DIR and SPG

[Kevrumbo]

Attaching the SPG to the inflator hose --especially in a doubles set-up-- can confound the problem solving processes of the Nine Failures Valve Drill: http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=140829&highlight=9+failures
(i.g. inflator hose leaking, you shut down the Right Post, but what if the leak was really coming from the SPG? Whoops, then you shut down the Left Post . . .Oh No! You've just shut down both your Posts!!!:11: )

 

[ae3753]

During air shares the receiver really has no need to see the SPG. Since the dive is immediately turned if an OOG situation pops up, either the team has enough gas to make the exit or they don't. Being able to see the SPG doesn't change that fact.

True, seeing the SPG does not change the fact that you will or will not have enough gas to exit.

However, on the occasions that I was the donator in an OOG or LOG situation, the receiver was always happy to know that I had plenty of air for both of us to end the dive safely.

 

[FishTaco]

Also,if you keep your spg where it belongs your team can quickly check your remaining gas supply, for turn pressures, "rock bottom", etc., without having to ask you and interupt the flow of the dive.

Chris

 

[Kevrumbo]

During air shares the receiver really has no need to see the SPG. Since the dive is immediately turned if an OOG situation pops up, either the team has enough gas to make the exit or they don't. Being able to see the SPG doesn't change that fact.

For a 3-man Team on gas sharing egress from an overhead, both the receiver and initial donor should have an idea how much backgas is left to share --you just might have to switch to the other teammate for long hose donation:
http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=2504233&postcount=12

For open water DPV Diving OOG Scenario, an SPG reading and an estimation of how much burn time you have left on your DPV Battery determines whether you can scooter back to the egress point side-by-side with gas sharing, or being towed while gas sharing --or begin immediate gas sharing ascent to Deco Stops & the surface, completing any necessary deco gas switches along the way. . .

 

[Ben_ca]

Standardization

 

[Kendall Raine]

On another thread someone said the SPG is a back-up device for your brain. That's exactly right. As you progress, you'll need your SPG less and less. Put differently, with practice you'll develop a sense for what your remaining gas is without having to look at the SPG. It's all part of situational awareness-like knowing where your buddy is, your cumulative average depth, where you are, what day it is, etc. Once you get that going, you'll know why having the SPG attached to the inflator hose, or otherwise not neatly stowed away, is unnecessary, along with undesireable for the reasons others have mentioned.

Try this as a mental excercise. The next time you dive, try guessing your remaining pressure at various points during the dive. Not every five minutes, but every 20. Only after you've guessed a number do you confirm the accuracy of the guess with your SPG. After a while this will become instinctual. Have your buddies do the same thing. Before long, you'll find yourself checking the SPG only two or three times during an hour long dive. Not because you're sloppy, but because you know in real time-without the HUD nonsense-what your remaining pressure is. You'll also start to have an idea what your buddies pressure is, too.

 

[Meng_Tze]

Also,if you keep your spg where it belongs your team can quickly check your remaining gas supply, for turn pressures, "rock bottom", etc., without having to ask you and interupt the flow of the dive.

Chris

Shouldn't have to.......

 

[GreenDiverDown]

My advice...

... leave the length alone... don't get a longer hose... you WILL get used to it.

With thick gloves it's OK to use a larger bolt snap. When replacing the SPG on the D-ring you can use your index finger as a 'hook'.

 

[DIR-Atlanta]

With thick gloves it's OK to use a larger bolt snap. When replacing the SPG on the D-ring you can use your index finger as a 'hook'.

One thing to be aware of is that the part of the snap that is actually manipulated (the knob on the "bolt"), is about the same size on practically every size bolt snap there is. Using a larger snap provides a larger "handle" to grab onto, but does not necessarily make it any easier to open or close - that only improves with repetition, which is why it's important to practice with it for a while before deciding that you need a different snap.

I rarely dive in water that's cold enough to require thick gloves, but when I do, it usually takes me a bit to adjust to the lack of tactile feedback. Stephen's suggestion to try the index finger instead of the thumb is a great one - I typically use my thumb for snaps that get clipped to my hip ring, and my index finger for snaps that get clipped to my chest ring. That seems to help mitigate the "fumble fingers" that I experience when wearing thick gloves.

 

[Dan Gibson]

Don't raise it under your arm to view it. Bring it around over the top of your arm when reading it and it will be sufficient in length.

Also, the hose length seems short (this is with a single tank only). Even unclipped, I can barely raise it closer to my face then when it's clipped off.