Basic skills in a hogarthian rig

[PeterB]

I'm a pretty new scuba diver. 29 logged dives, OW, OAW, Nitrox, Search and Recovery and Rescue diver cards. I have also not been diving frequently. Did all of the above in 4 months in Sydney, and have only logged 8 dives in last two years. Just before I left Manly I picked up a full hogarthian rig (Halcyon BP/W, regs with the long primary hose, etc). I'm still getting used to it, but I have a couple of questions about practicing basic skills in such a rig (I've read through most of the GUE materials and will be taking a fundies course hopefully this summer, just looking for some hints in the meantime!).

I took a scuba refresher last night just to get back into the water. The instructor knew about the kit, but had never taught on it. That raised a couple of things.

Firstly, I have dived with a snorkel before. When trying out of air drills I realized why that's probably not a good idea with a long hose as I lost a little time getting round the snorkel when passing my primary reg. Seems to me I should have snorkel for ocean dives, but keep it in a pocket while I'm underwater. Any rules around that? Do you wear the snorkel into the water, then stow it before you descend or do you just jump in with it stowed (or does it depend on level of chop, etc). Also when you come back up do you only rig it to your mask if you need it or do you almost always rig it on surfacing just in case you might need it? Alternatively, *does* anyone dive a long hose and keep a snorkel on underwater in open water dives? If so, any hints on keeping it out of the way when passing your primary reg to a buddy?

Secondly, we did a "remove/put on BCD" drill in the pool. I was fine, but *sloooow* as I had to remove weight belt, remove rig, put rig on, put weight belt on. Definitely took me longer to do that than with a BCD. Any hints on the right way to do such drills? Do people drill often on taking off and putting on BP/W under water? Any suggestions on getting better/quicker at it? I considered just putting the small amount of weight I needed for a 3mm wetsuit in a pool - maybe 2-4 lbs in my tank pockets, but when I dive a thicker suit in salt water (which is where I'm more likely to need the skill) I have a weight belt, and most dive boats like to see a little ditchable weight anyway.

Any input much appreciated. I love the setup I have and would never go back, but I feel like I've still got a ways to go to be a good diver. For example, I can't imagine being able to take off and put on the rig in a hover. What would people say are a decent set of skills to say "I'm pretty safe with this rig"? Any additional drills I could work on if I get some pool time or spare dive time (I'll be tagging along for my GF's OW dives in Thailand next week, so I'll probably have some time for drills . . .).

Any thoughts much appreciated!

 

[Cave Diver]

Regarding the snorkel, 99% of my dives have no need for one. On the few that do, a flexible snorkel that can be stowed during the dive works fine. I just slide the tube under my mask strap to hold it in place.

Gear removal and replace just takes a little practice to get used to. My first few times I forgot to disconnect the drysuit inflator hose and got a little hung up.

Yes, it can be done while hovering.

Deploying your long hose, switching to back up, then stowing backup and going back to primary are the skills I would deem to be the most essential. As long as you have air, you can work the rest of it out.

 

[carrielsal]

I no longer use a snorkel. My reg stays in my mouth and my mask on my face until I am back on the boat.

 

[PeterB]

Thanks for the feedback, and I should clarify my original posting. I didn't mean to suggest that it was impossible to get in and out of the rig in a hover. I just wanted to admit that I'm probably not up to doing it right now - guess that's what training is for

 

[paddler3d]

I have a soft rubber snorkel that I use for freediving that folds up and can be stowed in a pocket. Like Carrielsal said, I keep my reg in my mouth until I'm on the boat. The snorkel is more or less there as an item that I hope to not need, but thankful if I need it!

Doing some of the BC skills are slower with a Hog rig vs. traditional set up, but some are quicker. Weight removal and replace, IMO, is faster and easier with a weight belt vs. weight intergrated. I think what makes the skill more challenging, maybe the wrong choice of words, but you have the extra step of the crotch strap. Traditional BC folk tend to have sternum straps, cummerbands, so on so forth.

The most challenging issue with this, your config, is dealing with others that aren't familiar with it.

Practice your long hose deployment and replacement. Donating your primary is not much different than donating an Octo, however you need to have a bit more 'English' so that you clear the hose from behind you head.

 

[GShockey]

Since you are planning on taking a GUE class this summer, I suggest you get in contact with the instructor you are planning on taking that class from. They will be more than happy to help you out I am sure and the information you get will not be in any way contradictory to what you will need for your class. It is also an excellent way to introduce yourself to him or her and start making plans.

Best,

Guy

 

[lamont]

Firstly, I have dived with a snorkel before. When trying out of air drills I realized why that's probably not a good idea with a long hose as I lost a little time getting round the snorkel when passing my primary reg. Seems to me I should have snorkel for ocean dives, but keep it in a pocket while I'm underwater. Any rules around that? Do you wear the snorkel into the water, then stow it before you descend or do you just jump in with it stowed (or does it depend on level of chop, etc). Also when you come back up do you only rig it to your mask if you need it or do you almost always rig it on surfacing just in case you might need it? Alternatively, *does* anyone dive a long hose and keep a snorkel on underwater in open water dives? If so, any hints on keeping it out of the way when passing your primary reg to a buddy?

I don't carry a snorkel. If you live in the tropics and have pretty fish to look at on long surface swims, you might want one. Gas used from a tank on the surface is also largely negligible and part of having a 500 psi gas reserve at the surface is being able to breathe off your regulator in case of any surface conditions. This is where gas planning comes in, to make sure that you do have that 500 psi at all times.

Secondly, we did a "remove/put on BCD" drill in the pool. I was fine, but *sloooow* as I had to remove weight belt, remove rig, put rig on, put weight belt on. Definitely took me longer to do that than with a BCD. Any hints on the right way to do such drills? Do people drill often on taking off and putting on BP/W under water?

Nope. Not a skill you're actually likely to ever use. That drill is more about comfort in the water as you're fiddling around with gear. Having the BP/W annoy you even more makes it an even better drill I guess...

The important thing to be able to do is to ditch your gear at the *surface* in order to be able to get back into some boats. There you might be able to deflate your wing slightly and chicken wing out of it. Or else put your regulator in your mouth and grab your tanks and pull them over your head (a little awkwards and slow and first, but gets better with practice).

Any suggestions on getting better/quicker at it? I considered just putting the small amount of weight I needed for a 3mm wetsuit in a pool - maybe 2-4 lbs in my tank pockets, but when I dive a thicker suit in salt water (which is where I'm more likely to need the skill) I have a weight belt, and most dive boats like to see a little ditchable weight anyway.

As a newbie it is probably good to stick with the ditchable weight.

Again, if you have 500 psi of gas and a working regulator in your mouth, you shouldn't need to ditch weight as an emergency maneuver in a panic. Good gas management, buddy awareness and ability to share gas can avoid the problem of running OOA (which immediately limits your options).

Any input much appreciated. I love the setup I have and would never go back, but I feel like I've still got a ways to go to be a good diver. For example, I can't imagine being able to take off and put on the rig in a hover. What would people say are a decent set of skills to say "I'm pretty safe with this rig"?

S-drills, valve drills and pre-dive checks.

You always need to do a check that the long hose is deployable and that you've got your backup regulator bungee loop on. The long hose can get trapped by the backup bungee, can get trapped by a drysuit hose, and can get trapped by the waist belt webbing, etc and you need to catch that in pre-dive. You can also forget to put the necklaced backup on.

Then you need to be able to execute an efficient s-drill in order to be able to donate gas safely. And its good to be able to manipulate your own valve (hopping in the water with the valve only partially on, or closed, is a reasonably common issue).

Beyond that, i think the next skill would be a mental one, which is gas planning...

 

[Tortuga68]

I always carry a snorkel. In my bag. Good for snorkelling during surface intervals when you get bored

 

[japan-diver]

As others have said the snorkel is either in a pocket or back on the boat- they are not needed when diving - if you insist on having one a stowable one in a pocket is fine if needed just put in under the mask strap. The weightbelt should be under the crotch strap so a removal and replacement can be done without taking it off. With a properly balanced rig ditchable weight is not something needed- in fact the last thing I want is my weight to come off underwater as this could lead to an out of control ascent.

 

[Tortuga68]

The weightbelt should be under the crotch strap

Here we go again