Best way to see if a mask fits before buying?

[Cichlid]

Originally Posted by CompuDude

Nearly any mask will stick you if you suck in hard
enough. Unfortunately, that's not how the mask fits in real life
once you get underwater. It's also important to try it on with a
snorkel, regular or mouthpiece in your mouth, because that's how your
mouth will be underwater.



Put mouthpiece (or whatever) in your mouth. Get the strap out of
the way. You won't use it all for fitting. Place the mask
on your face, gently, and look straight up. Inhale through your
nose as gently as possible... try to see if you can possibly inhale
gently enough to draw air in through gaps but NOT suck it to your
face. If air rushes in easily, it's not a good fit. If it's
extremely difficult or better yet impossible to allow any air to get in
by inhaling super gently without sucking the mask to your face, held in
place only by gravity as you look up at the ceiling, then you have a
good fit.

I thought this was a good technique that CompuDude replied with to a
question in another thread. Anyone do anything different if you are
limited to a dry test?

[cummings66]

That's how I do it, but still I don't have a mask that won't leak when I do an S drill, or even smile. I can't find a mask to seal those lines. I hear there's a sticky substance comes in a chapstick tube that helps, but I can't think of the name of it.

[Lucky(AR)]

local dive shops if have a pool will let you try them sometimes before buying i will never make the mistake of buying a mask without trying again wasted over 200 bucks listening on what to buy and what brands are the best try your dive buddys are local shop...of course then buy from scuba toys for the best price....lol

[cummings66]

Mask's are expensive. I bought one from Larry and got it in, went diving and guess what? I found the exact same mask except it was black instead. It'd been down a while and needed cleaning up, the LDS's didn't know who lost it (had an instructors head band on it) so I claimed it as my own. Now I've got two of them.

[Cichlid]

Originally Posted by Lucky(AR)

local dive shops if have a pool will let you try them
sometimes before buying i will never make the mistake of buying a mask
without trying again wasted over 200 bucks listening on what to buy and
what brands are the best try your dive buddys are local shop...of
course then buy from scuba toys for the best price....lol

Yeah but what about when getting your mask from Walmart, what do you do?





Joking. [img]smileys/smiley5.gif[/img]

[jacewindu]

i agree with testing (if possible) in a pool. almost anything can 'fit right' if you suck in enough, but testing under 'dive conditions' is best

[somewhereinla]

Breath in if the mask stays on, it's a good seal.

[CompuDude]

Originally Posted by somewhereinla

Breath in if the mask stays on, it's a good seal.

Wow, is that ever wrong.

Re-read the first post.

[przeor]

that's how I size my sweatpants.... maybe that's what he meant?