Scooters

[Chantelle]

Originally Posted by jmya

I didn't get it yet. George said it should ship this week. He is waiting for a body from the machine shop. Regular UPS from Florida usually takes three days to Rochester.

I'll post some pics when it arrives.

Have a name picked out for it yet?

(UPS ground from Florida to Ontario is usually 4 - 5 days Joe, unless you have an issue with customs)

[Joe]

Good stuff. That didn't take long at all. Looking forward to some pics. It's nice when someone gets new stuff.

Originally Posted by jmya

I didn't get it yet. George said it should ship this week. He is waiting for a body from the machine shop. Regular UPS from Florida usually takes three days to Rochester.

I'll post some pics when it arrives.

[Joe]

LOL for security issues I will send someone else to pick it up....

Originally Posted by Chantelle

Have a name picked out for it yet?

(UPS ground from Florida to Ontario is usually 4 - 5 days Joe, unless you have an issue with customs)

[JohnG]

Originally Posted by Steve B

Kevin already answered the vacuum testing part of your question. As to how often to test it, I would say anytime you are in doubt that you may have knocked the prop shaft assembly or after you blow the dust out of the engine compartement, after a long drive (trip), before a scooter dependant dive. I've never experience a leak myself (knock on wood).

They are tough machines that can handle a fair bit of abuse. If you take care of them, They will last you a very long time. My friend Leigh has an old PVC scooter that was used in the WKPP, it's over 10 years old and still going strong. I've seen divers toss their scooter around like a big old fire log and to my surprise, never had problems.

In regards to the differences between the SS and Gavins. The motors themselves are identical but every other component of the SS are special machined parts, even the tubes themselves, it does make them look nice. Components like the SS clutch is made of a plastic/teflon type material that will leave you dead in the water and needs to be replaced when it slips. The AJ/WKPP clutch's in the Gavins are made of aluminum and delrin which allows a diver to recover from a runaway scooter scenario.

Getting parts is not a big issue or factor in choosing between both but a small part of a big picture. You should be carrying spare parts anyway. It's a rather easy choice for me since the Gavin is the standard scooter of choice for GUE. They've been proven solid scooters.

Just on a side note, we are discussing scooters that are being used as tools and not as toys. If I was going to buy a scooter to do recreational dives that can be done swimming then I'd get a mini-G or X-scooter.

Hope this helps

Steve

Thanks Steve!

[JohnG]

Just thought I would post to clarify the differences between the 2 scooters or similarities really.

these 2 scooter share alot in common, from motors,relay boards, and blades, yoke screws, adjustments knobs etc can be swapped between. the reed switches are different. as the material the body is made out of and the handle. The handle is a preference thing. I like both. also the clutches are different, but both can be slipped. Read the following link about them.



http://www.silent-submersion.com/faq/Index.html

There isnt any special parts that go on the ss. The battery tray is totally different then a gavin
motor connectors are different.

They are not interchangeable between brands. but both a modular.

I guess my point is the spares kit you would have for either scooter could and would get either brand going again.

The biggest point is what your team dives. Both are great scooters, for the ease of swapping bodies between team mates and standardizing the team its a good idea to have the same one as everyone else on your team.

[JohnG]

on a side note about maintenace or repair. having one brand scooter really makes things easy. you get to know the ins and outs of that specific brand.

Things like the clutch will setup differently between the 2 brands, trigger cables, etc. You would have to learn both, where having the same brand scooter for the team means there is less to learn or remember and the more efficient you get with it.

as I am sure Steve and kevin will atest to it makes things so much easier and I am sure they can do most repairs and maintenance on the gavin with there eyes closed.

[Chantelle]

Just to add a little to Steve's experience.. as I've watched him do it.. He's had experience working with and fixing many different brands of scooters, so it's not just the Gavin that he's worked with.

[jmya]

My scooter arrived last week! I've taken a few photos of it.

It looks good except for one thing - The gap between the body and the tail cone is quite large in a few places (the tube is not round). It looks like the o-ring might extrude... I don't have a photo of this yet, I'll post one next week.

To those with Gavins, is this usual?

[Jay Roy]

Looks good Jase! Can`t wait to do some scooter dives with you this summer

As I mentioned to you the other day, I haven`t really examined my tube that closely for roundness....

Did you get that charger from George

[jmya]

Yeah, the charger is from George. He said it is "good".

I'm going to order batteries this week.