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tele · 30th December 2007, 02:56

Greetings from Norfolk, VA. I'm a fairly new diver, was certified 3 years ago. Have about 40 fresh water dives, and one botched shore entry salt water dive (was scheduled for some boat trips at the end of the summer, but broke my leg and am now near recovery). PADI OW, SSI Nitrox certs.

I'm a tech guy. I like to try different equipment. I've got a vintage double hose reg, perhaps vintage demand full face mask, drysuit, yadda yadda. I've got ideas for better dive computers. For instance, instead of a HUD that uses LEDs extended into view by copper wire, why not use high output SMD LEDs and plastic light pipes, so there need not be external copper connections on the controller.

I've been lurking on here (post on scubaboard non-Rebreather forums) for a while. I've got a good idea of how RB's work, and can theorize down to the circuit board component level as to how the microcontrollers sample the data from the o2 cells and what not.

So I was looking at courses to work towards my AOW for this summer, and noticed one of the local (Hampton, VA) dive shops had a rebreather intro course which had a pool run. It was listed at $150. I emailed them to verify, and find out if it was the Drager Ray or Dolphin... and sho' nuff, they don't do it any more. Kind of a bummer as it had my interest.

After seeing that, I did find another local shop that does the PADI Drager Rebreather course, at $499. AOW is pre-req, so I will have to complete that first I assume. So we will see if I get there this summer. Unfortunately the other courses to get there add up in terms of money and I'm not sure how valuable they are. PADI Equipment course looked interesting on the surface, but then after farther inspection it appears I might already have a good idea of the course material (I mean, I don't think it gets into the details of say IP of regulators and adjustment tools or anything). I'm thinking I might go for the RB cert though.

I'm sure most know the drill. I realize the SCR Dragers aren't as hot as say, the Dive-Rite Optima or AP Inspiration ... but I see it as a starting point and introduction to the rebreather aspect of diving.

My interest is mainly from the tech point of view and new experience / equipment point of view. I'm not out to set records or such.

30th December 2007, 02:56	#1 (permalink)
tele New Member Current Rebreather/s: Not Bought Yet Other Rebreather/s: Not Bought Yet Join Date: Aug 2007 Location: Norfolk, VA Posts: 21	Greetings from Norfolk, VA (Virginia) Greetings from Norfolk, VA. I'm a fairly new diver, was certified 3 years ago. Have about 40 fresh water dives, and one botched shore entry salt water dive (was scheduled for some boat trips at the end of the summer, but broke my leg and am now near recovery). PADI OW, SSI Nitrox certs. I'm a tech guy. I like to try different equipment. I've got a vintage double hose reg, perhaps vintage demand full face mask, drysuit, yadda yadda. I've got ideas for better dive computers. For instance, instead of a HUD that uses LEDs extended into view by copper wire, why not use high output SMD LEDs and plastic light pipes, so there need not be external copper connections on the controller. I've been lurking on here (post on scubaboard non-Rebreather forums) for a while. I've got a good idea of how RB's work, and can theorize down to the circuit board component level as to how the microcontrollers sample the data from the o2 cells and what not. So I was looking at courses to work towards my AOW for this summer, and noticed one of the local (Hampton, VA) dive shops had a rebreather intro course which had a pool run. It was listed at $150. I emailed them to verify, and find out if it was the Drager Ray or Dolphin... and sho' nuff, they don't do it any more. Kind of a bummer as it had my interest. After seeing that, I did find another local shop that does the PADI Drager Rebreather course, at $499. AOW is pre-req, so I will have to complete that first I assume. So we will see if I get there this summer. Unfortunately the other courses to get there add up in terms of money and I'm not sure how valuable they are. PADI Equipment course looked interesting on the surface, but then after farther inspection it appears I might already have a good idea of the course material (I mean, I don't think it gets into the details of say IP of regulators and adjustment tools or anything). I'm thinking I might go for the RB cert though. I'm sure most know the drill. I realize the SCR Dragers aren't as hot as say, the Dive-Rite Optima or AP Inspiration ... but I see it as a starting point and introduction to the rebreather aspect of diving. My interest is mainly from the tech point of view and new experience / equipment point of view. I'm not out to set records or such. Last edited by tele : 30th December 2007 at 03:06. Reason: It ate my formatting!
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