TESTCENTRE
Old school cutter
KN20 Stainless Steel Sharp Tip Dive Knife
COMPANY : NORTHERN DIVER PRICE : £ 27 TEL : 01326 567604 WEB : WWW . NDIVER . COM
While many divers may have substituted the traditional diving knife with alternatives such as line cutters and shears , a good knife has plenty of appeal in both looks and more importantly , functionality .
Northern Diver ’ s KN20 is a classiclooking , medium-sized , sharp-tipped stainless steel knife . Twenty-two centimetres in height and 5cm wide , it has a 11cm-tall blade manufactured from 420J2 stainless , chosen for its excellent anticorrosion properties .
The solid plastic handle is nicely curved to fit the hand and has raised outer ridges for superior grip . One side of the KN20 features a continuous sharp cutting blade with an integrated line cutter at the base of its opposite serrated edge .
A robust plastic sheath is provided to house the knife and this can be mounted on the leg via the supplied rubber straps or alternatively looped through any suitable webbing if preferred . While the sheath had what appeared to be a very secure , onehanded quick-release mechanism , I did discover that it is sometimes possible for the knife to extricate itself .
I have my eagle-eyed buddy to thank for spotting it on the seabed and subsequently fitted a lanyard through the hole located on the handle to prevent a possible recurrance . As you can never find a ghost net when you want one , back on the surface I put the KN20 thoroughly through its paces .
Its flat , sharp blade cut quite easily through a variety of different rope and line of the thinner variety . For thicker lines that
presented a greater challenge , I enlisted the services of the serrated edge , with a sawing motion most effective .
For large pieces of taut monofilament line , both sides appeared to cope quite well , but for maximum effect and minimum effort , the line-cutting notch used in a sweeping motion hit the spot . NH
SCUBA SAYS
Northern Diver ’ s KN20 Stainless Steel Sharp Tip Dive Knife combines classic looks with effective performance .
It ’ s the size that matters
Large A-Flag
COMPANY : BEAVER SPORTS PRICE : £ 23.20 TEL : 01484 512354 WEB : WWW . BEAVERSPORTS . CO . UK
For any charter boat or club RIB diving out at sea , an A-flag is the most fundamental piece of kit to keep your divers safe from other boat users . After many years of service my A-flag recently gave up the ghost and looking for a like-forlike replacement , I contacted Beaver Sports .
Beaver accidentally sent out the largest in their range rather than the mid-size I ’ d requested , but I decided to embrace the ethos ‘ bigger is better .’ There are two main methods of deploying the flag : via a pole or tube inserted into the stitched side pouch ( ideal for smaller boats ) or suspending it through any of its four eyelets with the supplied cord , for larger vessels .
Measuring 125cm x 110cm it was substantially larger than my previous Alpa , but having threaded it onto a two-piece fishing pole I then mounted it directly onto my RIB ’ s A-frame . When not in use it ’ s simply rolled up and stowed safely away . Once unfurled , the flag certainly didn ’ t look like overkill , was visible from a great distance and ultimately proved that in certain circumstances , size really does matter . NH
SCUBA SAYS
Available in three sizes , Beaver ’ s A-Flag provides an inexpensive and essential safeguard for boat diving .
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