Abbo

The subject of Wikis has come up before, and I never really understood why they have not caught on at RBW. One place they might really be useful is as a repositary of basic information to compare between different rebreathers, perhaps with the onus on manufacturers to provide basic factual information?

Chosing a rebreather is a minefield: when you first try them you're going to feel unsafe - because you are: you're untrained. It's nothing to do with the model you're test-driving, it's just because you're test-driving before you pass your driving test. That training is expensive and unit-specific. You're not going to feel at home on a unit till you own it and adapt it: tightening and cutting off straps, adding surgical tube and snap links - and most importantly by buying BOVs and other such tools. By that time you've sunk a load of money and time. But people come on RBW asking "which is the best rebreather". The answer, of course, is "it's a tool: there's no best tool per se, just a best tool for the job. A hammer isn't better than a saw. What are you planning on doing with it?". Not only as a resource to answer that 'which one' question but also as a repositary for details like 'what does it weigh' and 'how big is it', it would be nice to have one place to go to get information compared across all units. A newbie would then be able to compare side-by-side to answer the question "which models are small and light enough to go as hand luggage'. And owners would have somewhere to go for the dimensions when they want to buy a carrying case. Would this idea fly?

Finding instructors is a similar minefield. Would it be possible to get instructors to put their details on a Google Map along with the units and courses they teach?