A buddy with no Octo?

[diversteve]

I did it for the better part of 9 years after I was certified. At that time most people didn't have an octo. My buddy(best friend) and I knew that we'd also be calm enough to share.

My first reg never had an octo and I used it till about 90'? I only bought an octo when I started buddying with strangers on boats after that.

 

[Packhorse]

Get a SS1/ air 2 or learn to free dive.

 

[Damselfish]

Well I am personally comfortable buddy breathing..

My reasoning for possibly going without an octo, is to remove as much excess equipment as possible.. while still scuba diving

I'm working on a travel setup for myself.. for mostly shallow reef.. 30-40 foot range.. 60 ft max..

The less stuff I have that can break, or have to pack.. the better

Right now the plan is a travel backplate, a hogarthian harness, AI hoseless computer, and a single first/second stage.... no buoyancy compensator, no octo, no pony.. Total travel weight not including mask/fins/wetsuit, about 4 pounds...
Things I'm carrying that can fail,.. first stage, regulator hose, second stage, computer..

It's not a cost issue, its a bare minimum as streamlined and lightweight as possible on scuba issue =)

I want to feel as free and unencumbered as possible..

Even though I'd dive without an octo I'd be thinking of it as a temporary thing until I had mine fixed or whatever. I wouldn't make a point of having no octo on a regular basis. Besides that an octo is easier and I believe safer if stuff hits the fan, there's a couple problems you could run into. One is that many ops explicitly say you have to have an octo. So if they notice they may not let you dive. So if you're just renting tanks and going off someplace it's one thing, but if you're planning on being on a shop's boat you may find yourself renting one.

Another thing is that "the other guy" better be ok with buddy breathing too, not just you. So it's fine if you're always with a known buddy and not around other people in the water. But if you're say diving off a boat and there is a group of people in the water, a random OOA person can come along and grab your reg. The only time I needed my octo was for a random clueless guy on a boat dive that was not my buddy, and I would not have wanted to buddy breath with him.

 

[plot]

Depends on the buddy and how many times I've been in the water with him/her before to know roughly how good their diving abilities are. (ie: if it comes to sharing air, will they be able to handle it?)

 

[ch0ppersrule]

I have an Air2, no octo. If somebody doesn't want to dive with me for that reason then I guess that is there choice. I watch my air close enough not to have an OOA situation (at any depth) and check with my buddy just as often.

 

[Damselfish]

I think for the purposes of this discussion an Air2 counts as an octo...

 

[DORSETBOY]

i would be very concerned about diving with someone who didnt have their own octopus, these things (or an alternative) cost next to nothing, I would sooner dive on my own than with someone who wouldnt pay for something as cheap as an aas.

buddy breathing isnt difficult, but i think a lot of newly qualified divers would find it awkward for the reasons mentioned previously.

 

[EliotD]

Well, I dive with a pony bottle, so I dont even intend to be needing an octo from someone else. As far as I am concerned its their choice.

 

[RJP]

Well, I dive with a pony bottle, so I dont even intend to be needing an octo from someone else. As far as I am concerned its their choice.

Yup - I figure with my 40cf sling bottle I have two choices: bail out with my bottle or grab his primary.

 

[ScottB]

Here I noticed this thread had a star in it..and I was all happy for a second, felt like being back in kindergarten and getting a gold star.. until I found out that one star means "terrible"... =(