Aeris EX Lite Travel BCD
- Thread starter Daiika
- 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
JUSTIN44
Registered
YouTube - ‪Aeris EX Lite BCD - www.simplyscuba.com‬‏
I was wondering the same thing. heres a good video on it.
I was wondering the same thing. heres a good video on it.
editmojo
Contributor
This appears to be very similar to the Reef Rider which I have had for a few years now.
The main differences seem to be:
• No storage pockets on the EX
• Horse shoe bladder vs donut on the Reef Rider
• A few less Plastic D rings
The overall construction appears very similar so I'll review my Reef rider:
Great travel BC weighs in at 5 lbs after I removed the cummerbund and back padding. With 60-70% of my weight in the dump-able pockets and the rest in the tank pockets I have excellent trim. I can do cartwheels and hold any position I like. When rotated on my side there is no tendency to turtle. It took a few dives to get the balance right. If you tend to turtle, move some weight out of the tank band pockets and into the dump-able ones.
Construction is very solid. Much heaver than a Zuma with similar overall weight. I won't pack as small as the Zuma due to the ridged plastic plate. Mine lays very flat on the bottom of my suite case so not an issue for me. 1 1/2" webbing is used vs 1" on some new travel BC (The XL seems to have 1 1/2 webbing) I like the weight pocket design with the very positive locking clips. I drop in solid or lead shot pouches through the top zipper and pop the clip to release. Do practice this a few times by-feel as you probably can't see the clips with a mask on.
The bladder is fairly heavy nylon with elastic straps. The RR uses a donut where the EX seems to be a horse shoe. The only issue might be that you need to be more vertical to fully empty the bladder. Both use a small plastic plate that has a rubber non-slip pad where the tank attaches. It has worked very well for me, even when being manhandled by the tank into a small skiff in rough seas.
The EX should be lighter than the Reef rider. I would even remove the back pad which is most likely just velcroed on. Save a bit of weight and I image some reserve buoyancy. Overall I'm very happy with the Reef Rider and expect to get many years out of her.
The main differences seem to be:
• No storage pockets on the EX
• Horse shoe bladder vs donut on the Reef Rider
• A few less Plastic D rings
The overall construction appears very similar so I'll review my Reef rider:
Great travel BC weighs in at 5 lbs after I removed the cummerbund and back padding. With 60-70% of my weight in the dump-able pockets and the rest in the tank pockets I have excellent trim. I can do cartwheels and hold any position I like. When rotated on my side there is no tendency to turtle. It took a few dives to get the balance right. If you tend to turtle, move some weight out of the tank band pockets and into the dump-able ones.
Construction is very solid. Much heaver than a Zuma with similar overall weight. I won't pack as small as the Zuma due to the ridged plastic plate. Mine lays very flat on the bottom of my suite case so not an issue for me. 1 1/2" webbing is used vs 1" on some new travel BC (The XL seems to have 1 1/2 webbing) I like the weight pocket design with the very positive locking clips. I drop in solid or lead shot pouches through the top zipper and pop the clip to release. Do practice this a few times by-feel as you probably can't see the clips with a mask on.
The bladder is fairly heavy nylon with elastic straps. The RR uses a donut where the EX seems to be a horse shoe. The only issue might be that you need to be more vertical to fully empty the bladder. Both use a small plastic plate that has a rubber non-slip pad where the tank attaches. It has worked very well for me, even when being manhandled by the tank into a small skiff in rough seas.
The EX should be lighter than the Reef rider. I would even remove the back pad which is most likely just velcroed on. Save a bit of weight and I image some reserve buoyancy. Overall I'm very happy with the Reef Rider and expect to get many years out of her.
Similar threads
