Bungee 2nd stage necklace, adds difficulty to doff in water and hand gear off to boat?

[Doby45]

If I am handing my gear up what do I care if I can get the reg back in the bungee quickly? I can work that out on the boat. I use the thick rubber necklace to hold my back up second and I pop the reg right out of the necklace and hand the whole BPW up , primary reg is bolt snapped to upper right shoulder d-ring and the shorter secondary is inside my harness against the backplate.

 

[johndiver999]

It definitely is more of a pain with a necklace. It took me many many dives to learn to remember it when getting out of the rig. On the other hand, it is worth it. It is the safest and cleanest way to rig the second stage.

Just make sure it is long enough and elastic enough to easily pop off your head. The only problem is forgetting about it, the actual removal is easy and fast.

 

[Dogbowl]

Hi. I'm thinking about going this route, but for pretty much all of my diving I have to take my kit off in the water and someone lifts it into the boat. This can offer a challenge if the water is choppy, which it often is.
How much harder would it be with a bungee second stage?

I also have that problem and it’s super annoying trying to remove a bungeed second by pulling it over your mask and trying not to remove your mask at the same time. It doesn’t work for me. My mask always comes off doing it that way. I think the method by which you remove the second from the bungee and leaving the bungee on your neck might work. (But then what do I know? Everyone else is more experienced than me LOL)

As for myself, after diving Raja Ampat’s currents on an LOB with a dinghy, I’ve decided long hose with bungeed second is not optimal for such diving. I asked the LOB to lend me their recreational setup and was much happier. I’m going to rethink what I will do with my setup going forward. Maybe maintain two different configurations for different kinds of diving.

 

[AJ]

Preparation is key here. During my safety stop I switch from long hose to backup. Free and clip away long hose. Then pull the bungee over my head. When I reach the RIB I'am fully prepared to get out of my harness and hand off my gear. Nothing special about it, just be ready when you reach the surface.

 

[TrimixToo]

There is some justification in making the bungee snug enough that it will hold the reg in your mouth at need, in case you get to the surface and start to lose consciousness. You can switch to the secondary to buy yourself time to be rescued if you are unconscious. When it's that snug (mine is), pulling it off without the mask is somewhat harder. It will pull out of the bungee, though, without too much trouble, though securing it again afterward would be difficult.

 

[tbone1004]

@Dogbowl pull it off from behind your head. Most people will naturally grab the second stage and try to pull it up and back. Grab the back of the necklace and it comes off a lot easier

 

[Dogbowl]

@Dogbowl pull it off from behind your head. Most people will naturally grab the second stage and try to pull it up and back. Grab the back of the necklace and it comes off a lot easier

Thanks @tbone1004 , I will certainly give that a try!

 

[tbone1004]

Thanks @tbone1004 , I will certainly give that a try!

alternate is your personal preference. I will usually turn my mask around on the back of my head when at the surface anywhere. When I go to take the suicide strap off, I take it off from the front, but same concept you are pulling it over the strap vs. the mask itself so it is less likely to be dislodged.

 

[Compressor]

I do what @tbone1004 does. I clip the primary to the right shoulder D-ring then put the 2nd stage in my mouth if water is tough. A soon as I ready to hand off my gear to someone on the boat, I pull the bungee off the back of my neck. Mask stays on my face until I am out of the water.

 

[Caveeagle]

I will just add, that a feature I like on the Xstream 2nd stage is the integral loops for a neck bungee. I am planning to use this 2nd stage for my CCR bail out reg and really like the low profile, and the perma-mount makes it much less likely that it could become dislodged and hard to mind if I am ever in a ****-hits-fan moment.

Not to hijack the thread, but to me that’s the point of a neck bungee. If you ever REALLY need that reg in a hurry, you know where to find it, and it’s not swinging around behind you. I will add the benefit of keeping it clean and protected, it’s in a good place.