Mouthpiece Retaining Head-strap

The Drager ones are quite expensive but seem to be the best
one for the job. I have just bitten the bullet and bought one
from Martin at TecMe.
 
Initially it tastes quite strongly of rubber. But washing it and with some salt water use this will go away.
The seal is good since when you relax the jaw (pretend unconscious) I don't get water ingress. For this, the lip shield is important. Otherwise I don't think the gag strap will be much use.
 
humpbackdiving said:
I considered one but I did not fancy my heart skipping a bit... and somebody told they tasted foul! (not sure if true though)
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Yes, the initial taste is very rubbery, like sucking on a bike tyre! (why would you do that? :-) but it seems to wash off, the price is obscene though, not sure how they ended up that much?
 
jale said:
What about making one with a mask strap and bungees or a strap like the one for Castoro?
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Its very easy to make a stretchy strap to hold the DSV/BOV as you say a mask strap. The Draeger version is alittle more complex as it includes a miniature face mask to cover the lips which potentially reduces the risk of a flood.
APD sell one for about £15 (IIRC) the Draeger one is around £90! (depending where you are shipping can add considerably)
 
The Drager one is expensive for what it is but is
it expensive if it does what it's supposed to do ?
Hopefully I never find out.
 
I'm surprised the Drager one hasn't been copied yet by the folks that make cheap copies of everything that works. I sense a business opportunity.
 
the drager one is a very difficult molding: 3 different rubbers (hardness differences/material) in one injection
just try to copy this...
 
paulraymaekers said:
the drager one is a very difficult molding: 3 different rubbers (hardness differences/material) in one injection
just try to copy this...
Click to expand...

I agree, its complex although I'm not sure its co-moulded, looks like it might be glued together post curing.

Do you think you'd need to copy it exactly to match the performance?
 
The actual mouth piece is nowhere near as good as the Divex one, it's quite small. The straps are at the end of the lipseal, and you have to have it quite tight to make up for the weight of a BOV which pulls the lipseal to a half moon shape, causing it to leak slightly. This may be because the rubber is too stretchy or that the lipseal isn't rigid enough for the weight of the BOV. Also it's really fiddly to do up and undo. A Divex mouthpiece with a lip shield and stronger straps would be perfect.

Apparently there is a Divex version, but it's a military issue product and isn't available to consumers.

But just to add it is the best out there and I wouldn't dive without one. It's just very unfortunate that none of the rebreather manufacturers have invested in making their own.
 
alexasigno said:
and you have to have it quite tight to make up for the weight of a BOV which pulls the lipseal to a half moon shape
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To be fair the Draeger one was (I suspect) designed with a much lighter DSV only mouthpiece in mind rather than a BOV.

alexasigno said:
Apparently there is a Divex version, but it's a military issue product and isn't available to consumers.
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I've looked through the Divex brochure and website and can't see anything similar to the Draeger one, they seem to show a FFM and a strap that just pull the DSV in (like the APD strap) but not one with the lip shield.

alexasigno said:
It's just very unfortunate that none of the rebreather manufacturers have invested in making their own.
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Kudos to rEvo for supplying one as standard though... I agree, there is scope for a good product here, at the right price there is a large market of divers on CCR without a strap of any sort.
 
Ben -I think the key is the strap and lip guard. I would be looking to make something that an ordinary mouthpiece could attach and seal to. So that folks that love their Seacure molded mouthpieces could now have a Seacure gag strap. And folks who like whatever other mouthpiece they use could do the same. The neck strap and lip guard are the important pieces. Just figure out a good way to seal it at the base of a standard mouthpiece. I really don't see the difficulty.


Please pardon any typos. Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk
 
I had my first dive with the Drager one today
and have to say I found it very comfy indeed.
I think I need a little practice on loosening the
strap as I found it a little awkward.
I give it a good clean before fitting and had no
bad taste.
 
Capt Morgan said:
I had my first dive with the Drager one today
and have to say I found it very comfy indeed.
I think I need a little practice on loosening the
strap as I found it a little awkward.
I give it a good clean before fitting and had no
bad taste.
Click to expand...

Good to hear another positive experience. I suspect you'll soon end up feeling quite exposed without it. Spread the word.

Rgds

Paul
 
My mate always dives ccr wearing a helmet. He has adapted it in such a way that he can now clip in a mouthpiece retaining strap and works really well. If anyone's interested, I'll try and get a few pictures to show how he's done it.
 
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