Sidewinder vs Sidewinder 2: WORTH THE WAIT?!
KISS Sidewinder rebreather in action (Photo by Alvaro Herero)
"Should I wait for the Sidewinder 2 or just get trained on the current unit?"
I get this question almost weekly from divers ready to make the jump into CCR cave diving. It's a fair question—nobody wants to drop serious cash on gear only to have the "better" version drop six months later. But here's the thing: while we're all waiting for the revolutionary KISS Sidewinder 2, there are caves to explore and skills to build right now.
Let me break down what I see as the arguments for and against the wait what it means for your progression into rebreather diving.
KISS Sidewinder CCR components
The Sidewinder 2: What's Actually Revolutionary Here
First, let’s be clear, the Sidewinder 2 is a completely revolutionary closed circuit rebreather (CCR) not just an updated Sidewinder. In the redesign process, many components were inspected, and as it is being produced by Polish dive gear designers and manufacturer X Deep, they decided to completely overhaul the design while retaining the KISS concept of a split canister scrubber. You can read all about this process and story in InDepth Magazine’s article by KISS Training Director Patrick Widmann. Some of the redesigned features are foremost the canisters, with the new ‘cross flow’ design they now perform more like a radial scrubber, so have work of breathing benefits and perform better in cold water (as they are insulated). They also hold considerably more scrubber material (2.4kg to 3.5kg). Other novel solutions are oxygen cells which are completely floodproof, new connections designs, and manual gas addition valves. The counterlung has been redesigned - with both backmount and sidemount counter lungs - and canister mounting system will mean that it can be easily converted between single tank, sidemount or doubles.
Reality Check: The Timeline Situation
KISS Sidewinder 2 rebreather MAV
With all the new features, the launch has been delayed while fine tuning to production, components, and CE testing. While this has put off some people, it does show that X Deep and KISS are committed to getting a most excellent rebreather finalised before launching it. Recently I asked Patrick about the current timeline, and it sounds like things are coming closer! (we spoke at the beginning of April and again in June) Currently, there are 20 units waiting to be shipped out to existing instructors for testing and feedback. This will be accompanied by a 1 day workshop with one of the instructor trainers to cover all the new features and prepare the instructor for diving the unit. Once these units go out there are another 30 ready and waiting for the next batch of current instructors.
In terms of general public roll out, once the existing instructors had tested the units they will still need to do training to teach on the version 2. To become an instructor on the Sidewinder 2, existing Factory Approved instructors will first have to complete 100 hours of experience diving on the unit. With 100 hours under their belts, they will need to sign up to an instructor development workshop with an instructor trainer. This will focus not only on setting up the new unit, teaching all of the in water skills, but also reviewing KISS training materials and the theoretical components of the course. For those KISS rebreather instructors who are not already Factory Approved, this will likely be a longer process as they will have to get up to speed on the current KISS Sidewinder teaching syllabus and methods.
So where does this leave divers who want to get a rebreather but have been holding off, or those who want to upgrade? We are looking at least another 6 months before those lucky initial instructors have received, crossed over and built up their experience on the new unit. They will then need to successfully complete their Sidewinder 2 instructor workshops with an instructor trainer. So this would likely put the new CCR on the market for users at the end of 2025 or early 2026 if things go to plan.
The Cave Diver's Dilemma: Wait or Go?
KISS Sidewinder 1 rebreather components
The "Wait and See" Approach
For someone interested in rebreather diving on a KISS Sidewinder 2 what are their options? One could choose to hold off and wait for the Sidewinder 2 - saving money for that rather than spending on a Sidewinder and training.The Sidewinder 2 specs are impressive, and if you're primarily a cold water cave diver, those thermal improvements could be significant.
The "Start Now" Reality Check
Every month you wait is a month you're not building CCR experience. And in cave diving, experience isn't just about comfort—it's about survival. Waiting will slow a diver’s progression into rebreather diving, especially if they want to use one for cave diving in the future (and need to build experience and hours before tackling a cave rebreather class). Some of my students decided two years ago, after initial announcements of the Sidewinder 2 and the prototype units that had been displayed at the DEMA and BOOT expos, that they would still choose the version 1. A couple of my students have since become Cave CCR certified, done many many rebreather cave dives and even used the Sidewinder to push cave exploration projects. This would not have happened had they chosen to wait. Even towards the end of last year (2024), I had this conversation with a student who was keen to start rebreather diving and was unsure to wait. Now she is happily rebreather certified (November 2024) diving her own rebreather, building up experience and hours on the unit. Had she decided to wait for version 2, she wouldn’t have the opportunities she does now for rebreather diving.
What This Means for Your Cave Diving Progression
USING SIDEWINDER MODEL #1
starting Your CCR Cave Journey
If your goal is Cave CCR certification, you need foundation hours first. The current Sidewinder is proven in caves worldwide. It's reliable, well-understood by instructors, and has the track record that matters when you're dealing with overhead environments.
For Sidewinder divers who want to upgrade to the new model, there will likely be a short update style cross over workshop. Again, if divers were certified on the original KISS model by a Factory Approved instructor this will be a shorter process than divers who trained with other instructors. Having chatted to Patrick about it, there will also be an exchange program where Sidewinders can be exchanged for the version 2. This will be fantastic as existing users will be able to update their rebreather to the new version at a very reasonable cost.
The Cave Diving Adventures Take
The Sidewinder 2 is going to be an amazing unit to dive when it is released, but divers still have some time to wait. In the meantime, should you still want to get certified on a rebreather and begin to build hours and experience, the Sidewinder version 1 is a great unit. You can read up more about why I like the Sidewinder in an article I co-authored with Jake Bulman on InDepth. So for people in a hurry to begin their rebreather diving career, the Sidewinder still is a very good option. And for people looking for a unit in the coming years, waiting for the Sidewinder 2 will be worth it!
Making the Call | A Cave Diver's Framework. Choose the Current Sidewinder If
You want to start logging cave CCR dives this year
Building experience for exploration projects is a priority
You understand that technique trumps technology in caves
The exchange program makes upgrading financially reasonable
Wait for Sidewinder 2 If
You're primarily diving cold water cave systems
You have other technical diving goals keeping you busy
Budget constraints mean one purchase needs to last years
You're comfortable with your current open circuit cave diving
Based on current information from KISS Training Director Patrick Widmann as of March 2025. Timeline estimates reflect real-world training and certification requirements—actual availability may vary.
Ready to discuss your CCR cave diving goals?
I have extensive experience with Sidewinder training and can help you map out your progression into technical rebreather cave diving.
