Pagsusuri ng Atomic BC1

Pagsusuri ng BC

US MAKER ATOMIC ay nakaposisyon nang walang kahihiyan sa tuktok na dulo ng merkado, na may pagpepresyo upang tumugma. Hindi ito gumagawa ng badyet at wala itong ginagawang mas mababa kaysa sa pinakamataas na kalidad, kaya ang bago nitong BC ay palaging magiging kawili-wili.

Then, when the product was ready to go, Atomic began its marketing push with the bold claim that it had started the project with a blank sheet of paper and reviewed every detail, no matter how small, to produce the best BC on the market. And that makes the newly released Atomic BC1 downright fascinating.

Kapag gumawa ka ng ganoong uri ng paghahabol, kailangan mong maghatid. Hindi ko sasabihin na nilapitan ko ang pagsusuri na determinadong pumili ng mali sa katumpakan ng operasyon at ilantad ang anuman at bawat pagkukulang sa hype ng tabloid, ngunit kung gusto mong isipin iyon, mabuti, hindi ako makikipagtalo.

Ang disenyo

Time to open the box and take a look at the BC1, which came in a rufty-tufty carry-supot.

Ang una kong impresyon ay ito ay isang mabigat na piraso ng kit, 4.6kg sa timbangan. Ang aking pangalawang impresyon ay na ito ay gawa sa isang bahagyang makintab, halos basa ang hitsura na materyal, at doon tayo magsisimulang magsikap dito. Karamihan sa mga BC ay gawa sa matigas na materyales na tatanggap ng lahat ng uri ng parusa, ngunit sila ay may posibilidad na sumipsip ng kaunting tubig at tumatagal ng ilang sandali upang matuyo.

Not the BC1, which is made from a material that Atomic claims actively repels water. It looks vaguely like those wet-look PVC macs you used to get, only proper classy.

Isa itong double-laminated polyurethane-coated na tela, at umaabot mismo sa mga gilid ng mga zipper sa mga bulsa upang protektahan ang mga ngipin at maiwasan ang anumang buhangin o grit na makaalis sa mga zip at masira ang kanilang operasyon.

Ang kumbinasyon ng itim at pula na kulay ay mukhang naka-istilong, tulad ng itinuro ng aking kalahati. O maaari mo itong makuha sa simpleng itim kung gusto mo, ngunit bakit ikaw?

Get past the material choice and you’ll find what is basically a conventional dyaket-style BC with large front buoyancy chambers that also house the pockets and the integrated-weight system.

There’s a rigid napsak, corrugated inflation hose on the left shoulder, dumps on the right shoulder and right hip, Velcro cummerbund with pinch-clip waist-band and a sternum strap.

The integrated weight system is claimed by Atomic to be remarkably easy to use. Each side holds up to 4.5kg of hard or soft weights and the pockets slide easily into place, locking with a distinct snap but coming out easily with a firmish tug on the handle. They worked extremely well, out of the water and in.

A pair of small trim-weight pockets that can hold up to 2kg apiece are situated on the back of the dyaket at shoulder-blade height in case you need help with your trim, or just a bit more lead.

Ang inflator ay isang napakataas na spec na item, na may mahusay na laki ng mga buton para mag-inject at magtapon ng gas, at mayroong Velcro loop sa shoulder-strap at isang clip sa corrugated hose upang hawakan nang maayos ang inflator sa lugar at madaling iabot.

The dump-valves are stainless steel, and Atomic has redesigned the round black plastic ball used by just about everyone else into a sleek, sexy, triangular knob that you pull to dump gas.

Sa loob ng BC1 ay makakahanap ka ng adjustable na padded lumbar-pad at shoulder-pad upang gawing mas kumportable ang paggamit ng BC, na ang huli ay sumasaklaw sa isang maayos na carrying handle.

Tingnang mabuti at makikita mo rin na ang harness ay medyo hiwalay sa buoyancy cell, na nangangahulugan na ang isang ganap na napalaki na BC1 ay hindi dapat pisilin ka ng masyadong mahigpit.

Camband

Then you turn the BC1 around and see the camband for attaching a cylinder. This looks like no camband you’ve ever seen before, and is claimed to operate more like ski-bindings than a conventional camband.

Ang strap ay isang composite material na may stepped na panlabas na ibabaw sa bahagi ng banda sa kanan ng cam.

You drop the BC1 in place over your cylinder, pull the camband roughly to the right length and lock the adjustment using a red plastic plate. Then you snap the over-centre cam into place to fully tighten the camband around the cylinder and hold it firmly against the curved plate on the back of the BC.

It all takes much less time to do than to describe, and it’s the easiest and most positive camband system I’ve ever used. On test it held the cylinder as tightly as any standard camband, but without the potential to stretch when wet and the subsequent need to retighten the band.

At kung sasabihin ko sa iyo na ang mahabang buntot ng camband ay akmang akma sa malawak na uka na makikita sa bit ng camband sa kaliwang bahagi ng cam, at na humahawak sa maluwag na buntot ng camband nang hindi nangangailangan ng isang loop. ng materyal, talagang sisimulan mong pahalagahan ang atensyon sa detalyeng napunta sa disenyo ng BC1.

Sa paggamit

But is it any good? Well, first of all the review sample sat in my spare bedroom, blown up hard enough to make the over-pressure valves operate, for two full days without going soft.

Kaya medyo kumpiyansa ako na hahawak ito ng gas at gagawin nang maayos ang buoyancy-control bago ko ito makuha kahit saan malapit sa tubig, na palaging nakapagpapatibay.

Sa gayon ay panatag, itinali ko ang bagong BC na ito sa aking 30-taong-gulang ngunit in-test pa rin ang bakal na 15 at kinuha ito para sa isang pagsisid.

You know the Tardis, Doctor Who’s time and space machine that’s bigger inside than out? Well, out of the water, either strapped to a cylinder or not, the BC1 looked large and bulky, but as soon as I put it on and adjusted the straps, a remarkable thing happened.

The size and bulk vanished and the BC settled into place just beautifully. I could even reach the zippers to open and close the pockets, though they turned out to be shallower than I expected, because the integrated weight-pockets take up a lot of the available space.

Back to the padding on the inside of the dyaket, and if I tell you I’d have sworn I was using a smaller cylinder if I’d had to guess from the feel of the harness, you’ll understand why I was impressed, especially as I had to walk a bit to get to the water.

I won’t say I’d have happily done the shopping in this BC, but it’s as comfortable as any I’ve ever used, and much better than most.

Naisip ko kung ang lahat ng padding na iyon ay mangangailangan ng karagdagang tingga upang lumubog, ngunit sa sandaling bumagsak ako sa tubig ay malinaw na hindi ito nangyari, at ang rate ng inflation na inaalok ng power inflator ay perpektong hinuhusgahan.

Maaari mo ring tawaging mabagal at matatag, ngunit ang isa sa mga sikreto ng mahusay na kontrol sa buoyancy ay ang pagsasaayos ng iyong buoyancy nang maaga, at ginawa iyon ng BC1 inflator na madali.

Kung gusto mo, maaari mong ilagay ang inflator sa hindi kinakalawang na asero o titanium, o sa halip ay mag-opt para sa pagpapares ng isang inflator at pugita yunit.

True, the dump-valves were a bit more gung ho, but that’s OK; if the inflate jams, you need to dump fast to avoid a runaway ascent.

At oo, sinubukan ko ito, at hindi, hindi ko naramdaman na parang aakyat na ako.

I’ll also confess that I was a bit sceptical about the redesigned dump-pulls. I mean, what’s wrong with the black ball used so universally?

Wala, ngunit hindi maikakaila na ang muling idinisenyong hugis ng mga arrow na pull ay madaling mahanap, madaling hilahin at positibo sa pagkilos.

Ang in-water trim ay rock solid at ang BC ay hindi gumagalaw anuman ang aking saloobin sa tubig, kaya hindi nagtagal ay nag-enjoy na lang ako sa pagsisid at hindi iniisip ang tungkol sa kit.

Sa pagtatapos ng pagsisid ay itinaas ng BC1 ang aking mukha at bibig sa malayong malayo sa tubig. Masaya akong maghintay para sa bangka kahit na sa isang disenteng pag-alon at, hindi, walang gaanong pagpisil mula sa ganap na napalaki na buoyancy. mga selula.

Mag-relax nang lubusan at nakita ko ang BC1 na tumagilid lang ako ng kaunti paatras, nakaharap. Maganda yan.

Anything else? Well, yes, the D-rings. There are titanium-coated stainless steel D-rings on each shoulder-strap, more on each pocket and yet more at the bottom rear of the BC above each buttock. I’d happily sling a stage on this BC, and there are more D-rings than any sane diver needs to clip on reels or torches.

Konklusyon

All of which brings me to the conclusion that Atomic has probably achieved exactly what it set out to achieve, and built the best dyaket-style BC in the world. I can’t fault it in terms of sheer performance.

But. And I’m sorry about this, but there’s a bit of my brain that’s pointing out that the Atomic BC1 costs well north of a grand. That’s a lot of money for just your BC, bearing in mind that it’s quite possible to buy a full set of warmwater gear that will do the job for less than a thousand pounds.

On the other hand, I have a car-salesman friend who lives by the motto that pride of ownership in a high-quality product lasts much longer than the warm glow of a bargain price and, as previously stated, Atomic is top-end.

At the end of the day, it’s your call. If you can afford an Atomic BC1, you won’t be disappointed with your new BC.