Helium Escapement Valves?

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starcraft

·Apr 9, 2019

so silly question i cant seem to find an answer for... do you (a) unscrew the HEV whilst underwater; (b) dive with it already unscrewed; (c) unscrew it after you resurface?

 

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Foo2rama

·Apr 9, 2019·Nowhere near as grumpy as he used to be...

starcraft

so silly question i cant seem to find an answer for... do you (a) unscrew the HEV whilst underwater; (b) dive with it already unscrewed; (c) unscrew it after you resurface?

The He valve should never be opened underwater. Omega manuals for years have stated 50m water resistance with it open though. They also touted this as a “new” feature on the newest PO models...


That being said... there would never be a reason to open an He valve underwater.

Welcome to wonderful catch 22 of Deep Saturation watches.

Do I need to explain why?

 

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starcraft

·Apr 9, 2019

Foo2rama

The He valve should never be opened underwater. Omega manuals for years have stated 50m water resistance with it open though. They also touted this as a “new” feature on the newest PO models...


That being said... there would never be a reason to open an He valve underwater.

Welcome to wonderful catch 22 of Deep Saturation watches.

Do I need to explain why?

Sorry, perhaps I'm a little dense.

-The He EV is there to release He when diving to save the watch from building pressures.
-It cannot be opened under water
-It cannot be opened prior to diving.

Huh?

 

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STANDY

·Apr 9, 2019·schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collector

It’s opened in here after your dive

Google saturation diving

 

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ahsposo

·Apr 9, 2019·Most fun screen name at ΩF

Most of the time it's opened here:



Google Desk Diving

 

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starcraft

·Apr 9, 2019

STANDY

It’s opened in here after your dive

Google saturation diving

so its a stupid "complication", that has literally no benefit for 99.99% of people? hmm

 

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STANDY

·Apr 9, 2019·schizophrenic pizza orderer and watch collector

More 99% of people that don’t dive buy dive watches

 

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Foo2rama

·Apr 9, 2019·Nowhere near as grumpy as he used to be...

starcraft

so its a stupid "complication", that has literally no benefit for 99.99% of people? hmm

Exactly it’s worthless except to extreme saturation diving when you live under water at great depth in an He environment. You can then argue a GMT is more useful then a Dive bezel....

 

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89-0

·Apr 9, 2019

Excellent Jacques Cousteau special on saturation diving (some good watch-spotting too):

 

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starcraft

·Apr 9, 2019

Foo2rama

Exactly it’s worthless except to extreme saturation diving when you live under water at great depth in an He environment. You can then argue a GMT is more useful then a Dive bezel....

This

 

R

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Rsucesso

·Dec 29, 2019

starcraft

so its a stupid "complication", that has literally no benefit for 99.99% of people? hmm

Actually much less people.

 

R

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Rsucesso

·Dec 29, 2019

They say the new 300m can reach full 300 meters underwater with unscrewed he crown. So I wonder:

Why bother screwing it? if one can no downside leaving unscrewed and (theoretically) if you screwed and forget to re-open in a decompression you may have your crystal popped out...

Why is it even screw-able?

 

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ahsposo

·Dec 29, 2019·Most fun screen name at ΩF

Things that aren't screw-able aren't much fun, now are they?

 

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zinengineer

·Dec 29, 2019

I suspect this has been beat to death; my perspective is - I don’t dive, did some recreational diving a few years ago and used a Timex triathlon. However, I do have a new SM300 with “the valve”...why? Because I like it

I also don’t fly, but have a few pilot watches. I buy and wear what I like and want regardless of complications

 

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simonsays

·Dec 29, 2019

It is a silly solution to a non existent problem. Like a massive spoiler on a sports car, that is only effective at speeds above 200mph, and only when turning left.

 

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Archer

·Dec 29, 2019·Omega Qualified Watchmaker

The number of people who "need" a watch capable of going down to 300 or 600 (or more) meters is also very small. None of this is about "need"...these are not really being sold as practical goods.

 

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simonsays

·Dec 29, 2019

Archer

The number of people who "need" a watch capable of going down to 300 or 600 (or more) meters is also very small. None of this is about "need"...these are not really being sold as practical goods.

I agree, but at least this is suggestive of better design and build quality.

 

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ahsposo

·Dec 29, 2019·Most fun screen name at ΩF

"these are not really being sold as practical goods."

Another cherished illusion crushed...

 

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padders

·Dec 29, 2019·Oooo subtitles!

None of us here need a He valve. It’s a wart and was a clever and necessary marketing gimmick back when the SMP was launched to differentiate it from the previous comparatively less impressive Pre-Bond and for that matter the then (and now) ubiquitous Rolex Sub. From that POV it was a big success, well that and the Bond product placement. Today, particularly in its engorged latest form it is an unwelcome addition IMO.

Edited: Dec 29, 2019

 

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Archer

·Dec 29, 2019·Omega Qualified Watchmaker

ahsposo

"these are not really being sold as practical goods."

Another cherished illusion crushed...

Whoops...my bad! 😁