directing valves inside (to the chest)?

[Scuba_Aaron]

I can kind of visualize this, are the spg's on a longer hose than 6""?

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

6"

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

 

[Scuba_Aaron]

@Norwegian Cave Diver, Thanks for the visual! Are you doing the bungee around the tank knob or tank neck?

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

Around the opposite side of the knob. The 1.25" stub.

 

[Caveeagle]

I suppose if you are not diving extreme restrictions, the down config would work OK.

Well, an "extreme" restriction would be gear removal or no mount anyway, so if your afraid of scratching up your regs, you best turn before that.

I consider dives like Itchy-Blue Hole (aka Jug) to be the text book "sidemount cave". It has real restrictions, and is virtually impossible in backmount. I have dove this cave quite a few times with regs down. I really don't see your point.

Diving regs down in a cave would be a dumb idea. And reading your SPG's as they lay on top of a tank is easy - and they also are better protected.

There are a lot of accomplished cave divers that would disagree. But I guess you are just more enlightened.

 

[vovanx]

Its is simple really. Reach back - slide your hand up the tank until you feel the gauge - feel with your thumb that the face is up - so that it is readable when you look at it - continue to look forward - scan your surroundings - use your light if necessary to illuminate your gauge - bring your light forward again and look at your gauge. Never are you looking at your gauge with your light on it. Practice that a few times and it will become second nature for you. Right now - stand up - close your eyes - reach back with your hand and pretend you are wearing your sidemount tanks and try it. Its easy.

why so complicated? with fixed SPG I can just push the tank a bit forward to see the gauge:

- one hand operation.

 

[KevinNM]

SPG up works just fine. Use rubber hose. Don’t bend it much. Under a few thousand PSI it will stay straight and against your chest. If it starts to sag in a few years buy a new 6” hose.

 

[Norwegian Cave Diver]

why so complicated? with fixed SPG I can just push the tank a bit forward to see the gauge:

View attachment 476792

- one hand operation.

Haven’t seen that configuration before, bent in half with a zip tie. Not sure I like the stress to the hose. But it’s interesting.

 

[tbone1004]

@vovanx and @Norwegian Cave Diver that's essentially standard DIR stage rigging, though the SPG usually goes between the first stage and the valve to protect it and allow the regulator hose to swivel. That said, if your rigging is done right, there should not be enough slack to pull the valve far enough forward to read that. You can see in the picture below where my bottles sit relative to my body. The lower attachment point is only as long as the bolt snap so it is not possible to pull the valves over 12" forward to read them. If you have them sitting up where the razor style bungee puts them, then sure it's not hard, but I don't consider those bottles truly sidemounted. A 9" HP hose with the first stages facing down is still near impossible to see with this tank configuration. SPG's facing up is significantly better and they press into my arm pit so there is 0 potential for them to drag in the mud