What are YOUR hose lengths and why?

[nwbrewer]

Ideally I want a rig that allows me to side mount, and then when someone at the beach says they need me for a dive I just put a tank in back and go with out any time for setup, or futzing. I have basically worked out how to make it so the left reg can be moved in an instant from sidemount to single back mount with just a din adaptor. I have to use their yoke tanks for the backmount. (I am considering switching my left reg back to yoke to eliminate the need for the adaptor, but I don't like not being able to swap first stages from left to right, underwater since I have actually need to do that a few times.

Maybe it's the part of the country I'm in, but for me, yolk tanks implies an al80. If that's the case, just move the RH 2nd stage onto the left reg, and use the al80 on the left side of your sidemount rig. It's close enough to neutral that it's no problem to single tank SM an al80.

 

[beanojones]

hard plates don't work particularly well for sidemount, so don't do that.

That's good info to know. I think what I want is the proper SMS-100 or Nomad with the one piece 'Backplate' and sewn in bladder to make everything less annoying. I still have seen neither in person, unfortunately.

 

[beanojones]

Maybe it's the part of the country I'm in, but for me, yolk tanks implies an al80. If that's the case, just move the RH 2nd stage onto the left reg, and use the al80 on the left side of your sidemount rig. It's close enough to neutral that it's no problem to single tank SM an al80.

I have to dive with gear that looks like the customer divers gear when diving for others. I would only dive sidemount in singles or doubles, I f I had the choice, but when companies are paying me to dive I have to dive backmount. It's intros, and guiding mostly when I am working for other companies.

When I am taking my own customers, they get to see what a single tank side mount looks like. I am using a 40inch hose, and an Air2 on the left so that's proper main and AAS whether or not I have the right tank on or not, and it means no changes for using the right reg for backmount are needed, other than taking the bungies off the doubled back HP hose (I keep an 18" hp hose that can drape over my right shoulder with back mount, and be doubled off for side mount. It's not ideal, but it allows the gear in my car to switch with only a DIN adaptor. Since I cannot move the inflator off my shoulder to keep the rig ready for backmount use.

It also makes entry and exit easier. freedive out and deposit the right tanks in the water at deco/safety stop depth first thing in the morning, and pick them up on the way down and drop them off, leaving the water to swap out the left tank only between multiple dives.

I have made the full switch to Luxfer AL80's after a the first 50 or so sidemount dives done fighting with steel tanks (and no wetsuit/Drysuit). I have loved steels for a long time, but since I have to switch to the 7.25" HP steels for fitting into boat tank racks, I am never getting full fills anyway, so the extra air advantage is not there.

 

[CaveMD]

Actually, I did consider putting my Apeks XTX50 on the left tank (which is reversible). However, decided I'd rather keep the Atomic B2's I have on both tanks for now (however, that may change -- I like both regs, and using one of each may help with the reg/tank "situational awareness").

The 22" hose coming off the left bottle is *not* looped around my neck... only the long hose from the right bottle, so the 22" is plenty of length. It's on a right angle swivel, hanging off the necklace, so it's not unwieldy at all, and actually gives me more slack for head movement than I need. The minor excess loop it creates just hangs down in front of the left shoulder strap, out of the way of everything else (and it's a MiFlex, so it tends to just lay where it's placed, even when charged). I've actually considered trying a 20", for additional streamlining.

It's a work in process, so I'm sure I"ll be continuing to tweak as the rig "settles in."

I see you're in Birmingham -- if you're ever heading to Blue Water, PM me. I go there often, for the very purpose of working out the little kinks. I'd be happy to show you how it's rigged.

-Barry

I believe we're closed through Jan 3 for the holidays now(I only work during the summer really anyway so I'm not 100%).

I leave the 32" w/ swivel and the 7ft both looped around my head. It keeps the hoses snug and streamlined next to my body so they have less drag and less likely to get caught on something. My solution to the problem Rob mentioned is to always put the left tank on first with the necklace going on first. That way the left hose is always underneath the 7ft. The 7ft is routed with one loop left on the tank then going from right tank across my body over the left shoulder, behind my head and coming to my mouth from the right. The thing about sidemount...it's all about preference.

I personally am not a fan of myflex, I went back to all rubber pretty quickly.

 

[BKP]

I believe we're closed through Jan 3 for the holidays now(I only work during the summer really anyway so I'm not 100%).

I leave the 32" w/ swivel and the 7ft both looped around my head. It keeps the hoses snug and streamlined next to my body so they have less drag and less likely to get caught on something. My solution to the problem Rob mentioned is to always put the left tank on first with the necklace going on first. That way the left hose is always underneath the 7ft. The 7ft is routed with one loop left on the tank then going from right tank across my body over the left shoulder, behind my head and coming to my mouth from the right. The thing about sidemount...it's all about preference.

I personally am not a fan of myflex, I went back to all rubber pretty quickly.

Sounds good... so, perhaps I'll see you there late spring...

I'm with you on going back to rubber on the sidemount configuration, except for the left bottle reg hose. I find the MiFlex tends to stay put better when charged. However, the original 5' MiFlex I bought for the right bottle was an absolute non-starter -- its torsion properties in a long hose suck (IMHO), and tend to fight you when looping and routing. That's just not the case with rubber, so I'm on a 7' rubber right bottle hose now. Works perfectly. However, I *do* use a MiFlex on a single back mount rig for both my primary and octo. In a mid-length, where routing is minimal, it completely mitigates "jaw-push." In fact, it worked so well, I replaced the rubber swivel hoses on my B2's with mid-length MiFlex. Even the swivels on the rubber hoses stiffen up enough when charged to give me jaw-fatigue in a multi-dive day.

 

[beanojones]

So the MiFlex torsion effect on a long hose is now regularly accepted? I remember posting about it three years ago and no one else even knowing what I was talking about, or so it seemed.

With the seven foot hose (Which I think I am required to use teaching tech under PADI rules), how is it routed? Is is bungied down from the beginning or what? I have never used can lights so that trick is a non-starter.

 

[BKP]

So the MiFlex torsion effect on a long hose is now regularly accepted? I remember posting about it three years ago and no one else even knowing what I was talking about, or so it seemed.

Well, I can't speak for anyone else, but that's my opinion for the long-hose MiFlex. Anything less than 38" and I'm there with MiFlex. However, greater than that length and it seems to have very strange torsion properties -- perhaps due to the external braiding... don't know. And, this all applies to low-pressure MiFlex... I don't use the high-pressure versions... too many blowout issues.

With the seven foot hose (Which I think I am required to use teaching tech under PADI rules), how is it routed? Is is bungied down from the beginning or what? I have never used can lights so that trick is a non-starter.

On the right bottle 7-footer, I have it looped once through both hose keepers on the bottle, almost the full length of the tank (originally used a couple of 1" thick keepers I bought somewhere, however, switched to makeshift shock-cord loops... they're looser, and easier to replace the hose at depth after drills), then up and around the back of my neck, and hanging off a 90-degree swivel to the reg. Seems to work.

 

[beanojones]

Well, I can't speak for anyone else, but that's my opinion for the long-hose MiFlex. Anything less than 38" and I'm there with MiFlex. However, greater than that length and it seems to have very strange torsion properties -- perhaps due to the external braiding... don't know. And, this all applies to low-pressure MiFlex... I don't use the high-pressure versions... too many blowout issues.


On the right bottle 7-footer, I have it looped once through both hose keepers on the bottle, almost the full length of the tank (originally used a couple of 1" thick keepers I bought somewhere, however, switched to makeshift shock-cord loops... they're looser, and easier to replace the hose at depth after drills), then up and around the back of my neck, and hanging off a 90-degree swivel to the reg. Seems to work.

(As always thanks for your input. And to everyone else sharing ideas and experiences. New years a good time to think about how great this place is for a wide exchange of ideas, and be thankful for the willingness of everyone to talk about things to help each other.)

So you have to re-bungie the hose every time you deploy, huh? I have yet to put a 7 footer on the right side, and if deploying it means I would have to rebungie it, I might stick with the short hose on the right for now. I end up dropping off the right tank pretty often and a seven footer would need to be double wrapped when I do.

BTW, any ongoing thoughts about the SMS-100? (It seems like it might be nice to see separate threads for each major rig in the SM field, but since I am still playing with various home brew solutions I would have nothing to say about any of the proper ones.)

 

[Imbodie]

Hose lengths for sidemount

Ok... LOVE the article... BUT

what about long hoses on both cylinders?? I brought this up in the chat room tonight and about got ran out..... Should I be looking at one long and one short 2nd stage hose... or would I be way off the reservation by using two long 2nd stage hoses?

Thanks for your input...

 

[Dive-aholic]

I've had students that prefer 2 long hoses. If it works for you that's fine. The main issue is keeping the hoses from tangling up in each other. In order to successfully incorporate 2 long hoses you absolutely need to make sure one is never trapped by the other.