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Can I get some opinions about "commercially available off the shelf" masks with gauge readers?
I thought I found one I like being the Tec2000 until I read it has a purge valve....LMAO.
I thought DR made one but unable to locate it on their site.
I have been using 1/2 round ground lenses glued in a Mares mask by an eye doc for years.
+1.75 or higher diopter
Thanks
Hiya Vince!
http://www.divegearexpress.com/essen...ionmasks.shtml
The purge valve is actualy an option that we need to install here at the shop if someone insists they want one.
Quote:
Originally Posted by OutlawCaver
XS scuba makes a great gauge reader. I have had 3 over the years and they
are not over priced.
www.scuba.com
I'm not sure which brand it was that I tried, but I found the bifocal inserts were not placed very well for me. As I recall they were too much in the middle of the horizontal line, and too far down, and required a weird position of my head to get my wrist gauges in the field of view from the corrective lens. I went back to putting prescription bifocals in my normal masks, expensive as that is.
I use my mask of choice and the glue in trident circular magnifiers, Trident part number FM99. The setup has worked well for me for the last 3 years or so. I have these lens magnifiers for both eyes on my primary and backup masks.
I tried the stick on half circle magnifiers once and the first time they got wet one lens floated away and the other was extremely crooked. In short I was far less than impressed. The FM99 lenses are relatively inexpensive and held in place with clear silicone rubber (sold separately), and I am not limited to a mask that does not fit my face well.
Mark Vlahos
Tried the removable DiveOptx for about 2 years and even tried putting them in permanently with silicone, but eventually went to the "ground" lenses.
I have been diving the SeaVision version for probably 10 years, and can't say enough good things about them. Service is great and they will send you spare mask parts as you need them and usually for no charge. I have the clear, pink & yellow lense versions, although primarily dive the clear ones. Always have one as backup in my leg pocket. I would say that if you have normal eyes and only need magnification to "read" they are excellent. However, if you don't, then the following might be helpful:
Pros: For OC they are great. The lense grinding areas are close to your nose, so looking at anything straight-on works fine. With OC you have greater head movement (left side to right side, for example) than with CC, so being able to move your head and mask/lense makes working off to the side fine, as well.
I've tried the smaller size mask from SeaVision, but ended up giving it to my sister-in-law as it was too small for my face.
Keep them clean and they don't fog up on OC. Would highly recommend them.
Cons: For CC they aren't so great, as your head movement is much more limited than when on OC. Since my primary controller is on my left arm I found when I started diving a rebreather that I couldn't look thru the left edge of my left lense (no magnification there) to see it. Since my right eye gets blurred from "floaters" in it, I couldn't look thru the left side of my right lense (where the magnification is - close to the nose) like most normal people can do to see across to the controller, either.
I contacted SeaVision and had them build a new mask that has full magnification across the entire bottom of both lenses. They did and the mask works great.
So, there are "blind" spots with the magnification being built in, ie, the outside edges of either lense. With the disposable magnification lense, like DiveOptx, you can apply them anywhere you want on each mask lense, so that's a plus for me. Or, you can have a mask built for you, like I did, to correct problems like mine.
I've got a couple of extra SeaVision masks if you would like to try or buy one. Send me a PM if interested.
BTY, if you pull up my "profile" you will see a picture of me in a wreck with the new SeaVision mask, with the magnification insert across the bottom of both lense.
Sherwood makes a mask with mag. lens placed at the bottom of the normal lens at a angle. This lets the diver see most of the chest area. I dive a rebreather most of the time and have no problem seeing my gauges.
Fred S.
I have the DR one that I got from Ed at Cave Adventurers over Christmas and love it, can not beleive I have been diving without it. :clapper
I got one of those on EBAY for 25 bucks new...Quote:
Originally Posted by SlowDiver
I have tried glued-in bifocals, dive-optx, contacts with gauge readers, glued-in gauge readers, ground prescription lenses, integrated readers....uuuh I think that's it. As you can see this is a problem I've been struggling with for years. Here is what I've learned FWIW. Dive OPTX suck. The optical quality of the plastic/rubber lenses is about what you might expect of the material. Hey, if it worked they'd make colored "jellies" glasses for kids and sell a million of 'em! Trident part number FM99 is (are??) Dive OPTX. The glued in optical quality readers are very good but damn near as expensive as the glued in bifocals....then I might as well keep the bifocals and look like an idiot but see great and not have to screw around with the contacts. The ground lenses had the reader part of the bifocal too low and I couldn't really see out of them as well as the glue in lenses. The Sherwood mask with the interated readers (the MAG 4 by the way) was very nice but the readers are only 1.75 and I need a 2.0 or 2.5. If they made that mask with a stronger reader I'd love it 'cause it fits very well. The XS Scuba model looks like the same mask. I bought a new MAG 4 off ebay and dove one cave with it. Like I said it isn't strong enough for me so if you're interested I'll give you a good deal on it.
Gary
My wife and I have both tried several of the options out there. We both found the DR Gauge Reader to be a great mask. And, our face sizes are quite different. Despite that, the mask works well for both of us...no leaks, good gauge reading.
I just let my dive buddy hold my computer about four feet from me.
When I'm solo, it's tougher. I just squint and guess.
You could put your computer and SPG on a stick - that way you could hold 'em four feet away by yourself. You'd have to put your SPG on a long hose, though.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
I got asked today why I stand so far back from my music stand...
Mike
It looks like the DiveRite Tec 2000 gauge reader is the same as the SeaVision 2000. Both look like they have the same specs. Wonder if SeaVision is making them for DR?
If you haven't seen an eye Doc I would advise one. I have had trouble reading gauges for some time now. I have been using a contact in my right eye for distance and leaving my left eye without one for close. At my last appointment I was given a new pair of contacts that correct my vision so I can see both distance and close with the new contacts. No more lenses on one eye, weird bifocal lenses in my mask. Worth a shot. Mine are Fantastic. :)
Oh, and BTW, if somebody wants a permanent solution that doesn't require lenses, I can read my Liquivision without my bifocals . . . :)
The Tec 2000 is a SeaVision mask, the DiveRite is a completely different mask.Quote:
Originally Posted by w ripley
I don't understand this post. Did you reverse SeaVision and DiveRite in this statement?Quote:
Originally Posted by mmcauliffe
Could you tell us what type of contact your new setup is? Either by brand/model or by description (e.g. multifocal...concentric or aspheric or monovision). I assume it's not monovision since that is basically what you were getting with 'one lense in'. Accuvue is marketing a Stereo Precision which is described as a blend of the concentric and aspheric.Quote:
Originally Posted by Cindy
I have been using the monovision successfully but that is beginning to yield marginal results. Could simply be time for Rx change. Problems with ring and aspheric are likely drawn out in the low light cave diving which changes the pupil size. Just curious if your new solution is related to this new stereo precision type product.
No....The Tec 2000 is a SeaVision maskQuote:
Originally Posted by scububa