 1-800-538-2878
I thought that they were GREAT! I saw their product at their booth and they had tons of masks. They will do single lens masks, double lens masks, near sighted scripts and the rest. There pricing is very good compared to the industry as a whole. I had a buddy and OW instructor give them a try and was VERY pleased.

Andrew

[FW]

I just got a transparent skirt version of the mask I have been using for years. It does fine, until someone shines a light onto the side of my face, then I am blinded.

Another issue is fit. It doesn't do much good to get a mask that everyone recommends, if it leaks :(

[Stu]

Mask choice is completely personal IMO. Given that you need to look where your light is pointing in cave diving anyway, I find that it's easy to get used to looking up to look at the ceiling. Mask skirt shouldn't make any difference at all to that.

Naturally, I find that one with a mirror is best so I can see if my valves are leaking....

[jammer]

Well as I said I seen the mask and said no thanks and was not even interested in trying it but after I took my contacts out and tried it I was very impressed. I know it is a personal option to wear what you want and all but unless you try it you will never understand what is does or what you gain from wearing it. Like I said I am not trying to sell you on it I was just saying is was a great mask. And yes I have dove manatee springs with it also and I like it better than any other mask I have used in high flow.

[Moonfuzzy]

I like the 'big eye' masks, they offer a larger field of view than standard masks do. I also prefer the black skirts - for a similar reason to FW - the clear skirts just show me unrecognizable light images off to the edges and I found them distracting... and they were just bad if someone shined their light near you ; )

[normblitch]

I like the 'big eye' masks, they offer a larger field of view than standard masks do. I also prefer the black skirts - for a similar reason to FW - the clear skirts just show me unrecognizable light images off to the edges and I found them distracting... and they were just bad if someone shined their light near you ; )

(in the OW community) the advent of white/clear silicon masks in the '80's mitigated the mild claustrophobia (in maybe 10% of beginners) caused by the tunnel vision effect of opaque sides/skirts in the then high volumn designs...

Norm

[Jordan]

I like the 'big eye' masks, they offer a larger field of view than standard masks do. I also prefer the black skirts - for a similar reason to FW - the clear skirts just show me unrecognizable light images off to the edges and I found them distracting... and they were just bad if someone shined their light near you ; )

I found that with the big eye mask, it was too hard to see ahead/up when positioned in proper trim. My poor neck. It was OK for seeing down (gauges, floor). I'm afraid I'd miss every dome with the big eye - unless I swam upside down (which I have been practicing lately in my sidemount rig).

[Moonfuzzy]

I'm afraid I'd miss every dome with the big eye - unless I swam upside down (which I have been practicing lately in my sidemount rig).

I guess that is how I deal with it - I often turn onto my back to look at the ceilings.. but I did that with me old masks also ; )

[Puttzer]

OK: I'm looking for a mask with the best possible vertical view, followed by lateral and then lower. And a good fit wouldn't be bad.:-)

It seems all the reviews I have found are full of lower view, lateral view but nothing about upper view (where the ceiling is)

I'd really appreciate hearing from all of you with your opinions.

And the answer is?

For me, it turned out to be the newest Dive Rite mask, ES125. Upward vision better that Mythos and the best I've had yet, lateral better than Mundial, my usual cave mask. And as comfortable on my face as any mask I've worn.