Air 2 good/bad ???

[ElectricZombie]

ZoCrowes255 once bubbled...
Manufacturers are not stupid. They would not produce something that is blatently unsafe.

Manufacturers DO produce gear that is blatently unsafe. Most manufacturers design gear to look good in the dive store rather than to perform properly while diving. I'm not even going to get into what products fall under this catagory as many have been mentioned on ScubaBoard in the past.

Many on here are pontificating on the superiority of the long hose/bungied octo system. I can see the advantages of a longer hose in a cave or wreck penetration situation but not in your typical recreational open water dive. If there is a situation where I am with a panicking out of air diver I am going to grab hold of them and not let go because they have MY air source. With a longer hose it gives them the oppurtunity to get away and take me for a ride. With the shorter hose I maintain control. Perhaps the long hose is good for many diving situations but none that I have encountered (but I'm openminded)

If someone decides to panic, it does not matter if you have a long hose or a short hose...you will probably be taking a quick trip to the surface. This is really more a matter of training and practice. The simple solution would be to not dive with anyone you don't know, trust and have practiced with. The longhose is suitable for all levels of diving provided you and your buddy train properly.

I have never had any problems breathing off the AIR II. It's the same internal mechanism as the R190 and the R380 and those are both very good regs.

True, although not exactly the same. However, the AIRII must be "detuned" in order to not freeflow. They flap in the breeze and get banged into things, making them more prone to freeflow. They are not designed to be outstanding breathers.

I know quite a few people who have made thousands of dives with the AIR II since it was released and they have done so without any problem at all.

You can make an AIRII work...it just does not work very well. There are much better solutions available. On the whole, the AIRII really creates more problems than it solves.

 

[carlislere]

I have used an Air2 since it came out; late 80's I think. The original Air2 wasn't that great, but they made some needed improvements and the second version was much better.
I have them on all the family BCs and my Drager Dolphin SCR. It is a fine regulator and inflator and can fill up your BC faster than a standard inflator. It doesn't get in the way and it is easy to locate.

 

[MikeFerrara]

carlislere once bubbled...
I have used an Air2 since it came out; late 80's I think. The original Air2 wasn't that great, but they made some needed improvements and the second version was much better.
I have them on all the family BCs and my Drager Dolphin SCR. It is a fine regulator and inflator and can fill up your BC faster than a standard inflator. It doesn't get in the way and it is easy to locate.

IMO, fast inflation is not a good thing.

 

[MikeFerrara]

ZoCrowes255 once bubbled...
Show me hard data where an AIR II inhibited an Emergency Sharing Air Ascent and caused an accident. You can't because there aren't any. Manufacturers are not stupid. They would not produce something that is blatently unsafe.

Many on here are pontificating on the superiority of the long hose/bungied octo system. I can see the advantages of a longer hose in a cave or wreck penetration situation but not in your typical recreational open water dive. If there is a situation where I am with a panicking out of air diver I am going to grab hold of them and not let go because they have MY air source. With a longer hose it gives them the oppurtunity to get away and take me for a ride. With the shorter hose I maintain control. Perhaps the long hose is good for many diving situations but none that I have encountered (but I'm openminded)

I have never had any problems breathing off the AIR II. It's the same internal mechanism as the R190 and the R380 and those are both very good regs.

On dumping: ALL Scubapro BCs come equipped with a pull dump on the right shoulder (they had them even before the inception of the AIR II.)

I know quite a few people who have made thousands of dives with the AIR II since it was released and they have done so without any problem at all.

Actually the only time I saw one used in a real OOA it was a big mess. The air donor was a DM who I know for a fact practiced with it and when it came time for him to vent his bc he couldn't find his inflator because it was in his mouth not in his hand.

Do you always use the right shoulder dump? If not, why would you want a different method of dumping air in an emergency that any other time.

 

[ZoCrowes255]

MikeFerrara once bubbled...


Actually the only time I saw one used in a real OOA it was a big mess. The air donor was a DM who I know for a fact practiced with it and when it came time for him to vent his bc he couldn't find his inflator because it was in his mouth not in his hand.

Do you always use the right shoulder dump? If not, why would you want a different method of dumping air in an emergency that any other time.

Before I started having ear trouble I always used the shoulder dump. Around students I would raise my inflator (because it was what they were trained to do) and use my shoulder dump. I am in my equipment so much that most of it has become an extension of my body.

This summer I have started to get allergies so I have to really watch how quickly I vent my air so I use the inflator to dump. I've done many OOA Emergency drills and have never had a problem with the AIR II (thankfully never had a real situation where it was necessary.)

 

[kelpmermaid]

It's even harder to vent air from the Air 2/equivalent when there is another person attached to it. Trust me. Once I got it back, it was fine, but those were a few tense moments.

 

[Walter]

"Do you always use the right shoulder dump? If not, why would you want a different method of dumping air in an emergency that any other time."

I quick using an Air II several years ago, but I still use the right shoulder dump. It's much easier to use and faster than using the hose.

 

[WVMike]

I have been thinking about this and appreciate all the comments. I was trained with the AirII and all the people I dive with (so far) were also. My LDS pushes it as they train with it. I also trained with a Sherwood Silhoutte and got one of them , price and familarity.

Now, I wish I had known more at the time, I really wish I had a right hand dump and next BC will have one. I am not comfortable pulling on the hose to dump and have now seen two hoses pulld off (not mine). So I dump with inflator overhead on ascents and try go head down and dump with lower right pull cord underwater. So I can see me having problems dumping in a real OOA. I have only done OOA in practice and you do swim face to face very close with AirII. I would like a little more room there as well.

I am thinking I would like to try an Octo AAS and or bungied setup.

As far as the bungied reg could someone post a picture, I would like to see the details?

thanks

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I have used the Tusa equivalent of a generation III Air 2 for years (Tabata makes them for Scubapro).

It may have soem theoretical faults but I have never had any problem bringing someone up in an out of air situation, it has never freeflowed under normal use and it has never failed as an inflator and I have seen many other inflators that have for various mechanical reasons. It is a quality piece of equipment that is quite well designed. It also happens to be an excellent balanced inflator offering the ability to make very minute additions of air - many of the inflators in use out there don't allow that - and you could do far worse in terms of an inflator.

Having a panicked diver a foot in front of you face with direct eye contact is normally pretty calming and they won't often remain panicked once you get and hold their attention. The fact that the AIR 2 pretty much requires this positioning is not as bad as it has been made out to be.

I also do a lot of heavy lifting underwater and it actually works well to inflate lift bags, the one concern being that you are a little close to the bag and item and it requires some care to remain clear of the bag when the bags goes up. In very cold water it may freeze after passing a lot of air but is easily disconnected which is actually a very significant advantage over using an octo for this purpose. The only other option in a cold water heavy lift situation is taking a stage bottle along to do the job and that is often overkill.

One thing not mentioned is that it is well suited to solo diving where a pony tank is required and whose second stage will normally be in the location normally occupied by an octopus. Current thought on solo diving with a pony is that even with a pony you still should have an alternate second stage on the primary tank and the Air 2 fills this role nicely and the ability to avoid yet another hose becomes more important.

 

[redeyejedi]

i dont know much about bcs' at all. i called up a couple of shops and one guy was hypin' up the scuba pro classic with the airII.
i have been reading many neg posts bout the airII. from what i hear it's the length of the primary hose(which shouldn't' have much to with air2 functionality, couldn't you use a longer hose?) and an issue deflated on ascent with the air2 reg in the mouth.
is this it or am i missing other information?
also, is locating the alt/air2 more or less difficult....time consuming? is releasing air from the bc difficult during ascent? emerg ascent?
thanx