Northern Diver Vortex

Meet my new dry suit (I stole this promotional photo from SeaPro Divers, obviously that's not me - right?). Unlike my old suit (molded in the image of a folded tent) this suit has a ”tailored fit” with suspenders, zip protection flap and warm neck/wrist seals - and it is a dry dry suit to boot.




The suit also has a very flexible waterproof neoprene material just above the boots which prevents air travel. Floating upside down with the soles of the boots just above the water is not really enjoyable diving, also the less air you have in the suit's legs the easier it is to swim properly (to a point, obviously). The suspenders are rather handy since it'll keep the suit from dragging the ground even when you've only got your legs in the suit. Dry suits tend to get rather toasty on dry land so it would be wise to zip up just before you enter the water.

Here's a smart feature, a little ”stopper” which will prevent the fin straps from slipping off the heel. This is of course bad news if you wear your fin straps loosely and remove them by slipping them off.

This flap covers the zipper, protecting it from debris, sand and snags alike.

The suit came with a non-ventilated hood (not in picture), bag (not in picture either), talcum powder, glue and zipper oil. During my last two dives the hood had an annoying tendency to trap escaping air from both the neck seal and the mask.

A minor problem, but a problem non the less as it can cause trauma to the eardrums as the bubble give way to the increasing water pressure. A related problem is the fairly loose (compared to my old suit anyways) and short neck seal which allows air to escape from between the seal and the diver's neck under certain circumstances. This happens when the diver has a fair amount of air in the dry suit which creates pressure against the seal, often occurs at the surface. On the plus side the neck seal is rather comfortable and unless you dive with a lot of lead it shouldn't be a problem (depending on your neck size).

Around the neck ("Warm neck") and wrist (Warm wrist?) seals there are neoprene covers which traps water and reduces heat loss. This is basically a good thing, but it will add extra bulk and neoprene takes a long time to become dry.

I could just about get the Ecozilla around the left wet glove, although this isn't a problem if the glove is wet. Then again, some divers prefer to have their dive watch attached to the BCD. I like to have my wristwatch on my arm, unless I'm diving in for instance the river where you dive along the stony bottom. Titanium may be resilient, but it is not scratch proof.

The warm neck closes with velcro and obscures the rather short latex seal. The neck seal is noticeably shorter then the one on my old suit and it sometimes lets air pass through but it doesn't allow water to enter so it's not really a problem.

On the right leg there’s a pocket and velcro straps for attaching a knife or similar tool. Personally I prefer to have my knife on the inside of my right leg since it prevents entanglement in lines and seaweed. I use the pocket to hold my Seemann Sub mini drybox containing my keys.

There are various reinforcements on the legs and chest of the suit, consisting of extra material sewn on top of the ”core” material with small holes to drain any water trapped underneath, looks very similar to the pocket.

Here you can see the Apeks valve, note the somewhat confusing markings - how would you turn the grey valve to open it (let more air escape)? If you guessed the "+" direction that is printed on the valve, you guessed wrong.


Anyways, the valve works like a charm and I like that you can actually feel the air escaping as you raise the left arm. With the old suit it wasn't always clear if it actually let any air out at all.

Although it may not be all that visible in the photo the valve is very compact with a rounded shape which will minimize the risk of the valve getting stuck against the BCD or snagging against obstacles. The over-all stitching looks really good, except for over the warm wrists were there are a few loose threads poking out. This is hardly a concern though, these areas are not supposed to be waterproof. The boots are sufficiently rigid for scaling most rocks without any discomfort and there are reinforcements at the tip and heel. The price of this suit puts it in the "low end" of dry suits, but don't let that fool you. The Northern Diver Vortex is a very competent dry suit and unless you need a heavy duty suit the Vortex is up for the task.

Unrelated links;
Mor-Mon, Fuck-Tard - coincidence? I think not!
The Lord giveth, and a church taketh away
Tricks of the trade

Street graffiti artist "Banksy" and more

Here's some real art for a change.

As noted in an earlier post, diving is dangerous if you're ignoring your training and taking short cuts. As reported by CDNN a student died of an air embolism during a University of Alabama scuba diving course in a 5,5 meter deep pool (18 feet).


6 dead divers in 6 week, one of which dove alone and without a buoyancy control device - a fatality waiting to happen.

On an unrelated note; 36 horsepowers (from this... thing) to power a 1224 kg vehicle (2700 pounds)? You bet, visit Automotive Blogger. On a side note, some countries (Liberia, Myanmar and the United States) still refuse to use the metric system, despite the fact that metric is the undisputed scientific unit of measure. In other words they use one system for every day conversations and another for scientific purposes, handy...

You've probably already seen this, but here it is again.

Ever heard of Clocky?

HD vs DVD, a visual comparison.

Speaking of trees...

Coffee + milk and art gone horribly wrong

Coffee, milk and a high-end camera, very nice. If you want to see some really crappy tattoos and seriously ugly "body modifications" visit modblog.


And how we love the ignorant, and those who forget to fact check or get a second opinion, so here's another one.
"Friends don’t let friends choose their own nicknames", here's more.

If I were going to get a tattoo I was thinking about CPR instructions on my chest (or every country's emergency service number), this guy had a different idea.

"Tomarrow?" Is that some sort of Texan accent? Even Blogger flagged that one for spellchecking...

Also, look me in the eye and tell me that doesn't look like crap.

The New Seduction Weapon - updated

This is a link to a post on Watchismo Times about the ad-campaign for the Movado Video. Notice the fact that the lady in the picture could probably only see the clasp of the watchband, imagine how impressed she'll be when she sees the watch. I wish they would bring this campaign back. I wonder where they stockpile the old seduction weapons...


Or how about a Steineck Subminiature Wrist-camera? Visit WWR for more crazy wristwatch cameras.

Gojira de la Eco - also knows as ”Ecozilla” - updated

Here’s my new dive watch, a Citizen Promaster 300 m Professional Diver Eco-Drive in titanium. The old one had to go as it quit unexpectedly and without warning – or at least with very short warning since I obviously missed it.



I went without a dive watch for three dives, no big deal since the water in the river (Skellefteälven) may be streaming and cold but isn't particularly deep (lots of bicycles, though). Most of all I was pissed off that my dive watch crapped out (unexpectedly) when I needed it. Besides – battery changes and pressure testing is not cheap and you’ll be without a wristwatch for a week or two.

My new Citizen is an Eco-Drive, fueled by light and never needs a new battery (in just 9 hours of sunlight the watch is fully charged and runs for 6 months without additional charges). Unlike mechanical watches the Eco-Drive mechanism has very few moving parts and doesn't need service such as cleaning and re-lubrication every three years or so. Also since it’s a quartz it is very accurate. Side note; although the connection between frequency and accuracy is more complicated then ”faster is better”, there is some truth to the statement. The short answer is basically; low frequency mechanisms (such as automatics) are more receptive to interference. The most common beat rate of automatic today is 4 Hz (8 bps) and a few watches has a beat at 5 Hz (10 bps). The most common beat rate for a quartz is 32 768 Hz and the Ecozilla is no exception. The mechanism of a fast beating automatic requires exceptional lubrication which is hard to maintain.

I got the watch on the 2:nd of April, and if the watch would've arrived one day sooner it would've been with me on a dive – but then again the 1:st of April was a weekend. As you can see in this comparison, it is a rather large watch.

Trivia; Poor man’s watch forum has nominated the EcoZilla in the category ”The Best 20 Watches below USD 1'000”, the list is not ranked by rating (”list position is purely historical”).

The 300m model does not have a helium valve, but is ”OK” for use in helium enriched environment according to the manual. Most divers are never exposed to helium enriched environments anyways (pressure chambers/”diving bells”) since those are basically only used for saturation diving (deep sea commercial diving) and has NOTHING to do with the depth rating/water resistance. Helium atoms under high pressure can get into a watch and may eject the glass as the pressure decreases and the helium expands. Helium valves are generally considered a useless function (as for the link, helium is not the smallest atom by the way) and pretty much a marketing ploy by most watch enthusiasts.

Go here to see the inside of the Ecozilla, notice the "NO JEWELS" text.

The case back is simply stunning, the motif is not etched - it is machined into the titanium. In other words you can actually feel the curvature of the dive helmet as you run a finger over it.

For some really nice high-resolution images (such as this one) visit Seiko5ers.com.

The minute hand has an orange outline which gives it nice visibility and clearly sets it apart from the hour hand, helps minimize confusion when subjected to nitrogen narcosis.

As for the hands I really like the chunky style, none of that Mercedes crap which I've grown to despise, but rather the Bell & Ross Aviator-type. The screw down crown is equipped with 3 o-rings and placed at the 9'o clock position for comfort.

All metal parts on the strap is in titanium. As you can see this buckle is of a modified tang-type, notice the way the strap is looped through the buckle.

Where the pin connects against the buckle there is a small extension which will ensure that the pin won't be going anywhere in a hurry. Just below the "PROMASTER" labeled buckle you'll see a small "stop" on either side.

This "stop" prevents the band holder (or whatever that thingie with the Promaster logo is called) from scratching the buckle. The strap is made of reinforced urethane and not as flexible as an ordinary rubber strap but it feels very tough and is most likely very reliable. Another smart detail is that the end of the strap is slightly wider then the buckle, so unless you angle the strap as it moves through the buckle it won't just slide through.

Before I bought the Eco-Drive I was looking through the different solutions to the battery-problem. Automatics was out of the question; seriously expensive, inaccurate and requiring way more service then any other system (maybe I'm just jealous of those who can afford "nice" watches - then again I am a passionate pragmatic). Seiko has a kind of interesting system they call Kinetic. It utilizes the same basic idea as automatic watches, but instead of storing energy in a spring, the oscillating weight generates electricity to power a quartz movement. This makes a Kinetic watch much more accurate then any automatic. A Kinetic watch has fewer moving parts then an automatic but still requires more extensive service then a solar powered watch. Some Kinetic models also have a history of capacitor problems, which can be quite expensive to fix (or you could attempt to fix it yourself, although something tells me the water resistance may be compromised).

Then there’s Citizen’s Eco-Drive watches. Eco-Drive charges in any kind of light, although sunlight is the most efficient. Unlike the Kinetic’s there are no more moving parts then in any ordinary quartz watch. Light is absorbed through the dial, converted into electricity and stored in the power cell. The second hand will take one step every two seconds to indicate low power, after which the watch will run for roughly 3 days before it stops. If the watch has stopped it will ”quick start” as soon as it is subjected to light and the second hand will move in 1 second step and then a 2 second step within every 3 seconds to indicate that the watch has been "offline" and the time needs to be set. After time has been set the second hand will take 2 second steps to indicate a low charge until the watch is sufficiently charged. I've got to say that the Eco-Drive system works extraordinary well, I've never seen the watch indicate low change since I bought it (I've had this watch for 13 months) and I don't charge it purposely, I just wear it on my wrist.

As you can see the bezel is much higher then the glass which protects it from scratches. Also, the material visible between the ridges of the bezel is not the glass but the inner part of the bezel.

I've been wearing this watch for a while now and it's very rare that the bezel gets moved unintentionally, unlike my previous watches. As I wrote about the Chrono I noted that the bezel did not have a locking mechanism but the Ecozilla has proven that with good design the risk can be minimized. However, I'm pretty sure that the bezel has been knocked a few clicks forward during a dive. The Ecozillas bezel has a smaller diameter then the case, it is protected by the outer ring and has a rounded shape which is very unlikely to get snagged.

However, maneuvering the bezel with a three finger wet glove requires some technique, the fastest way is to place the palm (of your non-Ecozilla hand obviously) over the bezel and rotating it that way.

Unfortunately during a particularly muddy dive some small particles got lodged under the bezel which prevented it from being rotated. Very annoying.

Note the way the strap is connected to the watch, none of that spring bar crap (note the various spelling errors in that link). I've never had a spring bar break, but I think it looks cheap and rather frail. The fit of a band against a spring bar watch must be somewhat loose in order to be wide enough for the spring bar removal tool. There are adapters for the Ecozilla which allows the mounting of standard straps but other then that only Citizen's bands will fit. The mineral glass is curved, non-reflective and 6mm thick. The Professional has a depth rating of 300m/984ft, which makes it suitable for depth greater then 30m/98ft (a watch rated WR200m/656ft is not suitable for dives deeper then 30m), which more often then not means technical diving with mixed air. You're not really thinking straight while breathing compressed air much deeper then 30m/98ft.

The outer ring's main purpose (I suppose) is to protect the bezel from impacts and unintentional manipulation. The ring can be unscrewed to remove dust collected between the outer ring and the bezel.

As you can see there's an o-ring around the bezel against which the titanium ring will seat. The ring is threaded so that it will unscrew clockwise which minimizes the risk of unscrewing a loose ring while rotating the bezel - someone has done their homework.

Update: While diving in -1 degrees Celsius water (30,2 degrees Fahrenheit) the ring around the bezel tends to trap snow and ice which then freezes the bezel in place. Due to the design of the bezel and the lack of any edges to grab from the sides, the bezel can (and most likely will) be rather hard to rotate while wearing thick gloves.

As the ring is screwed against the o-ring (I center "TITANIUM" at 12 o'clock) the effort required to unscrew it is "significant". The outer ring has nothing to do with water resistance by the way.

Since the dial of Eco-Drive watches are designed to let light through to the solar cell these watches barely create a reflection of the sun.

Good to know and quite handy if you've got a pet with the pathological urge to chase down the bloody things. The image illustrates the difference between the Chrono and the Eco-Drive. My camera doesn't really do it justice since it tends to play with the lighting in undesired ways but it proves my point. The watches were held roughly 0,5 meters (1,6 ft) from the wall. Further away and the Ecozillas reflection dissipates and is very hard to photograph, which is in part due to the curved glass since the dial is not reflexive.

Other then the point discussed above I also have a minor reservations. For one, the bezel does not align with the dial (more on this link). Neither does the second hand align perfectly with the dial, although this is fairly common with quartz watches - automatics usually takes a lot more steps then just 60 to go full circle. Other then that the finish and form of the titanium is perfect, very smooth, no tool marks or scratches. Also the watch lacks "Perpetual calender" - in other words the date always goes to 31 so it must be set manually for shorter months.

In Sweden this watch goes for 4100 KR (574 USD) delivered, I got mine for 2561 KR (359 USD) from Crazy Time, brand spankin' new, delivery included. That's 37,5% cheaper. On a side note a battery change and pressure test of my old Citizen cost 315 KR (44 USD) and the battery didn't even last a year. I hate having to rely on batteries, also the watch had to be sent to a Citizen service center which means it won't be back for at least a week.

The EcoZilla is a very tough dive watch albeit with only basic functions but if you're looking for a large titanium dive watch that doesn't require batteries the 'Zilla is not a bad choice - but it's not perfect either. Me, I'll probably sell it and buy a Casio Frogman instead - the lack of calendar is starting to piss me off, why have a date function if it can't keep track of the date?