Dive Rite Sidewinder Primary Reel
Line length specifications on reels are approximate and the diver should confirm actual length before relying on a precise distance measurement.
Dive Rite Sidewinder Primary Reel
- Injection molded polycarbonate spool
- Anodized aluminum lightweight frame
- Generous size handle for easy deployment
- Compatible with Dive Rite’s exclusive QRM system
The Dive Rite Sidewinder Primary Reel features an injection molded polycarbonate spool with a lifetime replacement warranty against breakage, cracking or warping. The marine grade stainless steel axle and high quality aircraft grade aluminum frame are highly corrosion resistant. The black knurled lockdown screw has a low profile to prevent snagging, and the lockdown screw is made of HDPE to prevent bimetallic galvanic corrosion between the screw and frame. Compatible with Dive Rite’s exclusive QRM system. All DR Sidewinder Reels include a marine quality 316 stainless steel double-ender, line stop bead, and in the Primary versions a factory pre-load line choice of {400 ft | 122 m} orange #21 polyester, {400 ft | 122 m} white #24 nylon, or {250 ft | 76 m} white #36 nylon.
Dive Rite Sidewinder reels offer a couple of unique benefits associated with their design. The Dive Rite spools are held in place with an e-clip, making it a simple matter to remove and replace the spool. This means the diver can inventory spools loaded with several different types of line and quickly swap the line load in order to configure the reel for a specific mission. The design also means it is quick and easy to clear a reel jam by removing the spool. (The Dive Rite reels are not prone to jams, far from it, but we've yet to see the 'jam proof' reel. Reel jams occur regardless of brand or design because the proper function of any reel also depends, in part, on the skill of the user and sometimes just plain bad luck.)
Reel dimensions are: Spool Diameter is 4.25", spool width is 3" (bare), overall dimensions are 5.25" H by 5.25" W by 4.25" D
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| Brand | Dive Rite |
|---|---|
| SKU | DR-RE50XX0 |
| Weight | 2.500000 |
Customer Reviews
The Original Sidewinding Style Cave Reel
The first cave diving reels were characterized by lantern style handles that hold the reel vertically. This classic design is simple and works reasonably well for cave diving, but has the disadvantage that the handle is an open ended Γ-shape. The open end of the inverted L makes it an entanglement hazard and the lantern style handle also does not scale up well for very large reels. As cave explorations were becoming longer, deeper, and more extensive, a reel was needed that could help an explorer make some serious penetrations into a virgin cave system. The original sidewinder-style reel was designed by legendary North Florida cave diver Woody Jasper. He first used the sidewinding style design when inventing his large "explorer reel" around 1980. Less likely to entangle than other reels on the market, Woody’s original reel was made of aluminum and a PVC spool, see the photo of an example. The side-handle style of the reel lent itself to exploration because it could easily switch from hand to hand while laying out line. Twenty years later, sidewinder-style reels were popularized in the technical diving community when DIR aficionados began using them for paying out line in deep caves at high speed on a DPV. Today, sidewinding style reels with a closed handle have become the standard for serious cave divers.
