I bought one today and tried it out in the pool tonight. I will do 4 dives with it this weekend. I really liked the feel on the pool. I will review once I dive this weekend.
@@seank078 overall good. The twisting rotating back piece is weird feeling. I am going back to the dive shop to have them help make sure I am setting up correctly. It rides up my back when in the water. Almost like it needs a crotch strap. And that is no matter how much I tighten the straps. The lumbar piece is nice especially when you have a steel 120.
@@bigdogoutdoors87 thanks Chris I was thinking I have to tighten it up a little anyways so I will do that before I hit the water. I appreciate your feedback.
Just got this in grey because the orange was.out if stock and it is incredibly well made. I am looking forward to actually getting it wet in the Red Sea very soon
I dive since 15 years Backplate and Wing systems, but now I want to have something that has more back support and helps to distribute the weight of the tank better, as my back slowly starts hurting, so I ordered the Exotec, in a few days around the 12.08. I will see if Was right and the Exotec delivers what it promises.
I just looked at the Exotec at my local dive shop. Looks awesome! I do worry that the heavy buckle, lower down, will interfere with placing my kit into a dive boat cylinder rack. I guess I would have liked to see two straps, and light weight cam buckles instead. The price is out of my range until I sell my Axiom i3.
zeagle ranger, zeagle travel Covert?, Hollis BP Wing 35, Hollis BPW 45 CCR P1, Hollis Katana SM, and three or four older ones that I don't remember the brands, I think oceanic. This Apex looks cool but I think I'm good with BCDs. I love the orange D rings, looks awesome. nice review. Leaving comments for the algorithm
Hey there, Thanks for the utterly amazing review:) If there is the possibility of adjusting the BCP and I am a tall guy how come there are additional sizes? Thank you and have a good Sunday
Hello, How do you configure weight for trim on aluminum and steel tanks? When im using alimunum tanks and wearing a weight belt i put 2kg weight to the back of belt for trim. Or if bcd have trim pockets on backside i use 2x1 kg weights. Thank you for your answer.
I have only ever used my hydros outside of my initial certification course. Over 500 dives now and absolutely love it. So much so that I ended up buying a second one while my first was being serviced. Would this be worth considering buying as a replacement for one of my hydros' ?
Hey Mark. Do the weight pockets on this hold enough to sink you wearing the full drysuit or did you use some additional weighting? Just thinking with all the Ali, that’s gonna be a fair old chunk on weight going in those Surelocks…
The little ali handles on the Surelock pockets don't really add much weight, to be honest, and it has got the trim pockets behind too, so I had more than enough room for the 8kg I use with my drysuit. Could have got another 4-6kg no dramas.
I have the Exotec, and I must say that I am not satisfied to date. The reason is that during diving, it keeps turning me either to the right or to the left constantly. I've talked to people who also have it, and they face the same problem. I think the issue lies in the rotating hip belt. If it were fixed in place, this problem wouldn't occur. I'm wondering what can be done. Is there a way to make the belt not rotate? Considering the Apeks Exotec is not cheap, such an issue shouldn't be present, and I believe it might not have been thoroughly thought out.
I had the same problem until I figured out how to distribute the weights and handle the wing. Now when the hip belt rotates I'm not "falling over". Look for the hidden weight pockets and moving some weight there. It helped greatly to the point of perfect buoyancy,. I've got 25+ dives on this BCD, struggled in the beginning, then realized what the solution was. I'm very satisfied now and take advantage of all the features, especially the 4 dump valves when needed.
@@teamctl could you elaborate further on this? I am facing the same problem. I got the BC last week and I’ve done 2 dives on it so far and had a constant tilt to the right. So far I’ve read that it’s probably a weight issue but I’m not sure how to fix it. I’m using the SureLock pockets for my weights exclusively. Also I can’t find the hidden weight pockets 😀
But at least the Hydros you can get rid of the weight pocket and use the crotch strap I got rid of the pockets from my Hydros and wear a weight belt ..so much more streamlined. ..
I bought one today and tried it out in the pool tonight. I will do 4 dives with it this weekend. I really liked the feel on the pool. I will review once I dive this weekend.
I look forward to,your thoughts. I just picked up a exotec because my dive shop can’t get their hands on a Hydros pro.
@@seank078 overall good. The twisting rotating back piece is weird feeling. I am going back to the dive shop to have them help make sure I am setting up correctly. It rides up my back when in the water. Almost like it needs a crotch strap. And that is no matter how much I tighten the straps. The lumbar piece is nice especially when you have a steel 120.
@@bigdogoutdoors87 thanks Chris I was thinking I have to tighten it up a little anyways so I will do that before I hit the water. I appreciate your feedback.
Just got this in grey because the orange was.out if stock and it is incredibly well made. I am looking forward to actually getting it wet in the Red Sea very soon
bought it already, agree with ur review :)
I dive since 15 years Backplate and Wing systems, but now I want to have something that has more back support and helps to distribute the weight of the tank better, as my back slowly starts hurting, so I ordered the Exotec, in a few days around the 12.08. I will see if Was right and the Exotec delivers what it promises.
It is a smart BCD. I like the swiveling waist section the most as the BCD moves with your body. Let us know how you get on with it
I just looked at the Exotec at my local dive shop. Looks awesome! I do worry that the heavy buckle, lower down, will interfere with placing my kit into a dive boat cylinder rack. I guess I would have liked to see two straps, and light weight cam buckles instead. The price is out of my range until I sell my Axiom i3.
Love this channel…. Thanks for sharing!
Our pleasure!
zeagle ranger, zeagle travel Covert?, Hollis BP Wing 35, Hollis BPW 45 CCR P1, Hollis Katana SM, and three or four older ones that I don't remember the brands, I think oceanic. This Apex looks cool but I think I'm good with BCDs. I love the orange D rings, looks awesome. nice review. Leaving comments for the algorithm
Ha, yes, I think you are well stocked on the BCD front!
Hey there,
Thanks for the utterly amazing review:)
If there is the possibility of adjusting the BCP and I am a tall guy how come there are additional sizes?
Thank you and have a good Sunday
Hello, How do you configure weight for trim on aluminum and steel tanks? When im using alimunum tanks and wearing a weight belt i put 2kg weight to the back of belt for trim. Or if bcd have trim pockets on backside i use 2x1 kg weights. Thank you for your answer.
I have only ever used my hydros outside of my initial certification course. Over 500 dives now and absolutely love it. So much so that I ended up buying a second one while my first was being serviced. Would this be worth considering buying as a replacement for one of my hydros' ?
Hey Mark. Do the weight pockets on this hold enough to sink you wearing the full drysuit or did you use some additional weighting? Just thinking with all the Ali, that’s gonna be a fair old chunk on weight going in those Surelocks…
The little ali handles on the Surelock pockets don't really add much weight, to be honest, and it has got the trim pockets behind too, so I had more than enough room for the 8kg I use with my drysuit. Could have got another 4-6kg no dramas.
I have Hollis Backplate and OMS comfort II harness with Trieste wing. Aqualung dimension i3 I am a wide guy and that's what helps me in the water
Thanks for sharing!
I’m happy with my i3, but it doesn’t really fold for travel. I bought a Zuma for travel, and I love it 👍
Hi mark , which mask model in 2:33?
Looks like the Apeks Vx1
Can i use it with twinnset 2x7L 300bar ?
I have the Exotec, and I must say that I am not satisfied to date. The reason is that during diving, it keeps turning me either to the right or to the left constantly. I've talked to people who also have it, and they face the same problem. I think the issue lies in the rotating hip belt. If it were fixed in place, this problem wouldn't occur. I'm wondering what can be done. Is there a way to make the belt not rotate? Considering the Apeks Exotec is not cheap, such an issue shouldn't be present, and I believe it might not have been thoroughly thought out.
I had the same problem until I figured out how to distribute the weights and handle the wing. Now when the hip belt rotates I'm not "falling over". Look for the hidden weight pockets and moving some weight there. It helped greatly to the point of perfect buoyancy,. I've got 25+ dives on this BCD, struggled in the beginning, then realized what the solution was. I'm very satisfied now and take advantage of all the features, especially the 4 dump valves when needed.
@@teamctl could you elaborate further on this? I am facing the same problem. I got the BC last week and I’ve done 2 dives on it so far and had a constant tilt to the right. So far I’ve read that it’s probably a weight issue but I’m not sure how to fix it. I’m using the SureLock pockets for my weights exclusively. Also I can’t find the hidden weight pockets 😀
But at least the Hydros you can get rid of the weight pocket and use the crotch strap I got rid of the pockets from my Hydros and wear a weight belt ..so much more streamlined. ..
Yep, you are correct that you can totally streamline down the Hydros if you want a stripped-back travel system.
I feel like this is literally the Black Ice but with the plastic plate swapped with an aluminum one, and some color.
As I said, it has evolved from the Black Ice but there is certainly more to the changes than swapping out the backplate and adding colour.
Can the Exotec handle twinsets the same way the Black Ice does or not ?
greatest bcd 🧡
Just sold mine. Hated this bcd
It's definitely not for everyone.