Btrax - 3/13/2015 6:48 AM
I had eyed the explorer at my LDS for some time. It is one neat piece of tech. I dove rebreathers many moons ago in the military and had been thinking about it again. The cost of a full Tec unit was putting me off from getting started. I did a lot of research on the Hollis Explorer and when the opportunity came up to buy one from a friend for around half price i jumped on it. I have about 5 dives on it so far. The setup time is about 20 minutes, the tear down is about the same if you take your time and do everything by the book. It is much lighter than doubles. You breathe warm air. It uses a single tank of nitro 32 to 40 percent. Has a bail out valve built into it. It is very easy to set up and tear down. It is a recreational unit only. So far i am thrilled with it. Quiet, light, quick to set up and the electronics are state of the art. It has a go no go set up. When you are diving there are multiple warnings on any problems you may encounter and on most anything except a minor warning the emergency procedure is simple....Bail out. I am waiting for some of the ice to melt here to finish my open water dives and complete the course. I’ll keep everyone posted. I will still dive OC also but i will dive this unit a lot. For the type of diving i do this unit makes sense. I suppose that is the key to equipment and training for everyone, each individual has to analyze the type of diving they do and move forward with equipment and training from there. For me this unit is it.