KISS Rebreathers announced this week that its SIDEWINDER 2 has officially received CE approval.
Unlike conventional CCR development paths, the SIDEWINDER 2 didn’t evolve from existing designs, according to the company.
The project began with laboratory research focused on developing a fundamentally new scrubber concept. Only once this breakthrough was achieved did the team move on to refining each subsequent component, followed by the implementation of manufacturing technologies unseen in rebreather production, including spin and hot plate welding as well as six-axis robotic part processing.
Some objectives were widely considered unachievable by industry experts — particularly injection molding large, thick-walled polyacetal components to 100-micron precision, the company said:
“Achieving this level of accuracy was only possible by involving a small group of exceptionally committed engineers, both passionate and bold to take on near-unattainable goals.”
The result is a fully modular rebreather system that performs identically across multiple configurations, including sidemount, backmount and chestmount. SIDEWINDER 2 delivers cold-water performance, CE-rated scrubber endurance of up to 240 minutes at 4°C/39.2°F, high resistance to overbreathing and increased tolerance to flooding — all within a lightweight, compact and robust construction.
The SIDEWINDER 2 is protected by four international patents, covering key elements of its design and technology, according to the company:
“These patents reflect the originality and depth of engineering behind the system, and clearly distinguish it from anything previously available on the market.”
With CE certification now complete, SIDEWINDER 2 enters its final rollout phase. Units will shortly be delivered to CCR KISS instructors, followed by crossover training to the new platform.
First user-level courses are planned for late summer, the company said, adding:
“We firmly believe that SIDEWINDER 2 will become for CCR diving what XDEEP STEALTH 2.0 became for sidemount diving: a system that sets a completely new standard and establishes itself as the reference point for all others to follow.”
