TESTCENTRE
The suit ’ s rear , showing vertical zip and closed neck
( rolls up nicely for packing ); great comfort ( the ultra-fine stitching left no pressure marks on my skin ) and excellent exposure protection . It ’ s quick-drying too , and slipping it insideout onto a hanger during surface intervals had it ready to go for subsequent dives . Experience tells me that even bathtubwarm water will have a cumulative effect on the body ’ s core temperature over multiple dives . Thanks to the shortie this was never an issue and it struck exactly the right balance for the conditions . Neil Hope
SCUBA SAYS
O ’ Three ’ s classic 2.5mm Shortie Wetsuit ’ s simple and understated looks , combined with comfort and durability make it the ideal travelling companion for both warm water diving and surface sports at home .
A-Scouting we shall go
SCOUT Mask
COMPANY : FOURTH ELEMENT TEL : 01326 574745 PRICE : £ 85 WEB : WWW . FOURTHELEMENT . COM
I
can ’ t help but think of Build-A-Bear when looking at the many options available to purchasers of Fourth Element ’ s SCOUT dive mask . Unlike the traditional mask-buying experience , Fourth Element customers can choose from a variety of lens types , skirt colours and strap options to ‘ build ’ their own customised SCOUT mask . The mask itself has a distinctive , angular single lens , surrounded by an extremely soft silicone skirt . This spreads out nicely across the face and its almost contactadhesive properties give an excellent seal . Unless you have the facial profile of a proboscis monkey , there ’ s room aplenty for a variety of nose shapes and sizes , without impinging on easy equalisation . I found the field of vision to be very good and the teardrop-style lens allowed easy downward viewing of gauges and camera settings / controls alike . The ‘ build-a-mask ’ customisation could be dismissed as something of a gimmick , but that would be doing it a disservice as nothing could be further from the truth . Fourth Element offer a variety of different lens types - four in total - throughout the various masks in their range . This quartet consists of :
■ Shield : providing UV protection and reduced glare and recommended for tropical seas .
■ Clarity : manufactured using the highest purity of glass and particularly suited to night diving and photography
■ Enhance : filtering out UV & High Energy Visible radiation for enhanced perception .
■ Contrast : this filters out mid-range wavelengths and is perfect for temperate waters . Having already sampled three of the four , my missing option was the Clarity lens , paired here with the all-white skirt . All that remained was a choice of mask strap from a pallet of grey , black , green or white . Elasticated and wide fitting , the strap is as easily interchangeable as it is adjustable . Worn over a hood or directly against the scalp itself , both proved as equally comfortable and secure . It ’ s difficult to quantify the properties of each lens type individually , without comparing them side-by-side as I was able to do ( albeit on several different mask types ), but you can take it from me that they all pretty much do what they say on the tin . I found the SCOUT to be an excellent fit and due to its flexible skirt , it will no doubt adapt to a wide range of facial shapes and sizes . Interestingly , I found that the white skirt was far less distracting ( if at all ) while taking photographs than I imagined . I used the mask extensively in both UK and tropical waters . and among the many masks I ’ ve sampled over the years , the impurity-reduced Clarity lens is probably as good as it gets . NH
SCUBA SAYS
Fourth Element ’ s distinctive-looking SCOUT mask can be tailored to the diver ’ s individual needs with a variety of lens , skirt and strap options to choose from .
Side view of the neck seal and logo
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