viking classic dry glove ring review

[Burntchef]

well after many months researching what dry glove system to get i finally settled on the viking classic rings. i did so with a few respected recommendations and the fact that they are so simple it seemed a easy choice.

the system consists of 2 rings one hard plastic inner ring and a soft rubber outer ring. installation was easy all i had to do was slide the inner ring down the sleeve untill it met with the taped seam and then carefully slip over the soft ring over the harder plastic one untill it locks on. took me about ten minutes total.

i opted out of buying the spendy viking gloves and just went with a pair from a commercial dive shop. you can use any gloves you want but they cant be lined at all, the whole system is based just like a neck seal so the rubber of the glove just seals itself onto the ring. the liner gloves i use were also from the same shop and at 75 cents each its worth buying a bunch.

donning the gloves is a bit tough,you stretch the gloves over the rings and pull them on untill they cover the rubber ring. the first one is easy but the second is a bit more challenging, thankfully ive got my buddies there to help.

so as long as the glove is donned correctly there can be no leaks, barring a hole in the glove but thats the same with any system. the gloves are a bit thicker then the usuall atlas ones but very warm and have textured fingers for gripping. plus they come in " tech " black .

price break down

classic ring system- $100
glove liners- $ 1.50 a pair
rubber gloves- $ 15 a pair

i bought the rings online but dci has them in stock as well as the gloves and liners. plus its a very cool place to check out some commercial dive gear, and i thought my gear was spendy!

the first link is a example on installation and the second is the local commercial shop where you can get them.

http://www.geocities.com/CapeCanaveral/ ... sGlove.htm


http://www.divecommercial.com/

thanks to J.R. for all the help and advice.

[Tangfish]

They look sweet, and the smaller sized glove looks like it works much better!

[airsix]

These are nice. I use them too and really like them. To self-don what I do is grab a glove cuff facing the palm-side of my wrist and pull it over the ring just on that side. Then I rotate my arm down and pin my wrist against my thigh to hold it in place and pull top of the glove cuff over the ring on the back-of-my-hand side. Works great even for the second one (always the hardest).

You can get the gloves pictured in your link (with the thick round rolled bead on the cuff) for just a few $ from non-diving suppliers. Harbor Freight even has them (online).

-Ben

ps - If you currently have cone-shaped wrist seals try some Viking bottle-shaped seals next time around. They fit these rings perfectly (i.e., they are made for each other.) without stretching the seals or doing gymnastics to get the rings in the right spot.