Gauge reader masks

[OutlawCaver]

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

[Line Squirrel]

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.

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

[darkdiver211]

XS scuba makes a great gauge reader. I have had 3 over the years and they
are not over priced.
www.scuba.com

[LCF]

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.

[Mark Vlahos]

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

[w ripley]

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.

[w ripley]

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.

[SlowDiver]

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.

[Chance06]

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.

[BRC]

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 got one of those on EBAY for 25 bucks new...