Independent Customer reviews

I bought the Cratos Wing Style BCD recently. I bought it because, although I like some of the practical side of the conventional BCD I got fed up of all the weight and bulk one has to carry at the front of the body. Lets face it, when diving we tend to spend most of our time horizontal, looking down, so it makes sense to not have so much bulk out front, keeps the arms and hands free. As far as I can tell this is the only BCD on the market at present which offers the best of both worlds. You have the simplicity of the conventional BCD but with out the sense of feeling like your sitting in a bulky armchair. I tried this BCD out on a number of different dives recently in the Scilly Isles, so I got a good opportunity to see how it performs in reality.

here are the PROS and CONS:

PROS:

1) integrated weight pockets are fully adjustable and removable. So you vary the way you carry your weight.

2) Because of the lack of bulk at the front and side, the weight releases are easily accessible. I use a weight harness as opposed to a weight belt, which has its own release mechanism, this seemed to work fine because I could remove the integrated BCD pockets, which made things simpler.

3) The BCD offers a variety of strap adjustments. Initially I found it didn’t fit very snuggly, but I found many ways of adjusting it to suit my body type and preferences.

4) includes plenty of D rings and shoulder straps for pipes and extra gear.

5) Price is exceptional value for what you get. And I would have been happy to pay a lot more for something that performed as well as this.

CONS:

The only con I personally found was that my BCD bladder took on a little water. That is, after 3 dives I drained about a half a pint of water. Not a great deal, but still a little more than I felt was normal.

On the whole, This is a great product, a reliable and fully featured BCD. For the price, it offers a lot more than I got for my first Buddy BCD. Top marks dudes !

Unedited Independent Customer reviews and comments
Cratos Wing BCD	Hi John. I've now had a few good dives with this BCD and am most pleased to provide the following review. Many thanks Jeroen Speak I bought the Cratos Wing Style BCD recently. I bought it because, although I like some of the practical side of the conventional BCD I got fed up of all the weight and bulk one has to carry at the front of the body. Lets face it, when diving we tend to spend most of our time horizontal, looking down, so it makes sense to not have so much bulk out front, keeps the arms and hands free. As far as I can tell this is the only BCD on the market at present which offers the best of both worlds. You have the simplicity of the conventional BCD but with out the sense of feeling like your sitting in a bulky armchair. I tried this BCD out on a number of different dives recently in the Scilly Isles, so I got a good opportunity to see how it performs in reality. here are the PROS and CONS: PROS: 1) integrated weight pockets are fully adjustable and removable. So you vary the way you carry your weight. 2) Because of the lack of bulk at the front and side, the weight releases are easily accessible. I use a weight harness as opposed to a weight belt, which has its own release mechanism, this seemed to work fine because I could remove the integrated BCD pockets, which made things simpler. 3) The BCD offers a variety of strap adjustments. Initially I found it didn’t fit very snuggly, but I found many ways of adjusting it to suit my body type and preferences. 4) includes plenty of D rings and shoulder straps for pipes and extra gear. 5) Price is exceptional value for what you get. And I would have been happy to pay a lot more for something that performed as well as this. CONS: The only con I personally found was that my BCD bladder took on a little water. That is, after 3 dives I drained about a half a pint of water. Not a great deal, but still a little more than I felt was normal. On the whole, This is a great product, a reliable and fully featured BCD. For the price, it offers a lot more than I got for my first Buddy BCD. Top marks dudes !
Maximus wing system	Constructed to an extremely high standard, sensibly priced; much appreciated.
Weight harness	Good price, nice piece of kit, better than described. Thanks Excellent Super Service GREAT PRODUCT quality product fast delivery many thanks. looks like a great piece of kit hope to try out soon
Starlight torches	I originally bought the 1W and 3W Starlight LED torches as small back-ups to stick in my pocket. After a couple of days diving I began leaving my primary torch (a IST 10W halogen, purchased from Red Hat Diving) behind and using the 3W LED instead. It gives a very bright focused spot which penetrates the gloom more than adequately without too much overspill. The magnetic switch is solid giving a positive on/off, no more forgetting to twist on your back-up before diving, very little risk of flooding due to double o-rings, features which aren't on some other LED torches that are twice the cost. The 3W is compact enough to stick in your pocket even on dives where you don’t think you’ll need a torch and to top it all it only takes 4 AA batteries available anywhere. I’ve been using the 1W and 3W Starlight LED torches for a few months now; I’m still on my first set of batteries. The quality is excellent and at the price you’d be daft not to buy two, I know I did!