- Hi guys, I'm Mark,
a scuba diving instructor from Safe Diving.
- And I'm Mark Evans.
Editor-in-chief of Scuba Diver Magazine.
- So in this series of videos, we're going to be
taking a closer look at an entire range
of the newest scuba diving equipment.
And all of these videos are sponsored by Mike's Dive Store.
The UK's largest scuba diving retailer, as they hold most
of these items in stock at all times.
- They're also doing their bit for sustainability,
by moving to eco-friendly packaging.
And they also donate 1% of all their online profits
to the marine conservation charity, Sea-Changers.
- So let's jump straight in.
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- And here we have the Apeks D30 Wing.
Now Apeks are renowned for making robust dive equipment
particularly their regulators.
And they've followed over that tradition
with their Wings because they are robust as hell.
Now, if we start at the top here, it's got a nice
back plate, actually very comfortable
even if you're only wearing a wetsuit or even
a rash vest to be fair, but particularly in a dry suit.
These straps, they've put these nice little
neoprene comfort bits on,
just stops the webbing rubbing into
your suit or into your shoulders.
So that's a nice little touch.
They have these nice pre-bent D-rings.
I was always a little bit skeptical
to be fair when I saw pre-bent D-rings,
I was like, what's the difference with a normal D-ring,
but I have to say having the slight curve
on them when you're wanting to click accessories on
without looking and everything, it is definitely
easier to find them than a traditional one.
So that's nice. There's one of those on either side.
The power inflater, pretty much a
standard power inflater that you'd expect.
Nice stainless steel buttons, though.
This does mean that it's got a bit of weight to it,
but I actually found that in use that meant that when you're
in a nice horizontal trim position,
this hung down in a nice position for you
to just be able to find it with your hands.
Further down, let's go right down here.
One thing it has got, which I really like
is integrated weight system.
Now I hate wearing a weight belt at the best of times
but a lot of these back-plated wing systems
do not have integrated weights.
You can get a lot of them with them as an add on
but this one is one of the
better systems I've found, to be fair.
It's the SureLock 2 system, which anyone who's dived any
of the Aqualung BCDs will be used to seeing.
It is a very solid clip.
When it comes out,
you really have to tug it to make it come out.
And when you put it back in,
it gives a distinctive clip as it goes back in.
So you know that it's not going to fall out
when you're on the dive.
Decent sized weight pocket as well.
Again, some of these weight pockets I've found
in the past, they're very small,
you can't actually get that much weight in.
If you're using them in the UK and you're in a dry suit
with a thick under suit in the middle of winter
you might struggle to get the weight
you need into these pockets. Not a problem with these.
I could put enough weight into these
to sink me, even when I was in a neoprene suit
with a really thick under suit on underneath
in the depths of winter.
So, yeah, nice feature.
Again, it's got D-rings on here
in case you want to add any more accessories.
But remember, you don't want to look like a Christmas Tree.
It's got a crotch strap to stop it riding up.
And to be fair, I did actually try it
without the crotch strap as well.
If you've got it fitting properly with the straps
and around your waist, it didn't really move much anywhere.
But if you've got a crotch strap on
it just stops it moving up and riding up off your shoulders.
Spin it around.
Another nice feature.
The grip lock system for going on to the tank,
for the cam band, instead of a traditional cam band,
it's got these metal clips.
The whole idea of these is, is to save your fingers.
Metal Clips in the past, they could be
a little bit dodgy to be fair.
And when you were clipping them shut,
number of people that you used to see swearing
around dive sites because they trapped their hand.
You basically adjust the strap to fit whatever
cylinder size you are using.
You get it to that position and then it does
a nice snap to lock in at the end.
Very secure once you've got it adjusted, no dramas.
And with having two of them on, like that,
cylinder's not going to go anywhere
when you're on the dive.
Finally at the back.
You've got nice low profile valve here,
for exiting any air out. Very rapid.
It's nice and small, low profile,
so it doesn't catch anything.
But I have to say it is very, very rapid,
to vent the air when you're in
a nice horizontal trim position
and you just wanted to make any final adjustments
to your equipment.
Well, that's the Apeks D30 Wing.
Very robust.
Like I said, heavy duty material, definitely made to last,
in the Apeks tradition.
Well worth checking out.
It's still fairly heavy if you were thinking
of one for a TravelWing, but if you're mainly looking
for one at home, definitely worth checking out.
Now remember, check out mikesdivestore.com
for a full range of wings and traditional BCDs.
And if you like what we're doing here
remember to subscribe to our channel, ring that bell.
And we'll keep you up to date with any future episodes.
Remember, we've got lots of content.
If you go here, you'll find our scuba basic series.
All the fundamentals of diving
from when you're starting out.
And this way, we've got our advanced series
for when you're moving up the ladder.
See you soon, dive safe.
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