DIR Article - Gear Configuration

[JeffG]

I put those in frivolously and they certainly weren't directed at you, although, after re-reading the thread, it certainly appears that way. I offer my apologies for my misstep.

yea yea...you were trolling. Admit it.

 

[do it easy]

Yes indeed, and I caught more than the limit!

 

[limeyx]

Not if it has a purge!

I think Jeff is on to something... Let's take our average diver, call him Ace. He's just starting out diving and he's not made of money, so he buys things piece by piece.

1) regs, doubles, and BP/W
2) can light
3) wetnotes, SMB, spool
4) drysuit and jet fins
und so weiter...

At what point does he become DIR? After he buys the can light? Maybe after the SMB/spool?or maybe it's a mindset that motivates his gear choices?
What if Ace doesn't want to dive in caves or wrecks, and doesn't want to get into deco? Does it matter which side his can light is on?

You cant "become" DIR by buying gear.
You can definitely be DIR and not go inside wrecks and caves.

 

[limeyx]

Excellent thread.

I'm not a DIR diver, but I do see merit in a streamlined, consistent gear system.

I've seen what happens when we tried to get a person thru a cavern course with a single large steel cylinder with h valve attached to a jacket BC, diva no less. It was a tragic setup, there was no easy way for the individual to clip anything off. The next 2 days the same person used a completely foreign Hogarthian setup to complete her Cavern class. She did remarkably well and I recently helped her setup her new BP/W setup when it came in.

...
Who'da thunk? Me, thinking about taking a fundies class.:11:

I think if you take the GUE training approach, as you move through, you will see that gear (although it is vital to get it right) makes up a smaller and smaller percentage of "what it is to be DIR"

 

[Adobo]

Changing from single to doubles takes hardly any time. Adding a slung bottle, same thing. Going somewhere warm, somewhere cold, maybe change the BP material. 7' hose works in everything from wrecks to caves to 20' reefs. (Not that I've done wrecks or caves, but all the cool kids say it works).

With regards to the backplate and wing, I would say that this statement is not always true. Changing from singles to doubles is not just a matter of swapping out one tank for two.

Admittedly, I have about 5 minutes of diving experience when compared to the rest of you... but my experience has been that going to doubles has challenges that are a little bit subtle. As an example, going from a single tank (be it steel or aluminum) to a set of double steel tanks, your trim is likely to change quite significantly. In my case, moving the rig south has been insufficient. I have also swapped out my beloved DSS steel plate for an aluminum plate.

More obvious changes include a new wing - and BTW, buying the right doubles wing is not as intuitive as it seems. Another would be learning new procedures that are involved in doubles.

This whole notion of buying a rig for singles and easily reusing it for doubles is hardly ever true. In the best case, you will need a new wing and have to learn new procedures. In the worst case (like mine), you might wind up with a completely new rig (aluminum plate + doubles wing).

The only thing you can count on when you go from singles to doubles is the fact that you know how a backplate works and it will feel roughly the same whether in singles or doubles.

 

[TSandM]

But really, my doubles wing works just like my singles wing -- The inflator hose is in the same place, put together the same way, and the rear dump is in the same place and works the same way. The harness is the same, and everything on it is the same.

Yes, I bought an aluminum backplate to trim out, but it didn't change anything about how the gear went together or how I utilize it.

As has been said before in this thread, the idea is that nothing really CHANGES, but things get ADDED. The added thing with doubles is the manifold and the valve procedures.

 

[JeffG]

With regards to the backplate and wing, I would say that this statement is not always true. Changing from singles to doubles is not just a matter of swapping out one tank for two.

But compare the difference between

Single BP/W -> Doubles BP/W

and

Jacket BC -> Doubles BP/W

With the Single BP/W - Doubles BP/W at least the diver doesn't have to relearn the "User Interface" of the BCD. (ie the lights are in the same place, buckles are in the same place)

So the diver can concentrate on how the step of diving double tanks instead of starting from scratch.

 

[Adobo]

Definitely the transition between singles and doubles is far easier when you are already accustomed to diving a backplate and wing system. No doubt about that.

In some recent posts, I have seen people assuming that the backplate and wing system is a "buy it once" approach to going into more advanced diving. And from my perspective, it seems like that is hardly ever the case.

 

[JeffG]

In some recent posts, I have seen people assuming that the backplate and wing system is a "buy it once" approach to going into more advanced diving. And from my perspective, it seems like that is hardly ever the case.

Well, a person would (at a minimum) buy a double wing, an extra 1st stage, another tank and a manifold to go from a Single setup to a double setup.

or are you talking about something else?

 

[Adobo]

Well, a person would (at a minimum) buy a double wing, an extra 1st stage, another tank and a manifold to go from a Single setup to a double setup.

or are you talking about something else?

Exactly. And I am not sure how common this would be but in my case, I also had to get a different backplate. So the singles rig that I bought thinking that I would be able to reuse (stainless steel plate + wing) sits at home unused when I am diving doubles. And going from singles to doubles has reasonably easy. However, getting my trim dialed in has been pretty tricky.

Edit: Apologies if what I am "contributing" is not relevant to the point of the thread.