The max speed of the scooter largely depends on the model, the battery used as well as the pitch of the propeller and the drag that the diver creates going through the water due to trim and equipment carried. For example a free diver will typically move much faster than a fully laden technical OC or CCR diver. Taking an average sized OC diver using a twinset and a stage: the standard body Sierra with a standard NiMH battery travels at approx 180'pm, the long body Sierra NiMH is a little quicker at approx 190'pm. With a Li-Ion battery the standard body will also do approx 190'pm. We have no test data for a long body powered by Li-Ion batteries.
The Cuda is the fastest X-Scooter achieving speeds in excess of 250'pm.

The distance that the scooter can cover on a single charge will depend largely on the speed setting that the diver is using as well as all of the other factors that effect efficiency such as drag and propeller blade pitch.

An averaged sized technical diver using a twinset with a stage and travelling at a cruise speed of 150'pm can expect to travel 2 miles on a NiMH standard body Sierra, 4 miles on a NiMH long body Sierra and 4 miles on a standard body Li-Ion. The range of the NiMH battery packs is increased by 20% by using the 16ah NiMH battery packs. For example the standard body Sierra will achieve a cruise range of 2.3 miles and the long body 4.6 miles.

The Cuda can cruise for approx. 5 miles.The maximum ranges for all of the scooters are significantly reduced by travelling at their maximum speed.

The way that a diver typically uses a scooter on a dive is not easily reflected by burntime figures. With the exception of diving in a cave, most scooter dives involve the diver constantly coming on and off of the trigger whereas burntime figures are based on constant use. This means that a scooter is likely to be useable for much longer than the pure burntime figures as the diver is typically not on the trigger all of the time.

At a cruise speed of 150'pm (speed 3), a typical diver can expect over 60 minutes burntime from a standard body Sierra powered by a NiMH battery pack (over 70 minutes on a high capacity 16ah NiMH pack). The long body 13ah NiMH and the standard body with a Li-Ion pack will cruise for 130+ minutes. The Cuda will cruise for over 3hrs.

Travelling at maximum speed will significantly reduce the burntime of all of the scooters due to the inefficiency of running at higher speeds.

Out of the box all of the X-Scooters are positively buoyant in salt water but high capacity batteries will make the standard body negative in fresh water. We recommend that the scooters are setup to be slightly positively buoyant so that they rise approx 1'pm whilst maintaining a flat horizontal trim.

It is up to the user to weight them correctly for fresh water and for salt water by adding ballast in the form of lead shot. For the cost of the lead, Deep Ideas can use shipping scales to pre-weight the scooters before they are despatched to the user. Due to the method used the end user may need to fine-tune the weighting once they receive the scooter but most of the time this is unnecessary.

Adding accessories to the scooters such as video camera housings may significantly alter the scooter's buoyancy characteristics and require adjustments to be made to the weighting.

The X-Scooter range of DPV's are lighter than all of the alternative scooters in it's class. The less a scooter weighs the more likely you are to bother taking it to a dive site. Heavy scooters tend to sit in their owners garages gathering dust whereas lightweight scooters are more likely to be used on every dive and thus are a much better investment.

The X-Scooter is constructed from aluminium, which means it does not compress at depth like other scooters. Because it does not compress it's buoyancy characteristics do not change and it's o-rings do not compress; something which can lead to flooding on other scooters.

The X-Scooters have the fewest number of potential water penetrations of any scooter on the market (2). This means that they have the fewest points of failure that can allow water ingress.

The ability to change speed on the fly is a key feature lacking in many of the alternative expedition class scooters. This allows easy speed matching within a team.

Other scooters use brushed motors, which have moving parts, are much heavier, generate lots of heat (inefficient), require routine stripping down and rebuilding, have poor flood tolerance and are generally more prone to failure than the brushless motors used on the X-Scooter. The X-Scooter motors are rated for 10,000hrs at 10,000 RPM. They run at approx 800 RPM. These motors will never wear out or require any maintenance.

The X-Scooter range is largely modular so unlike other scooters you can chop and change between bodies and batteries to suit the application.

The X-Scooter has full service and repair support based in the UK so you don't have to wait for replacement parts or send the scooter back to the USA for servicing.

Other scooters have fragile trigger mechanisms that rely on cables. The X-Scooter trigger mechanism is a solid stainless steel rod which cannot snap or become dislodged whilst on a dive.

The X-Scooter is highly flood resistant and highly flood tolerant i.e it is extremely difficult to flood it, but even if some how you were to manage it you are unlikely to do it any permanent damage.

Rinse it out with fresh water and allow it to dry. Check for any corrosion on the copper contacts and check the fuse. You should be good to go.

Get in touch with Deep Ideas and tell us what's happened. We may be able to resolve it over the phone or we may need to send replacement parts out to you or it may need to be returned to us if it requires more work. Warranty repairs need to be cleared with the Dive Xtras factory and any repairs not covered by warranty will be charged on a time and material basis. Telephone support is free for as long as you have the scooter.

The battery and charger are covered by Rabbit Tools or DeepSea Supply (depending on which battery technology you are using) so if we cannot resolve the issue over the phone you will need to engage with them directly. We may be able to arrange the loan of a battery or charger to keep you diving (subject to status and availability).

The scooter should be very comfortable to ride. If you are getting arm ache it would suggest that your tow cord is too long and therefore the power of the scooter is going through your arm instead of the tow cord. Shorten the tow cord by sliding the knot until the cord is taking the strain with your arm fully extended.

Having the tow cord too short and gripping the scooter handle at an awkward angle typically causes wrist ache. Slide the knot to lengthen the cord until your arm is out straight but not so long that it becomes slack as this will lead to arm ache (see above). Refer to your owners DVD for more information.

It sounds as though the scooter is incorrectly weighted. Add additional ballast to the nose; or if that results in the scooter becoming negative remove ballast from the tail.

You can usually clear it in the water by pulling it out and rotating the prop counter-clockwise. Back on the surface check for signs of there being any left in there, if in doubt then strip down the backend and remove any remnants. Refer to the PDF document on your owners DVD for the exploded diagram of how to disassemble the backend. If you are unsure then get in touch with Deep Ideas and we will talk you through it.

It's nothing to worry about in so far as you won't hurt the scooter by losing a bit of paint. In fact some of the very first prototype X-Scooters were not painted at all and are still in regular use today.

Every X-Scooter in use around the world is scratched to some extent so you're in good company, however if it bothers you there is touch up paint available which perfectly matches the X-Scooter and contains the correct powder coating. See the Deep Ideas online shop for details.

The X-Scooter is made from 316 marine grade stainless steel and 6061 T6 aluminium, both of which have excellent corrosion resistance. It has a zinc anode to further protect the alloy in addition to two layers of powder coating. Not that any of these additional measures are particularly necessary because the original prototype X-Scooters were uncoated and without anodes and they are still in regular use today without showing any signs of corrosion. Always rinse the scooter with fresh water thoroughly after use and you should never experience any corrosion.

You can for short distances to give your right hand a break or to use your right hand for something on the side but really the X-Scooter is designed for right-handed operation.

This is because your buoyancy controls are typically on your left; use your right hand for scooter control and your left hand for buoyancy adjustments, controlling your primary light and equalisation.

Whenever you have finished using the scooter you should lock the trigger to prevent it from engaging accidentally. Then you should unclip it from your scooter D-ring and pass the boltsnap through the handle and then through the nose D-ring. Finally clip it off to your right hand side chest D-ring and push it under your arm. It should float comfortably and out of the way under your arm as if it was a stage bottle. You can then begin your ascent as normal.

Either switch to a backplate and wing system or buy a scooter tow-cord harness from the Deep Ideas online store.

Always speak to the skipper of the boat for guidance on how they want the scooters stowed. If there is a bottle rack you may be able to store the scooter there as the X-Scooter is designed to be the same circumference as an ali80 dive cylinder. Another method that works well is to turn the scooter on its side so that the handle is pointing down into the deck. Then wedge lead dive weights tight against the opposite side to prevent it from rolling.

All batteries are potentially dangerous if misused, abused or badly designed, however the idea of Li-Ion batteries exploding due to contact with water is a complete myth with no basis in reality.

The batteries made for the X-Scooter are expertly designed and made from high quality cells with built in cell protection so in normal operation you can be assured that they are not going to surprise you. Homemade battery packs are less predictable and we do not recommend their use.

NiMH and Li-Ion cells are much more expensive to buy than lead acid and therefore the battery packs that are made from them are more expensive. The key advantages of these more expensive packs is that they offer far superior energy to weight ratio resulting in much more useable scooter. They also have a much longer life span and last many more charge cycles compared to lead acid. They are lightweight enough for you travel with them on airlines so your scooter can be used abroad.

The X-Scooter is an excellent scooter for cave diving applications due to its weight and its reliability. The X-Scooter is not suitable for scenarios where the scooters are being staged in the water weeks ahead of actually being used due to the trickle discharge of the battery, however there are no more than a dozen people in the world doing this type of diving and the chances are you are not one of them. Anyone arriving at a cave site and doing the dive the same day (or even within a few days), the X-Scooter is the ideal tool for the job.