Terry Maas Freediver recovery vest

http://www.discountdivers.com/…isea.horse.collar.bcd.jpg

this is what my dad used in the 80s . it is horse collar bcd with co2 rapid inflation , manual inflation and quick purge valve . he use to put 2 breaths into it to allow him to stay still and rest [ like a pillow ] then when he wanted to dive he will press the purge valve which purges air from the top of the bcd making it deflate quickly and if at depth and about to black out you can pull the co2 tab to rapid inflate and it does keep you on your back . once he was pushing himself too far and blacked out right below the surface but because he always kept a little air in it he floated to the surface and woke up . it is not as good as a FRV with the dive computer because it is manual but it does provide a B plan for a good price [ around $200 usd ] but it is a little hard to find these days . if for nothing else it can help in the situation of a cramp , loss of fin or just to rest .[ by the way how do you post an image from the internet .]

got it .

The problem with any device that you have to inflate yourself is that by the time you need it you will not be thinking clear. Guys hardly ever even ditch the wt belt before they black out.

Cheers,Don

Quote from tufual

once he was pushing himself too far and blacked out right below the surface but because he always kept a little air in it he floated to the surface and woke up .

If weighted correctly you should be able to achieve the same thing by being positively buoyant below the surface. Depending on diving depth a good rule of thumb is neutral at 10m.

Nice purchase Don, here is hoping that yours never inflates!

Quote from kmo

Nice purchase Don, here is hoping that yours never inflates!

Never has to inflate is what I meant to say

Hahaha a funny typo and a very good blessing
I second

I'm on the list. Jake needs one more than I do. but maybe we'll get two.

my dad never used weights because the water is warm enough not to use wet suits. but i know what you mean , your not exactly thinking straight right before a black out but this was the best safety available at the time and for a lot of spearfishermen a FRV is unreachable due to price and availability [ the reason he would not float even without weights is because he was a bodybuilder at the time and he said he was to dense to float so he would leave a little air in the bcd to be positively buoyant ] but i will admit the FRV is far better but it wasn't available in the 80s.

In that case I reckon your dad was spot on to use some buoyancy to get himself weighted correctly and I'm glad it saved his life!

Hi Don, have you got hold of you FRV yet? I'm looking forward to hearing your review once you test it.

Quote from kmo

Hi Don, have you got hold of you FRV yet? I'm looking forward to hearing your review once you test it.

Looking for it late April to early May.

Cheers, Don

I will wear one when I have the $$ also.

Nothing to do with diving, but I blacked out on dry land and it opened my eyes.
A few weeks ago, I was sitting in bed having some toast and a glass of water. I had some water go down the wrong pipe and I choked. While running into the bathroom from my bedroom I blacked out cold and my face hit the bathroom floor. I woke up in a few seconds on my own with my wife screaming "wake up wake up" I figure if I can black out while eating toast, I can black out in the sea.

That's spooky Dustin, I have had some things happen as well, luckily I had a Oxygen rig in my home and my Ex was fast getting me hooked up. I don't want to go that way.

Glade your OK buddy.

Cheers, Don

A buddy of mine drowned in shallow water (around 10m), and I always considered him cautious and not an ego driven diver. I will always wonder if he followed a similar fate to what happened to you Dustan, only being in the water and by himself he had a very low chance of survival.

He was floating on the surface when we found him right next to the boat. From what I understand, the FRV (with Surface Minder Feature ON) would have deployed and put him right side up, giving him an improved chance of survival.

I love my wife and I hunt alone for the most part so I will be buying one of these when I can afford it. Where I live the buddy diving idea is a joke at best.

Not that I am down playing buddy diving. It's just not feasible.