eweingarden
Contributor
Anyone ever use a magnetic slate for communication during a dive? What's your assessment? Thanks.
Q2 Erasable Magnetic Slate
- Thread starter eweingarden
- Start date
Please register or login
Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.
Benefits of registering include
- Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
- A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
- You can make this box go away
I have used an erasable slate. Don't remember the brand. I'm pretty sure it was magnetic. At least it appeared that way. It worked pretty well, but but it broke pretty easily in the harsh diving environment we dive in, here.
84CJ7
Contributor
I just looked to see which one I have and it says Innovative scuba concepts QII so maybe that is the one you are referring to. It works well but when first got it I thought it was broken. You have to pull the eraser bar across it in one direction to properly turn it all green, the other direction doesn't do anything and don't go super fast. Also I found it worked much better after I colored in the whole thing in multiple directions till it was fully white and then erased it a few times. Now it works much more consistently and clearly, dunno why.
I don't normally use the pencil side of it but I guess it would be handy for a map or dive notes, the magnet side is much better for communicating.
As far as breakability I just tried standing on it and dropping it and flexing it, you could break it if you wanted to or if you bashed it with a tank but otherwise I can't see normal use damaging it.
I don't normally use the pencil side of it but I guess it would be handy for a map or dive notes, the magnet side is much better for communicating.
As far as breakability I just tried standing on it and dropping it and flexing it, you could break it if you wanted to or if you bashed it with a tank but otherwise I can't see normal use damaging it.
OP
eweingarden
Contributor
84CJ7:
Can you give me some more detail on turning it green, and then getting it white. Doesn't it come white and ready to be written on?
Can you give me some more detail on turning it green, and then getting it white. Doesn't it come white and ready to be written on?
I've seen those slates and they look ridiculous.
I've had great success with a modified Dive Rite wrist slate. I think it cost $10, and easily cleans up with toothpaste or a magic eraser. http://www.diverite.com/products/catalog/accessories/ac2061
I carry wet notes as well, mainly to capture notes to myself.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
I've had great success with a modified Dive Rite wrist slate. I think it cost $10, and easily cleans up with toothpaste or a magic eraser. http://www.diverite.com/products/catalog/accessories/ac2061
I carry wet notes as well, mainly to capture notes to myself.
Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD
84CJ7
Contributor
It is basically a magnadoodle. The "eraser" is a magnet bar down the side of the "pen" which is a pen like shape with a magnet tip. Swiping the eraser across in one direction turns it all green, writing with the pen shows up in white. It writes about the thickness of a sharpie rather than a pencil. Its actually super fast and easy, plus the contrast shows up clearly at depth and you can write big enough for people to actually read it because you can reuse the same space so its not wasteful.
Try writing on something with a pencil underwater, if the person is close enough to kiss you they might even be able to read it.
It does have a pencil and white plastic board on the back side, but that is for dive notes you read yourself, though its a bit too easy to erase to really trust with critical data.
Try writing on something with a pencil underwater, if the person is close enough to kiss you they might even be able to read it.
It does have a pencil and white plastic board on the back side, but that is for dive notes you read yourself, though its a bit too easy to erase to really trust with critical data.
They're great if you like to write a novel to your buddy during a dive. I myself find I have enough room on a 6in/4in slate, front and back, for a dive.
Really I rarely write more than 5 lines of wording, and that's usually if I'm doing a scientific collecting dive and the team hits a snag where we need to create a quick backup plan of attack.
The trick is, don't write your first phrase smack dab and big in the middle.
If you have trouble with normal slates, try modifying it. Add an all graphite pencil and skate board grip tape. Makes sharpening your pencil a whole lot easier. And you won't ever find yourself with a wooden stick and no lead.
Really I rarely write more than 5 lines of wording, and that's usually if I'm doing a scientific collecting dive and the team hits a snag where we need to create a quick backup plan of attack.
The trick is, don't write your first phrase smack dab and big in the middle.
If you have trouble with normal slates, try modifying it. Add an all graphite pencil and skate board grip tape. Makes sharpening your pencil a whole lot easier. And you won't ever find yourself with a wooden stick and no lead.
fdarden
Contributor
Haha I actually found one of these magna-doodle's on a wreck a couple days ago, and I think its kind of cool. I have several other dive slates already. this seems nice for jotting down quick notes, however I would never pay the 49.95 list that I saw on the thing at the LDS. As mentioned, Dive-Rite makes several excellent slates depending on what your needs/preferences are.
OP
eweingarden
Contributor
84CJ7:
Thanks for the clarification.
Thanks for the clarification.
84CJ7
Contributor
Yeah I wouldn't actually pay more than $30 for it, LP has it for $25.
Its really not for the complex notes you would use the pencil type slates for (though it has one on the back that works kinda crappy) its for simple large font few or one word commands or messages that are high enough contrast visibility to hold up to a dive group or buddy.
Some of the complaints I read in the reviews there were about it stopping working over time. I believe that's the same phenomenon I had experienced when mine sat for several years while I wasn't diving. I had my what the hell moment and then realized that alternating between swiping the eraser in the correct direction and then coloring the whole thing in (or rather out) in multiple directions with the magnetic pen a time or two woke it up or something and freed up the magnetic crud so it works well again.
You might be able to skip the pen and clear it back and forth with the eraser a bunch of times since moving the eraser in one direction makes it go all green and going the wrong way wipes everything to white as if you had colored the whole thing in.
Its really not for the complex notes you would use the pencil type slates for (though it has one on the back that works kinda crappy) its for simple large font few or one word commands or messages that are high enough contrast visibility to hold up to a dive group or buddy.
Some of the complaints I read in the reviews there were about it stopping working over time. I believe that's the same phenomenon I had experienced when mine sat for several years while I wasn't diving. I had my what the hell moment and then realized that alternating between swiping the eraser in the correct direction and then coloring the whole thing in (or rather out) in multiple directions with the magnetic pen a time or two woke it up or something and freed up the magnetic crud so it works well again.
You might be able to skip the pen and clear it back and forth with the eraser a bunch of times since moving the eraser in one direction makes it go all green and going the wrong way wipes everything to white as if you had colored the whole thing in.
Similar threads
