Everyone whom dives with me knows that I have wanted to cross over to a rebreather for a very long time but, two kids in college has made it cost prohibitive. Over recent years it has become increasingly apparent to me that I personally would benefit greatly from having a constant PO2. Therefore, I am beginning the process of demoing a few rebreather units and then I will decide which unit is best for me. Since I dive predominantly on a rebreather dive boat, I have observed and learned a lot over the years and the Megaladon is definitely well liked and reliable. So, I left the shore on Memorial Day weekend for Dutch Springs, PA to demo a Meg with Leon of ISC and Becky Schott whom is a Meg Instructor. I have to admit I am definitely partial to the Meg and after the rebreather overview discussion and diving the unit it has definitely swayed me. However, everyone has advised to try other units for comparison purposes and so that you are confident on your decision. I will take definitely take this advice as any wise consumer would do and intend to demo the Revo and possibly the JJ-CCR too.
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| Pre-demo briefing |
Today I dove the Meg 15 with Leon Scamahorn and I could not have asked for a better experience. Leon is thorough, patient and takes it very slow. I had some mask fogging issues and then a piece of hair caught in my mask that lead to a steady leak but, Leon stuck with me until I got those minor things sorted. Both Leon and Becky stressed the importance of weighting yourself correctly as to have neutral buoyancy which definitely added to the having a comfortable rebreather experience. It is known that your buoyancy is difficult to maintain when you are a new rebreather diver but, at least today, I did not feel as if I had much of an issue with that. In fact I thought it was easier to maintain buoyancy than on open circuit especially on ascent. Leon encourages you to turn upside down, lay on your back etc., so that you can see with the front bladders you achieve a constant ability to breathe freely. I did not do these things on my dive but, I can now see how that is very important it is not to have your air delivery compromised due to diver positioning. I did feel comfortable in the unit and the ability to easily reach my O2 and diluent. I have always been leary of trusting a computer with my life but the Meg has several "brains" so that if one fails the unit will still function. This is definitely assuring since electronics seem to always fail at one time or another. Both Becky and Leon travel a lot and also dive the units in all types of conditions and depths and for them as well as myself it is very important to have a rebreather that will be reliable.
I am glad that today I spent my time making new friends and enjoying a new experience with other wonderful people. Thanks Becky and Leon for making today another great day for me! I am very grateful for demoing the Meg with both of you, I think I am hooked...
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