RichieG (Online)

I would like to increase the burntime of my 18w Salvo (4.5 amp canister). I'm getting just about enough for a couple of ocean dives.

An extra battery may be an option but it would be easy to forget to change/charge multiple batteries etc.

A pro 14 canister looks like it will add a lot of burntime and allow me to loose about 3kg of lead.

So is going to a Pro 14 the best/most cost effective way of increasing burntime (9amp or 13.5amp canisters + nimh /lithium batterys look to be £££)?

If I switch to a pro 14 do I need to buy just the canister and lid? i.e. will the Salvo cord and switch fit and is this a relatively easy thing to do?

Finally, due to the size of the pro 14 I may want to keep the small canister and use it for single tank diving or travelling. Are E/O cord the only option here?

Thanks

Richard

Seydlitz(Offline)

Hi Richard ..You have answered Your own questions here ...I may be wrong..Getting a PRO14 might be the difficult bit and You may have to pay ££££ Or $$$$ for one

Salvo head with E/O cords will work

HTH Andy

PS Best Bit SLA batteries for a PRO 14 are cheap and if you look after them with an optimizer they will decay very little

think I got Yuasa 7a/h From dsonlinesales

se2schul(Offline)

Don't know if going to a Pro-14 is the "best" way, but it is one way. I dive a pro-14 for most dives and love it. I also own a 13.5 NiMH canister, but prefer the Pro-14.

Well, you'll need a battery too. Chances are that the one that comes with a used Pro-14 will need replacing. The Salvo cables and cable glands are different than the one you'll find on a Pro-14.

Not your only option, but probably your best option.

lizardland(Offline)

As mentioned, you may struggle to find the cannister as it is no longer a stock item. I asked Halcyon if they would make me a cut down Pro 14 can so I could swap the lid on to a smaller battery... their answer was yes... but there would be a wait. I know people that have waited a year+ for custom stuff from Halcyon.

I've just put a 21W Salvo head on to a Pro 14 lid, it's a very easy job. The cord fits the old style gland. Not sure why you would want to change the switch?

As it happens, I have an AUL Spec 14 (which is what the Pro 14 was based on many moons ago) with a Halcyon 18W head which I may be selling soon. However, I'm not willing to sell just the can.

I personally would steer clear of E/O cords in the sea but that might just be my bad past experience with wet pluggable connections.

Cheers,

Stuart

__________________
Can you imagine drifting along in the sea with your mouth open and a load of f***ing plankton going in? You'd like it, would you?

www.westons-cider.co.uk

The Lot isn't the only place to dive: http://www.lulu.com/content/613554

sasdasdaf(Offline)

If you look around, you can get second hand Pro 14 canisters pretty cheaply.

I bought a canister and battery second hand and put my lighthead on E/O cords so that I can move it between canisters. This has worked quite well so far.

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Matt Gentile (Online)

Hi Steve,

Interesting......Can you please expand on your preference to the Pro 14. The reason I ask is that I'm debating whether to go upgrade and go for the Explorer 13.5 18W or the Pro 14 18W?

The one reason I do know is that batteries are cheaper to replace on the Pro 14 than the Explorer 13.5, but one downside is the physical size (for travelling etc.)

Also can anyone else offer their opinions?

Matt

lizardland(Offline)

I use a Pro 14 and an AUL Spectrum 14 for cave diving and a Dive Rite 10W handheld HID for open water. Reasons I like the 14's:

- it forms part of your weighting
- lead acid is very simple, easily replaced, cheap, easily charged
- the burn time is big and to get the equivalent from a NiMH cannister I'd have to spend £££££££
- the only travelling I do with it is in my pickup
- I used to be an AUL dealer so had loads of them. I might be biased but I think the AUL 14 is a much better made cannister than the Halcyon

The Dive Rite handheld 10W HID is about the size of a fat Scout, smaller than a 18W HID head & ballast and I've fitted a Goodman handle to it. I've just put a set of high capacity NiMH's in it (runs off AA's) and it lasted 3hrs in a burn test. Brilliant for open water and a very nice backup for cave diving. I hate the 14's for diving from boats, too big, too heavy.

__________________
Can you imagine drifting along in the sea with your mouth open and a load of f***ing plankton going in? You'd like it, would you?

www.westons-cider.co.uk

The Lot isn't the only place to dive: http://www.lulu.com/content/613554

sasdasdaf(Offline)

you can't beat SLAs for reliability and cost, but they are huge and weigh a ton. i prefer to use SLA unless i am traveling, in which case i use a finnicky NiMH battery.

__________________
http://sasdasdaf.blogspot.com/

MacTheFish(Offline)

I have bought mine from ebay. 50W Halogen.

Both SLA batteries were dead.
It costed me 50 pounds to replace the batteries. No
problems ever since. I love it.


It is big but very solid.


Mac

Joe Hesketh(Offline)

Richard

I had Halcyon make me another canister last year as my old one was leaking (badly!). It only took about a month I think.

You're welcome to try and do something with my old one - it would probably need taking to a machine shop and have them shave off a tiny amount and flatten off the sealing surface again, then repositioning the latches, however that may mean that there's very little room for the lid to close (the space between it and the battery is very small).

I also have a spare lid you could use (long story). It already has an E/O cord fitted. I guess I've been fairly lucky with the E/O cords - I've never had a problem with the actual connector in salt water (they do sometime wallow out but you can tighten them up again with a tap with a hammer), though I once wore through the wire itself (the actual wire inside the cable is pretty crappy (the insulation sleeve is paper!) which eventually snapped inside and the light kept shorting - not good with HIDs as you end up hot striking the bulb).

I have a box full of batteries (help yourself) though to make a pack you'll also need a bulkhead and a half moon gimble. These are hard to get and/or expensive for what they are, though I know some people who have made their own.

Joe