Buoyancy Control - HOW??

[Randy43068]

I saw a short video of someone shooting a bag to the surface while maintaining excellent buoyancy control. (Posted by vie in http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=97451&highlight=shooting+a+bag)

How does one learn to have such good buoyancy control? Is it entirely a learned skill or does equipment play a big factor? I want to dive like that but don't know how to learn it.


Reference:
( http://www.fifthd.com/fifthdnew/education/videos/bag.asp?from=education&level=2 )

Thanks!

Randy

 

[The Kraken]

Practice, practice, practice and some of that.
Just diving and working on balance, trim, breathing and buoyancy.

the K

 

[StSomewhere]

Unfortunately many agencies don't place a premium on bouyancy control in their open water programs. I know mine didn't. I also took the PPB course and was equally disappointed in that approach.

JBD here teaches a buoyancy control clinic that I took and thought was excellent, his NAUI OW students practice this from their first pool session (color me green with envy, btw). Too bad he's probably in the minority of instructors in this. Another option is that this is one of the things recreational divers are taught in GUE's DIR-Fundamentals (DIR-F) class, under real world situations.

Remember its not just buoyancy, it trim, its breathing, its proper weighting, oh, and its practice and lots of it.

 

[Diver0001]

I saw a short video of someone shooting a bag to the surface while maintaining excellent buoyancy control. (Posted by vie in http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=97451&highlight=shooting+a+bag)

How does one learn to have such good buoyancy control? Is it entirely a learned skill or does equipment play a big factor? I want to dive like that but don't know how to learn it.


Reference:
( http://www.fifthd.com/fifthdnew/education/videos/bag.asp?from=education&level=2 )

Thanks!

Randy

His buoyancy control is down right excellent. I'd go with skill on that one.

The same can not be said for his buoy skills (which is odd given what they're trying to show you in the video). It's painfully slow and awkward, not to mention well under the norm time you would be drilled on in any kind of tek class I know of.

R..

 

[RIDIVER501]

That was an excellent video clip.

His bouyancy control was all skill. The only aspect of equipment for that diver was his familiarity with it, which still falls under the skill category.

Practice makes perfect. Know your gear and practice.

 

[Randy43068]

Looks like I'm going to be practicing quite a lot!

Just when I'm thinking to myself "Hey, I'm not so bad in the water" I see this video and realize how much I really suck!

 

[Doc Intrepid]

The same can not be said for his buoy skills (which is odd given what they're trying to show you in the video). It's painfully slow and awkward, not to mention well under the norm time you would be drilled on in any kind of tek class I know of.

In the original video clips Andrew was trying to illustrate more of a step by step sequence. The clips were slow on purpose, so students could see what the diver was doing. In some of them, the diver 'paused' in between actions and the instructor would describe the sequence while the video played.

Some of these clips are still around on the internet. The student clips, at least, were teaching tools and were not purported to be shown 'real-time'. Probably best to learn it slow anyway. When the time comes that you need it for real, I bet you'll find it speeds up nicely!

FWIW...

 

[Diver0001]

In the original video clips Andrew was trying to illustrate more of a step by step sequence. The clips were slow on purpose, so students could see what the diver was doing. In some of them, the diver 'paused' in between actions and the instructor would describe the sequence while the video played.

Some of these clips are still around on the internet. The student clips, at least, were teaching tools and were not purported to be shown 'real-time'.

FWIW...

Ah....I see. That explains a lot.

R..

 

[matt_unique]

You will notice he was finning down/forward as soon as he added air to the bag. If you're neutral and add air to anything you are holding you become positively buoyant. Once the bag flew he was neutral again. He made a quick transfer and was obviously right on.

I am slower on the transfer from adding air to letting the bag fly. I transfer air from my wing into the bag (instead of adding air). That way my buoyancy does not change until I let the bag fly. Once it's away I need to add that air back to my wing.

The guy in the video made it look pretty easy.

--Matt

 

[Diver0001]

You will notice he was finning down/forward as soon as he added air to the bag. If you're neutral and add air to anything you are holding you become positively buoyant. Once the bag flew he was neutral again. He made a quick transfer and was obviously right on.


--Matt

Acutally, there is an easier way to do that that doesn't involve flipping on your back, finning in any direction, unclipping hoses, "quick transfers" or the need for suberb buoyancy control.....

Any takers?

R..