Changing from a typical open water rig to DIR style?

[zimm]

I've been doing a lot of internet reading and I'm thinking about changing my rig over to DIR style.

Currently I'm using a Dacor Rig with the weight pockets cut off (they fell out on me three times). A US diver's Micra adj regulator and octopus, and a matrix master dive computer in a pivot console.

I currently dive open ocean in Hawaii and I'll be moving to Pensacola, Florida where I plan on open water, basic wreck diving and maybe even getting into cavern or basic cave diving in clearwater once I get more experience.

I plan on buying a backplate and wings soon. My question is mostly in regard to the regulators and hose routing. According to DIR, I should just have my pressure gauge without the console and mount my computer on my wrist.

Do I really need a 5 foot hose for open water diving?

I've been diving for 4 years and 40+ dives, so I'm very open to changing my gear style (I don't have any habits yet).

Where can I learn more about setting up my gear?

 

[Tavi]

http://www.gue.com/equipment/jj-hogarth.shtml

 

[gentlegiant]

I got my C-card in late February and since then have logged 42 dives. I have found that my gear is slowly evolving towards a DIR type setup. I went from a single yoke style 1st stage with primary 2nd, octo, inflator hose and SPG and computer in a console with a Zeagle BC for my 1st 15 or so dives to using 2 Apeks TX-50's with a 7'hose for the primary, bungeed backup reg (TX-50 as well), LP inflator and SPG. My wife and I currently use H-valves (DIN) on steel tanks and are diving Transpac II BC's. My computer went from console to wrist around dive 16. I am currently looking at backplates and may make that switch in the near future. I amy not agree with all of the DIR philosophies, but streamlining and simplifying gear does make good sense. Of course I have had a great deal of feedback from some good technical instructors along the way and have read a great deal from many sources. I am about to take the TDI advanced nitrox and Deco proceedures classes and my wife and I were both told by our instructor that we are way ahead of the game on our equipment config. If I had it to do over again I probably would go with a DIR setup out of the gate, but this has been a learning process for us. I try to learn something on every dive trip and every time I go to a dive shop. It is my personal opinion that the DIR crowd should try to spread their message more, but do it in a non-confrontational way. Find a happy medium to start with and educate divers by presenting them with the options instead of the "if you are not diving DIR then you are going to die" approach that many of the more vocal DIR promoters seem to have. There are very few people on this board who are like this, the cases I am referrring to are posters on other boards. The DIR posters here like Uncle Pug and others have helped me a great deal.