Am considering getting combo BCD inflator/Octopus

[RAWalker]

The one thing about using a inflator/octo is don't go cheap.
As I stated this emergency reg is for your use! The other thing is Practice swapping to the alternate. Practice OOA drills. Practice manually inflating your BC with the combo. In general be very familiar and comfortable using it. (Another reason to get a good one)
Like primary second stage regs some breath better than others.
The Sherwood Gemini is a great breather but you must cover the exhuast port to manually inflate it. The Aquatec Air 3 uses it's exhuast port as the dump button so while blowing into mouthpiece you are also depressing the button and sealing the exhuast port for manual inflation. It works like a standard inflator without special consideration. (as long as you completely depress the button) It's considered a good breather also.
As for an Octo bungied around the neck it is a popular way to wear it. I just don't like loops around my neck and still feel the extra hose is at risk for getting caught or hung up pulling the octo from it's bungee and allowing it to drag. Not that it is likely if properly worn just a higher risk.

 

[Ben_ca]

The one thing about using a inflator/octo is don't go cheap.
As I stated this emergency reg is for your use! The other thing is Practice swapping to the alternate. Practice OOA drills. Practice manually inflating your BC with the combo. In general be very familiar and comfortable using it. (Another reason to get a good one)
Like primary second stage regs some breath better than others.
The Sherwood Gemini is a great breather but you must cover the exhuast port to manually inflate it. The Aquatic Air 3 uses it's exhuast port as the dump button so while blowing into mouthpiece you are also depressing the button and sealing the exhuast port for manual inflation. It works like a standard inflator without special consideration. (as long as you completely depress the button) It's considered a good breather also.
As for an Octo bungied around the neck it is a popular way to wear it. I just don't like loops around my neck and still feel the extra hose is at risk for getting caught or hung up pulling the octo from it's bungee and allowing it to drag. Not that it is likely if properly worn just a higher risk.

I had a rescue this last weekend and the guy was struggling to stay afloat and could not inflate his BC.. we came over and assisted and I was having a hard time also... There was only 1 button and 1 purge but when I started to push on the "inflator" It sounded like it was venting... Needless to say the guy was having even a harder time staying afloat.... he finally was able to get it to hold air and calmed down...

Me: " How do you inflate this friggin thing... How do you manually inflate it!!!??? W.T.F. is up with this..."

Him: "It seemed like a good idea at the time!"

I'm not a big fan of the combo's to start with and after having a hard time helping someone with their BC I am even more convinced that there are better systems out there

 

[bamamedic]

I had a surprising issue when trying to use my AIR2 in the pool one day...

I realized that I couldn't keep it in my mouth reliably without my hand holding it in place ...the pull of the hose was too much.

Maybe I just have weaker jaw muscles than the rest of the scuba diving population, but this became an issue for me, because I realized, that with one hand completely occupied with holding the AIR2 in place, how was I going to calm my OOA buddy, hang on to his BC, and dump air at the same time? With only one hand free?

I realized, though the AIR2 may work well for some people, it just didn't work well for me...

 

[Oxy]

I had a surprising issue when trying to use my AIR2 in the pool one day...

I realized that I couldn't keep it in my mouth reliably without my hand holding it in place ...the pull of the hose was too much.(snip)

Am I OVER analyzing this whole scuba gear thing?
That is yet another question I had involving the combo. shorter hose (actually 2) with cover. One would have to position their head to match the mouthpiece and have little or no mobility. And back to breathing properties? Being de-tuned so as to not FF at the surface, will it be more difficult to breath (not desirable when a panicked diver jerks my air at an inopportune moment).

If I'm going to do a lot of solo diving, I would still like the combo. As I currently have 0 dives and the next nn dives will be with like divers. I think I am going to look into a standard octo using an alpha 8 or legend. Something I will be comfortable with if the other diver should choose my primary.

 

[bamamedic]

I think a lot of it was that the standard AIR2 mouthpiece didn't have very large bit tabs...not a lot to hold onto.

I just felt uneasy at my ability to task manage (with using the AIR 2 as a primary breathing device, having to dump air as needed, remembering that the "inflate" button was now near my mouth instead of dangling along my chest, having to deal with a possibly panicking buddy on a very short primary hose, etc) so many things, especially with as little diving experience as I do.

My biggest issue...none of my buddies were willing to practice air-share drills!

I was way more comfortable going to a long primary and a necklaced backup...seemed like all of the pluses I liked about a combination octo/inflator, with none of the minuses I had percieved about said octo/inflator.

 

[Oxy]

Can always change to a combo when experience allows experimentation

 

[bamamedic]

True, true...

Off topic...Oxy, is that your cat? That's a cool-as-hell cat!

 

[Oxy]

$#*% NO! I didn't want a cat but sandybch just had to have one (actually I i really like cats) It's her cat but it's my fossil GW tooth.
his name is "Dude" but earned several other names poop, doo doo, $%#* head, and most recently, Tripod (thanks to a fast car).

 

[bamamedic]

My boyfriend has a cat...I grudgingly lived with it for awhile, but lately, I've really come to like the darned thing. Her name is "Isis" and she's a big orange-and-white kitty with a nasty habit of trying to drink my milk out of the cup, and shedding on my neoprene gear.

Cool shark tooth, BTW. It makes the cat look like a mini tiger or something LOL

 

[jchance]

After diving for the last 30 years and teaching or assisting for the last 25, I find the AIR II set-up fine for myself when diving simply for recreation or warm water travel. My wife and 3 sons all dive with them under the same conditions. HOWEVER, when with students, in cold water, in a group with which I am not familiar or any type of situation that is technically more difficult than true recreational conditions, I revert back to the old octopus arraignment. It is also something that you must practice and realize it's limitations. Once on the AIR II set-up, you pretty much must head for the surface. Your dive is over at this point and you must accept this. You pretty much cannot continue in this arraignment as I have seen done with octopus set-ups.

In a true OOA situation, the 'old school' teaching of hand signals and waiting for the reply and second stage delivery simply does not happen. Each and every time that I have had to deal with this, I have had someone trying to pull my second stage out of my mouth which leaves me with my back-up. I no longer try to stop them. I just open my teeth and grab for my back-up. The other person is usually (almost always) somewhat of a novice and panicky. That being said, you will find a plethora of opinions on this board about this issue and must decide what style diving you are going to do and what risks you are willing to inherently take.

BTW--The only time I have personally experienced an OOA situation, it was at night, in a fresh water spring, at the mouth of the spring, while attempting penetration into the spring. My regulator failed at about 80 feet at the mouth of the spring. My buddy's octopus was no where to be seen because she had let it fall down her back between her and the backpack when donning her equipment and was currently dangling down her backside unseen. Not a situation where I would have used an AIR II, but I wish she had on this dive. What was the other mistake? Lack of a complete pre-dive buddy equipment check. That never happens again either!!