Reflective material

[Dominic]

I finally got two DIY projects kicked-off this weekend.

By good research and planning I got hold of the components necessary to build an interface between my dive computer and my nice new Palm PDA.

By pure luck, I got hold of the stuff necessary to test some ideas about reflective materials...

So I'd just like to ask a few questions about the stuff.

1) Who's got reflective patches on their kit? Drysuit, BCD, SMB, wherever..

2) What do you think about them? Great idea, not worth bothering about, prefer not to have them, or what?

3) If it were possible to get your cylinders coated with the stuff, would you do it or not? Why?

In case of any doubts, I'm not talking about a mirror-finish or anything: It's the grey tape stuff you get on those bright yellow jackets that policemen and construction workers all seem to wear these days, that just shine at you from the darkness when you're driving.

I have them on the cuffs of my Otter drysuit, Buddy jackets have them on the pockets IIRC, some SMBs have them stuck around the top... they appear in a fair number of places. So what are people's thoughts about them?

[Dominic]

I know you're out there. I can hear you breathing.

[Lou]

Hi Dom

Got them on the Otters, as you say, and on the shoulders of my Seamann Sub BC.  I would get it put on the hood for surface viz, but the stuff is so bright in torchlight that I wouldn't want it all over the tank.  Maybe a stripe for buddy finding from the rear, but not so much as it is annoyingly dazzling (like the folks with strobes on in 10m viz at Stoney - what's all that about?).

HTH

Lou

[John Gulliver]

I have it on my hood, ordered it after reading Diver's tests. I would also have it put on the inside of my forearms if I bought a new drysuit (again after reading Diver's test). Like Lou, I'm dubious about having it put on the whole surface of my cylinders but can see good reasons for putting a strip on each cylinder. I'm all for anything that will improve my chances of getting picked up alive and well after a dive.

[John Gulliver]

I have it on my hood, ordered it after reading Diver's tests. I would also have it put on the inside of my forearms if I bought a new drysuit (again after reading Diver's test). Like Lou, I'm dubious about having it put on the whole surface of my cylinders but can see good reasons for putting a strip on each cylinder. I'm all for anything that will improve my chances of getting picked up alive and well after a dive.

[Dr Stevil]

I think it's a good idea, I've got a yellow reflective Sam Brown (bought if for my bike test never worn it since), thought I might adapt it for my hood (glue and stitch) and put a stripe or two on my dSMB (glue only)
Chee-az
Steve

[Dominic]

Why is dazzle perceived as such a worry?

After all, this is the same material used in roadsigns to make them visible at night - if twin car headlights at full beam in the middle of the night don't dazzle you, why are torches going to? Has everyone bought a 50w HID while I wasn't looking?

Just as a point of interest, by the way, you might like to look at some of the results of my prototype experiments - basically I've just used different types of media to get the reflection going.

This is them with no light being reflected back (Indirect lighting)
Link

This is them with the camera flash being reflected back:
Link

As expected, the best results are from the most bloody awkward method. The most interesting part (for me) is the white disk: If you study both pix, you'll notice that the reflective portions are actually darker than the non-reflective portions when the light isn't being reflected.

The square bit, btw, is a bit of proper reflective tape bought from a shop, just as a comparison.

[Dr Stevil]

</span>

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]Quote: from Dominic on 8:39 pm on Jan. 13, 2003
Why is dazzle perceived as such a worry?

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Dazzled in British waters? Chance would be a fine thing!
Personally I like to be (and like my buddies to be) as visible as possible, there nothing worse (well, there is actually) than the last glimmer of light as your buddy disappears into the murk. I was thinking that I could use some of that stuff to make removable bands that could be clipped onto cylinders as desired
Chee-az
steve

[Lou]

The problem with it is that the larger the area (and therefore the amount of light reflected back at you) compared to the area of your torch beam, the less detail you make out other than the reflection.

A small patch is as easy to see when it catches the beam as a large patch, but doesn't wipe out all your &quot;peripheral&quot; vision.

Just my perceptions of the situation

[Dominic]

</span>

Originally Posted by [b

Quote[/b] ]I was thinking that I could use some of that stuff to make removable bands that could be clipped onto cylinders as desired

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My current aim is to get some magnetic sheeting that I can cover in a reflective coating, and put on my cylinders as and when I want to - I'm currently tempted by the idea of blue and red diagonal stripes

Lou - I can see where you're coming from. But bear in mind, reflective material only reflects when you shine your light onto it - it doesn't reflect light from other sources. That's the way it works - all light is reflected back towards its source.

I don't often get into a postion where I shine my torch at my buddy; he's usually next to me while torch beams are out in front.

The time when I WOULD be aiming to get my buddy in a torch beam would be when I'd lost sight of him and was shining my torch all around looking for him. At that point, the bigger the reflective surface, the better my chances of seeing him, is my basic line of thinking.

PS I fully agree with your comment about those numpties at Stoney with those poxy strobes that are visible from half &nbsp;a mile away