Back mount pony bottle

[SlugLife]

The part that I find odd, I guess, is back-mounting a pony, which basically seems to be independent doubles, but with mismatched tank sizes.

I'm a fan of slinging the pony, that way you have full access, and can even hand it off, and you don't need any special mounting hardware.

That said, anyone who pursues redundancy, I'll usually support, even if it's not quite as "optimal" as it could be. One just needs to be aware of the limitations. For example, the people mounting it upside down and having the 2nd stage clipped to their chest are probably fine. You just need to practice with any such system to ensure it's easy to control in an emergency.

The advantage of mis-matched sizes, is mostly around (a) weight and (b) tanks.

For example, on 30-75ft dives, I'll SideMount (or Monkey-Mount) an AL19 + AL80. I still have full redundancy, but it's a lot less weight to manage when donning gear, or climbing a ladder. My tank (AL80 or HP100) is my tank, and the AL19 is redundancy-only.

If I'm diving an AL80 + AL19, and you asked me how much air I have, I'd say 80cf. Sure, I technically have another 19cf, but I usually don't count it. The pony is redundancy, not a "poor-man's doubles."

edit: And as far as (b) Tanks.... When I'm diving with other people, they're usually just doing a single-tank dive. So, it makes sense for me to effectively have single-tanks myself. Sure, I could technically do dual-40s or dual-50s, but then I'd be managing 2x as many tanks. 40s and 50s are also rarer on the used-market. There's also the VIP, hydro, and fill-costs, since around here they charge by the tank regardless of size.

 

[NYCrecdiver]

It makes a world of difference for me. The hose no longer pushes/pulls the 2nd when I move my head since it is angled down instead of out and then down.

I have to try this. I also notice a slight pull on my second. Probably because the hose needs to bend around my neck with a relatively sharp turn.

Hose takes the same route as my primary except starting near my kidney. I do it that way so the hose has the same feel when I switch or donate my primary.

Also something to try. I like the idea of both hoses being routed in the same way. Probably gonna end up closer to my body as well vs. the pony hose going over my shoulder.

I may at some point move it to a necklace but my way works just fine for now.

Don't you already have your primary octo around your neck?

 

[Boarderguy]

I have to try this. I also notice a slight pull on my second. Probably because the hose needs to bend around my neck with a relatively sharp turn.


Also something to try. I like the idea of both hoses being routed in the same way. Probably gonna end up closer to my body as well vs. the pony hose going over my shoulder.



Don't you already have your primary octo around your neck?

No Octo. I dive an air 2. I know, it's disgusting and evil and they suck but I like it. I breathe off of it every few dives just to keep it in the loop. I have adjusted my procedures to use that vs an Octo. It is 1 less hose to fail and works for me. I don't team dive and my regular buddies know my donate procedures. I don't go with insta buddies as I'd rather solo. IF I go with an insta buddy during a shop dive then they get a few minutes of briefing on my setup and I look over their rental gear. Take my primary of you need it and I'll figure out the rest i.e. my air 2 and then the pony if my 119 is for some reason already low or gets low otw to the surface.

 

[johndiver999]

Here's my personal solution to monitoring pressure on my back mounted 19cf Pony. To each his own.

I've used (borrowed) a slung deco bottle rigged like that. The spg hanging near your face was just mildly annoying, not a problem.

In a TRUE emergency, it will be comforting to know in real time your remaining gas supply versus, hoping like hell the pony was full when the incident started and hoping your are not going through gas so fast that you have to hurry the ascent. Looks like a viable solution to me for a back mounted pony, but I still prefer a necklace mount.

I use an air 2 as well. Had a failure of that this week,,, was an atomic ss1 actually which has worked perfectly. Monday it works great, tuesday I descend solo to 125 and failed to check the inflate button. On descent, no work. Get to the bottom, figure the hose is not connected, redo it, nothing, redo it again, nothing, then press the purge and the reg works fine. How the heck does the inflate button suddenly stop working? Well it is in the shop now. Oral inflate is such a pain in the butt!

 

[Cthippo]

Oral inflate is such a pain in the butt!

You know, i have never actually tried that. Yeah, I've used the oral inflator in the pool, but never in open water to actually get neutral. How much of a breath is the equivelant to a half second burst with the inflator? Guess I should find out.

 

[NW Dive Dawg]

Unless it's a bombs away.....everyone get off the surface asap type boat dive....... then I actually use my oral inflator on every dive to inflate just prior to splashing. This is of course after a quick power shot of any 2nd stages, BC power inflator and drysuit inflator just to make sure all is working and no runaways, stuck buttons or freeflows... Also just as as a final check to confirm that everything is hooked up, powered up and pressurized..

 

[johndiver999]

You know, i have never actually tried that. Yeah, I've used the oral inflator in the pool, but never in open water to actually get neutral. How much of a breath is the equivelant to a half second burst with the inflator? Guess I should find out.

It takes more than you might think. You should absolutely! be doing it in open water, both on the bottom and at the surface. I have practiced it hundreds of times in the ocean, but it is still a pain when you are tying to carry a butt load of stuff. This is an important skill that can be mildly stressful, in a real situation (assuming you are dealing with other issues) it can really be stressful because the regulator is out of your mouth.

On the same dive, (the other day,) the BC developed a significant leak and I was having quite the challenge getting off the bottom, since I dive with 8 or so lbs of lead more than I really need, in order to be very heavy and work the bottom in a current.

I was ridding the scooter up and I was worried I had a total BC failure (it was just a few punctures it turns out but it was pretty deflated on ascent and I knew I added a good bit of air orally on the bottom) so it was stressful.

I knew the air in the BC should be expanding on ascent and I should be floating up and having to dump air, but instead I was sinking. Most likely it had been leaking for a while *several dives) but since I dump and add air a lot with the power inflator, I probably never noticed the leakage issue. But I don't really know the answer to that question.

I was hand carrying a lot of stuff and did not want to have to orally inflate without being able to set stuff down on the bottom. And I had deco and was solo.. Two simultaneous failures on one BC, I ended up putting an smb on the scooter and sending that up on a line and then used that to hang under.

I had lots of air and a pony bottle and could have simply dropped a weightbelt (or sent it up on a separate lift bag. but using the lift bag for the belt would probably have to be done on the bottom and I did not want to go back down with the penalty clock ticking away. I was considering my options and was definitely getting pissed and stressed, but in reality it was a minor issue that any solo diver should be able to handle without a problem. It sure is nice having a belt that you KNOW you can ditch if you have to in a situation like that, even if it is just a plan C or D option.

 

[NW Dive Dawg]

Unless it's a bombs away.....everyone get off the surface asap type boat dive....... then I actually use my oral inflator on every dive to inflate just prior to splashing. This is of course after a quick power shot of any 2nd stages, BC power inflator and drysuit inflator just to make sure all is working and no runaways, stuck buttons or freeflows... Also just as as a final check to confirm that everything is hooked up, powered up and pressurized..

 

[FishWatcher747]

I was ridding the scooter up and I was worried I had a total BC failure (it was just a few punctures it turns out but it was pretty deflated on ascent and I knew I added a good bit of air orally on the bottom) so it was stressful.

What was the cause of multiple punctures in your wing?

 

[Fishdip]

I'm considering setting one up. The only time I used one was when we were using surface supplied air, and thankfully never needed it. So here's my though process.

Worse case is I suck a tank dry. Not sure how someone could get to that point without realizing they are low in air, but it's worse case. If that happened, the octo on my main tank is not going do anyone any good. Me or a buddy. No air to breathe, inflate the wing or the drysuit. That's what's called a bad day.

More likely case is that I find myself low on air. At this point there is still enough to inflate the wing and drysuit but maybe not enough to get to the surface safely.

So considering the more likely scenario, I'm thinking a back mounted 19cu pony with it's own 1st and 2nd stage. Maintain the octo I currently have because I wont always need a pony bottle. That will give the breathing air I need while using what's left in the main tank for wing and drysuit inflation. The assumption is that if I ever needed to use alternate air, the dive is over. Maybe hang the pony 2nd stage on a necklace.

Does this idea hold water? I would also likely be in a FFM if that matters. I don't really dive solo anymore, but even on group dives there are many instances where I might venture away from the group. Far enough away that should something go wrong, I may not make it to a buddy's octo.

I keep a pony on my rec gear. Its a 19cu I do it because of a few reasons but the biggest one is even well taken care of gear can fail and I dont want to rely on someone else to save me.