Lost buddy prevention

[Marie13]

Photo of said mirror please.

I’ve found the display of my Perdix works pretty well at this, too.

 

[Cdncoldwater]

If leading (nav) I tell my buddy to stay one one side and beside or just behind me on that side at the same level so it's easy to check. If I'm not leading then I ask which side they want me on. Low vis areas we confirm light signals for okay, help and turn dive at a minimum. I shore dive almost exclusively where I live (good vis is 15 feet here) so if diving with an unknown diver or less experienced one and leading I put them on the side closest to the shore or a wall to avoid current shifting them to the open ocean.

 

[DogDiver]

As an instructor I’ll add my 2 cents worth. With students at Gilboa Quarry in poor visibility I would position myself just above and at their fin position. I would have buddy teams stay within arms reach of each other.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

It would moderate the sharp snap when your buddy takes off, I'll keep that in mind.

I was thinking "bungee buddy" where if they stretch the cord, it pulls them back so they smack into each other.

 

[Jcp2]

Maybe somebody can adapt a tandem skydiving harness for underwater use.

 

[Edward3c]

My (noob) buddy and I are both scared of losing buddy but both are tired of twitching around every few mins to look for each other, so we thought of using a reel (~ 6 feet) to hook our D-rings together - with the understanding that if something were to go wrong, you'd pull it.

From the scale of 1-5, how stupid and/or dangerous would this be?

I don’t consider it particularly dangerous, inconvenient yes. I used to carry a buddy line for occasions when vis dropped below 1m. I once clipped it onto a buddy who kept shooting off, so I got him to pull me round. Unclipped before surfacing, they never knew.

 

[SlugLife]

I use a small round mirror bungeed to the back of my hand. I just raise my hand and move it around until I can see my buddy or their bubbles. Works pretty well not 100% but it does reduce the amount of turning and looking.

Then there is tank tapping with a rock, it will at least tell you if you're close, if you can hear each you but can't see each other you can have a signal to surface and regroup.

I'd be curious to see it as well. I'd imagine you want a curved mirror, since the field-of-view on a small flat mirror wouldn't be great.

Just poking around on Amazon, something like this desk-mount mirror might do the trick, because it comes with an arm, although it's a little big at 3.5 inches and would introduce drag. A wrist-mounted (like a compass) one might also be a good option. A helmet-mounted one would be neat, if you're already wearing a dive-helmet.

Something like this might even make good safety equipment, if done properly. "I think I'm hearing bubbles" ... and then you could do a quick visual-check. Same for checking entanglements. I often have a hard time seeing my chest and equipment clipped to it, and it might be useful for that as well.

edit:
This $5 mirror would probably work for a very inexpensive wrist-mounted option.

Another one, designed for bicycle handle bars.

Wrist mount style is apparently available. The reviews aren't the greatest but might work well for scuba & good for those who don't want to DIY a solution.

edit2:

I ordered the $5 mirrors. Worst case, I'll probably stick the extra one on one of my cars or computer-monitor. I'll probably mount it to my wrist with a couple short lengths of bungee-cord & see how I do or don't like that.

I am tempted to experiment with the one with the desk-mount one, once I get my dive-helmet setup.

 

[AfterDark]

Photo of said mirror please.

Said mirror:

I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS WAY OVERPRICED AND SHIPPING IS OUTRAGOUS!
This is like the one I have but mine was $10.00 free shipping.
hand worn buddy mirror in SCUBA and Snorkeling Products | eBay

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

Said mirror:
View attachment 665593 View attachment 665594 View attachment 665595

I DO NOT RECOMMEND THIS WAY OVERPRICED AND SHIPPING IS OUTRAGOUS!
This is like the one I have but mine was $10.00 free shipping.
hand worn buddy mirror in SCUBA and Snorkeling Products | eBay

The motorcycle hand mirrors work better when mounted on the back of the hand due to the tilt

 

[lowwall]

There's also this flat mirror from Mako - GoPro Status Mirror

A Polish company makes a version with a convex mirror for a much greater (but distorted) field of view. Here's a review: 360 Observe - Divers Rear Mirror - Divernet . It looks like it's only available through Scuba Choice in the US (free shipping if you get it via eBay): 360 Observe Mirror Wrist Strap | eBay