Big Blue CF 250 with Goodman's glove

Big Blue, who are they? We had never heard of this dive light company, but Jose first gave them a try by purchasing the CF250 light with neoprene glove for easy hands free operation. At 250 lumens, this light has a double o-ring seal, magnetic switch, a twisting bezel that focuses the beam angle from 6 to 31 degrees, AND it only uses 3 AAA batteries which when freshly charged, will run for over an hour and still shine brightly!

A few months later Marco and Rags also purchased the same light. We have never had any problems with them even after more than 500 dives each. We have them with us on every single dive...divers love it  when you are able to show them the true colors of the reef, even during the day!  It also makes pointing out critters much easier (this is where the narrow beam comes in handy!), without having to get too close to the sensitive coral formations - always a good thing when following the Roatan Marine Park regulations of not getting too close to avoid any incidental damage!

These lights are also great if you are taking pictures or video underwater the hands free operation the G-Glove makes focusing your camera during macro photography much easier.

That's from Jose Silva who is closing in on 1000 PADI Certifications (now en route to Maui with 35 certifications to go!).

The only gripe with the light is the Glove's longevity - the Velcro (tm) attachments do wear out after a while.  It is an excellent concept that, surprisingly enough, has not been adopted by other light manufacturers. It's amazingly useful and comfy. When you need light simply flip over the switch.

Other lights also use double O-ring technology as does this one. To turn them on you unscrew the light. If you keep going they shut off. Keep going after that and they flood. Yikes, that was dumb is when I realized my awesome Hollis light failed. That's a user error I accept.  Was looking for something different this time (duh!). Hence copying Jose and his "light." We give it double OKs.

We purchased a charger and we reuse batteries over an over. We no longer worry about whose batteries they are. The lights have undergone lots of testing, under "live" conditions. Easy conditions in fact. That's why we live here, silly. Again, if they can't work here, how can they work elsewhere? It's not like Monty does the 430 ft Trimix dives every month, not yet anyhow.

The solution for the failing Velcro (tm) on both the palm of your hand and the wrist is as follows; The hand strap can be kept together by wrapping duct tape.  At the time of writing, it has been holding up for over a week. This is after six months of daily use. I do not take the light into confined water on a regular basis. If I had tweet this review and you trusted the content above, it would read something like; The Big Blue CF 250 is a good acquisition.  The wrist Velcro can be folded over itself as shown in the picture.

The cost of the light was about $135 back when we bought them. Today September 12, 2012 it is selling for about $89 atLeisurePro. Be warned, there are some crappy reviews on there, which are quite ridonculous. It does not turn on by unscrewing it. Regardless, we promised to keep these honest.

We are gearing up for the Roatan Fishing Tournament this week-end. As of this entry I had son, little William Alexander.  Thanks for reading. Join the blog and let us know if there is any particular set of gear you would like tested and reviewed. Best wishes from Roatan. If you have any questions feel free to contact us at;  Coconut Tree Divers

Hollis S-series Bladder

Two of us use this Hollis S-series bladder, Jose and I. We bought them at about the same time, roughly over a year ago. To date and over 500 dives on each bladder, earn it the double OK. Better yet, the thing is well made.

For those who are thinking about switching to a back-plate, I highly recommend it. With a jacket style BCD, the bladder wraps around your body. As you add air, it fills up around and squeezes you depending on how much air is being added and how snug it has been adjusted to begin with. The jacket style bladders allow for a higher range of motion, meaning that the air can shift from one side to the other throwing off your buoyancy a bit. At times air gets trapped on one side and does not shift over to the BCD hose side. Granted one can become very efficient at controlling this. It is more of a comfort thing when it comes to back-plates. Either jacket or wing,  divers should remember to hold their BCD hoses at the highest point which may include getting into a vertical position to allow expanding air to vent, or any air for that matter.

This really was not meant to be a sales pitch for why one should purchase a back plate, but if you are looking for this type of set-up the Hollis S-series bladder is an excellent choice. The previous bladder I had was a Dive Rite. It unraveled at the seams within 5 months of use. The craftsmanship of the Hollis is heaps better than the Dive Rite. The BCD hose on the Hollis is double stitched and has a bit of protective material sewn to prevent tearing right where it attaches to the bladder itself. The Dive Rite seems to have been put together and never tested. The same thing happened to one Rags, a fellow instructor here at Coconut Tree Divers, used as well a previous instructor. Stick to the the Dive Rite regulator but not the travel wing. This is coming from someone who uses dive gear six days a week. If you plan on using it once a year, don't worry about it.

I purchased my wing from LeisurePro as did Jose. Should you have any questions feel free to contact us via our website.

As of this writing, I am expecting my first child to be born any day now. I will let you know if it turns out to be William Alexander or Gabrielle Alexie.

Oceanic Pioneer Mask

This mask was given to me by a friend in a brand new condition. It belonged to his father whom couldn't get the thing to seal. His father purchased the mask for $125 in Canada. I found it online for $99 but it lists a MSRP of $149 at the following site. No matter how you look at, the thing is not cheap, but in the end it is a cheap mask. Seriously, this thing was brand new in it's carrier when given to me. Four months later, the thing started falling apart in several different areas. Rather than explain the whole thing, several pictures have been taken to hopefully save someone from spending a whole lot of money on something unworthy of it. For anyone who might be inclined to suggest better care of the mask is required, perhaps. I hope to use it everyday and rinse it in fresh water upon completion of diving and store it with the rest of the gear.

Still going strong however is the OMS mask reviewed earlier. That was under $25 on LeisurePro.com The gift itself was a tremendous gesture which really touched me. The excitement for the thing was nothing less than, "hey check out my new bad-ass mask." It fit quite comfortably, the soft silicone skirt simply molding to your face, with easy to adjust straps. In the end I believe the silicone being used is too flimsy. I've had several Oceanic Shadows and they have all torn right under the nose. Anyhow, you decide, but you've been warned.

Merry Christmas to those who read this.

Up next, a set of fins which are well worth the money.