deploying lift bag or surface marker

[Soggy]

Why not?

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=43458

On a side note, if you want to quote text, press the "quote" button when replying or type

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[dbulmer]

Go forth and multiply!

 

[headhunter]

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=43458

On a side note, if you want to quote text, press the "quote" button when replying or type

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Christian

 

[Bwanar]

Whow Bob....sounds like a girl I used to date.

Me ... I went the other way. I started out with a 6-foot semi-closed bag. Then I discovered that the smaller bags are a lot easier to deploy, and use those unless in a situation where a large bag is really called for (i.e. waves or chop, where a smaller bag would be difficult to see).

I've never had any difficulty inflating the smaller bag on a single breath ... but then, I've got lungs that could power a steam calliope ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[Daylonious]

Well, not sure if this helps, but this is how I was taught (and take this with a grain of salt since I just learned how to do this (sorta) last weekend).

Diving with doubles -

Get a little negative. Exhaust a little into the bottom of the lift bag ( I use a 50 pound OMS one) to get it started, then use the primary regulater to fill it till it starts to pull you up. Then let go of bag and hang on to spool, replacing your reg.

Once the spool slows down, reel it back till you get a pretty firm tug on the line - (to me that tells me that if there's tension, the bag should be upright). Reel up to your deco stop, clip it, and hang out.

My problem is that if i'm on the bottom, no problem. I'm going out this weekend to practice shooting a bag from 40 feet or so without blowing my virtual ceiling. Backplates and doubles is tricky! I've been told that you should be able to pull out a lift bag / marker and deploy it in under a minute. The finesse comes in maintaining a constant depth while you do it. (I'm thinking if I can get faster, the depth control becomes slightly less of an issue). I'm going to try to get to the point where I could do it blindly by touch alone. A good tech diver shouldn't have to visually look for his equipment, I suppost..

Anyway, I'd say practice as much as you can.

D.

 

[mweitz]

Daylonious,

To me one of the keys to doing a lot of this stuff in mid water is your buddy. They have to be able to hold a decent stop so you have a depth reference. Then you look "through" your bag at them while shooting it for your depth reference.

I suggest perfecting the technique with reference to the bottom, then moving up 10' or so, and so on.

Mark

 

[HarryH97]

Mark,

Hope life is going well down in Norcal and the diving is still the "get in shape hike" that it is. I'll second that buddy thing you mentioned. After a few dozen times inflating an SMB, it really comes as second nature. I figure I'd addd in my comment early on a Sat morning...

You can do it well under a minute. Slow is smooth and smooth is fast. There's no real need to take a deep breath, just breathe normally, pull out the smb and rig it to the spool or in most cases, it's already pre-rigged. Taking a deep breathe forces you to go negative with the BC. Better to just practice staying neutral. Since you're in green water, without bottom reference, your buddy maintains depth. He/she should also give you plenty of light while performing the task. The buddy should also signal you if you are losing bouyancy more than 1-2 ft. Light is best clipped off while both hands are undoing the bungee wrapper. After both hands are done undoing the SMB and cliping off the double ender to the D-ring we generally keep everything on the right hand. Middle finger and thumb around the spool and index finger around the inflator. Exhale once to get the SMB neutral and another exhale to give it enough to lift off. Gas will expand, so no need to inflate all the way. Left hand is free to manage bouyancy (drysuit dump valve, BC inflator, drysuit inflator) provided you are rigged DIR and have the left side only for bouyancy management. Right hand is always out in front with the spool and depth guage/timer. Again, provide you are rigged DIR and have gauges on the right hand. The spool will get passed back to the left hand temporarily while the double-ender is being clipped in by the right hand. Done deal, all in 30-45 seconds. While all this is going on the diver is constantly doing the triad: checking depth, line, buddy/surroundings, all the way from SMB deployment, thru deco, up to the surface. Of course your buddy chillin ought to pick up the deco responsiblity. Typically, bag man and deco man are not the same individual.

Hope that clutters the mess some more.

Sincerely,
H2

 

[CALI68]

Excellent posts Mark and Harry!

Harry (or anyone else) I think posting a picture of "the hold" would be helpful too. I would but my wife has the camera today. :unhappy:

-Chris

 

[HarryH97]

Excellent posts Mark and Harry!

Harry (or anyone else) I think posting a picture of "the hold" would be helpful too. I would but my wife has the camera today. :unhappy:

-Chris

Well Chris and Mark,
You guys can come up here to Seattle and bring your cameras along to take the blow-by-blow pictures. One day, instead of the date/time stamp on the photo, we will have depth and time stamp on the lower corners...one day.

Sincerely,
H2

 

[mweitz]

Hey Harry, that is funny. I showed a guy a picture and he didn't believe it was at whatever depth. I pulled up my dive log in the computer and matched the date and time the photo was taken.

You're going to Lobos next time you're down here.

Mark