Buying a New Regulator

[Deep South Divers]

I'm really disappointed in you, because you didn't even notice that I don't have the crotch strap installed...

Sorry, I was so blinded by all the pretty red paint against the polished stainless steel...

You are correct about the necklace, but honest to God it didn't sit that low before I added the Miflex hoses and swivel. I *may* remove the swivel, and I can always go to a shorter necklace, so your just picking nits regardless!:mooner:

It's not nit-picking. Having the backup reg hanging close enough to pick up without using your hands is a really cool thing - since your hands will be full of scooter and light already. Or epoxy.

Ah, well... Dive with it and see how you like it. I didn't like my "tube" necklace and Kym didn't like hers - even though it was pink.

Surprised you didn't get the red one.

The reason that I only have the harness "roughed in", is because I bought a few pieces parts from EE (EDPM bands & Inflator retaining o'ring) and they haven't arrived yet. The harness is a "Ultimate Hogarthian Harness" (Dive-Rite basic with upgrades) that I ordered from Dive Gear Express. -- Ultimate Hogarthian System - Dive Gear Express

Looks pretty nice - simple, secure, one-piece... I think you'll ditch the neoprene crotch strap cover, but the basics are there - and Dive Rite's hardware is pretty high quality stuff. You should be set up rather nicely!

Yea, I've come a long way since mid November, and even further since you "forced" me to dive a BP/W for the first time in December...

I didn't force nothin'! We got there, and I said, "Do you wanna try one of those? (Pointing to the row of backplates and wings.) Now's a good opportunity if you've ever wanted to..." What diver wouldn't take that opportunity? So much has been written about backplates and wings - and the opportunity so rarely presents itself - that I don't blame you a bit for trying it out.

The funny thing is, they had all Halcyon gear, but it was pretty beat up... Faded and frayed webbing, bleached-out fabrics, no weight integration and of course, rust everywhere from the crappy high pressure steel tanks that never get rinsed. Still, the stability, balance, control, ruggedness, streamlinedness, and performance of the system was apparent. Wait 'til you try your own, new, custom-tuned setup, Tim. You're gonna love 'em even more than you already do.

...As for now, everything sure is pretty. Like looking at a new Ferrari. Keep in mind that it'll take you a couple of dives before dialing everything in perfectly (we never did do any fine tuning in the Aquarium, so maybe you won't notice), but I think a lot of the quality of the system will be apparent right off the bat. Heck, it already is, without even diving it.

Have you showed the system to your LDS buddies? Their jaws are gonna drop. So much so, in fact, that you might actually encounter a little jealousy... So be prepared for it.

What a gorgeous rig!

In regards to stripping my tanks, how many times do I have to keep telling you that I'm just going to show up on your doorstep some day and let YOU do it..?

Hahahahahaaa... Well, it's super-easy to do, with fantastic results... So I don't mind doing it for you. Come to think of it, I'll show you how to do it on one and you can do the other, k?

...And when they're done, the system will look just as gorgeous as it does today - just shiny, polished metal instead of shiny red paint. I think they both look great - but of course, the paint isn't sustainable.

...Which is why you need to take lots of pictures of the system now, the way it is.

I could have sworn that I was told in my PADI Nitroc class that I was good to go to at least 325' on EAN36. I was gonna grab my 19cf Pony tank with 50% and figured that should suffice to get us to the Fitz and back at least twice!

-Tim

Hahahahahaaaaa... I watched a TV show about the Trieste deep submersible and the 36,000 ft. "Challenger Deep" (1960) exploration the other night. (Incredible to watch on my new 55" Samsung LCD with the Denon 5.1 Dolby Digital surround system - thanks to you.) During the show, one of my twins asked, "Have you ever been down there?" Heh.

 

[Deep South Divers]

BTW: I'm gonna have to transfer the shoulder pads from the Halcyon to the HOG though, because this sucker is heavy and cut into my shoulders pretty badly already... I've already got serious bruises just from the initial adjustment attempts.

I also think the backpad is going to be a necessity, at least for the short term until I get completely acclimated with the rig. Think of it as my safety blanket if you will.

-Tim

Yeah, man... Whatever you want to do. Keep in mind, though, that neoprene makes for awesome padding... Like gel. So the system will become much more comfortable when you're wearing a wetsuit than when you're wearing a T-shirt or whatever.

Then, of course, when you get in the water, everything goes neutral and there's no stress anywhere at all. So it really becomes a non-issue.

What adjustments are you making that require you to wear the rig, fully rigged? Your bp/wing adjustments should be done with just the plate... BAUE How To Size a Backplate

 

[Deep South Divers]

Hey, one more thing - for what it's worth...

The tanks look high in the bands to me. The top of the top band should be right at the break in the tank, where the shoulder of the tank ends and the sides of the tank begin. The way you've got it, it looks like the bands are about an inch and a quarter too low.

Where'd you get that adjustment from?

Where the tanks sit relative to the bands is really a personal preference kind of thing - the only functional difference is trim (which you'll work out with weights anyway) and whether or not the manifold or valves hit you in the back of the head when you're diving. That said, though, I think you'll find that the tanks need to move down a bit - or the bands up, however you want to look at it.

 

[Deep South Divers]

Who's manifold, by the way? Is that a Halcyon, or is HOG making a clone? Nice knobs... That's what comes on the Thermo valves that I like so much, and they're great.

I remember you getting epoxy on your Cressi reg and you being all concerned about getting another Cressi second stage. Now look at you. You're officially a gear junkie, man.

Imagine what would have happened had you gone out and purchased everything that you wanted to purchase the first time I talked to you... You'd be in a totally different country with regards to gear.

Now you've got some stuff that's really special... And will serve you, literally, in any diving you could ever want. Sky's the limit, man...

...And you didn't have to mortgage the house to get it. That's even better!

I'm seriously looking at a Megalodon rebreather... Very un-DIR, but waaaay impressive, I think. Haven't dove one yet, but I'm hoping to soon.

I doubt I'll ever completely trade out of open circuit (it just makes too much sense for the commercial work I do), but a CCR would be the way to go for a couple of dives that I've got planned.

I'll keep you posted. You need to put some miles on that pretty, new, "Ferrari" you've got there.

 

[TGreene]

Hey, one more thing - for what it's worth...

The tanks look high in the bands to me. The top of the top band should be right at the break in the tank, where the shoulder of the tank ends and the sides of the tank begin. The way you've got it, it looks like the bands are about an inch and a quarter too low.

Where'd you get that adjustment from?

Where the tanks sit relative to the bands is really a personal preference kind of thing - the only functional difference is trim (which you'll work out with weights anyway) and whether or not the manifold or valves hit you in the back of the head when you're diving. That said, though, I think you'll find that the tanks need to move down a bit - or the bands up, however you want to look at it.

Yea, as I mentioned already, I have to redo the tanks because they are a bit out of whack... I'll go ahead and raise the bands up too.

-Tim

 

[TGreene]

You need to put some miles on that pretty, new, "Ferrari" you've got there.

Hehehe, which one..?

BTW: The manifold is the Edge-HOG 300bar. --> http://www.edge-gear.com/Twin_Tank_Isolation_Manifold_300_BAR_p/manifold300.htm

 

[TGreene]

I'm thinking that you should keep the last weekend in March open on your calendar, because that would be my 1st anniversary for getting certified.

You've talked a lot about the Betsy Ross...???...???

-Tim

 

[Deep South Divers]

Yeah, man... C'mon! 430' Liberty Ship from WWII, just sitting out there, not getting dived on - well, 'cept for me.

There's NYC subway cars out there, too, that they dumped on top of it. I've got some old video and other information at Deep South Divers! Come get wet with us! . I also did a recent article that was published in some local magazines, based on new information that surfaced when I was contacted by one of the dozen or so remaining crew members. The article is at http://www.deepsouthdivers.org/bross.doc . Sorry the file's so big - I had to keep the photos high res for publication, and I'm too lazy to make them small for you.

I haven't yet had time to redo the website with the 'Ross information, so you're getting it before it gets given to the public.

NICE manifold! Very sweet... I was hoping you'd tell me that it was a HOG...

 

[TGreene]

NICE manifold! Very sweet... I was hoping you'd tell me that it was a HOG...

It is, sorta... Edge-HOG, same company with separate divisions and the manifold is listed on the HOG side of things, so yea, it's a HOG Manifold!

 

[TGreene]

Yeah, man... C'mon! 430' Liberty Ship from WWII, just sitting out there, not getting dived on - well, 'cept for me.

There's NYC subway cars out there, too, that they dumped on top of it. I've got some old video and other information at Deep South Divers! Come get wet with us! . I also did a recent article that was published in some local magazines, based on new information that surfaced when I was contacted by one of the dozen or so remaining crew members. The article is at http://www.deepsouthdivers.org/bross.doc . Sorry the file's so big - I had to keep the photos high res for publication, and I'm too lazy to make them small for you.

I haven't yet had time to redo the website with the 'Ross information, so you're getting it before it gets given to the public.

NICE manifold! Very sweet... I was hoping you'd tell me that it was a HOG...

That was a great read SeaJay, and I'm looking forward to getting to dive her.

Hmmm, with all of the divers in your area, maybe we could talk Chris into joining us and hosting a "HOG Demo Day"...