Diving twins advice

[dadediver]

I am looking into finally venturing into going doubles. I had been looking for a complete setup. I am looking for advise on what size steel tanks and should they be HP or LP tanks. I dive in the 60-120 foot range in about 50/50 in fsw/ffw. I am 175LBS and 5' 11".
Also, I was looking at the Hollis and the Dive rite BC's. What are your thoughts on either of these two BC's?

Thanks
Mike

 

[CamG]

Greetings Mike and welcome to SB! The best advice I could give you would be to try if possible a variety of sizes to see what works best for you. I am 5'10 190 lbs and like lp 95's. I have tried hp 100's, 119's, lp 108's, and 104's and loved them all. You can experiment with wing position and tank band placement to fine tune your trim.
In my experience the biggest factor with doubles is dealing with the weight out of the water. They can get very heavy and difficult to navigate depending on your entry / exit, boat, etc. That is a important consideration out of water, in water they are awesome one key thing is to ensure you have proper lift and floatation. There are recommendations on Dive Rite's web site and several good threads here on SB. Just use the search to find them. I started with 95's but that was my choice I wouldn't turn any set away for the right price. I talked myself out of a pair of 130's that were like new for a really awesome deal, BONE HEAD! I could have give them a run and sold them for more had I taken the deal. My point is I guess is do not be in a hurry but get around other divers and see what you can try, test drive that is. Your location puts you into proximity of quite a few sets of doubles. I have just recently picked up a set of hp 100's that are like new inside and out. I am looking forward to wreck and lake diving with them because they are easy in and out of the boat. We will see if not no biggy, I will try some more.
I have had the opportunity to dive both Hollis and Dive Rite and both have been more than adequate. These are back plate and wings mind you and I run the DIR configuration. There has not been a lot of difference. I personally role with the Dive Rite because of my LDS and instructor affiliation. I am sure these two either would suit you well but do not rule out the others out there. As you will soon know there are many great gear companies out there. Just do your research and remember simple wins at the end of the day. I would encourage you to read and research the GUE materials and consider the DIR configuration as you are starting with your doubles. They are a blast to dive but can be dangerous if not properly prepared, "trained". Have fun and PM about any questions I will try to help you in your search.
CamG Keep diving....keep training....keep learning!

 

[it_mike]

Mike, if there is one thing I can guarantee you'll get, it's lots of advice...

As Cam so eloquently stated, get out there and try different setups. I'm new to doubles, but really like my x7-100's. (5'10", ~200lbs) They're heavy on shore, but great in the water.

Hollis and DR both make good gear. DSS (Tobin) has some great gear and deals. I also like OxyCheq and Golem.

Good Luck, and watch your NDLs.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

Hey Mike,

I have been diving doubles now for about 3 years 400+ dives. I have gone through a set of LP95's / AL80s and now diving a set of HP130's.

My personal experience has been

LP95's - Where nice to manage both in and out of the water however found them short being 6 foot and had slight issues managing my trim in the water.

AL80's - Where exteremly light compared outside of the water, however i was required to carry more lead due to the positive buoyancy of the tanks when empty.

Hp130's - Love them. They are heavy out side of the water however once you do several dives you tend to become a little more conditioned for them, however i do end up avoiding any sort of a rocky entry due to the weight shifting. Now locally i tend to only dive sandy entries or boats so i have not had much of an issue. And if we do have a rougher entry i still have my Al80's.

When it comes to the HP vs LP, The LP's tanks where nice as getting a fill has never been an issue and if anything many would think the 2400 PSI tanks where 3000 and i would get a nice fill, however several times i have been stuck getting only a 3000psi fill in my HP ( 3442 ) tanks. However again due to the size of the tanks i have never had an issue of not enough gas, however have had some issues of the need to modfiy my dive due to the change in mix.

As for Wings, I am GUE / DIR Practitioner so i do dive a Evolve 60 wing ( Doughnut style ) Very nice and very easy to dump.. With a 12 pound stainless steel plate ( being 310 pounds ) This keeps me slightly negative in fresh water, however would trim out amazing.

 

[micklock]

Another option would be sidemount.
Homepage PADI and DSAT Sidemount Scuba Diving Training Course Director Steve Martin

 

[dadediver]

Hey Mike,

I have been diving doubles now for about 3 years 400+ dives. I have gone through a set of LP95's / AL80s and now diving a set of HP130's.

My personal experience has been

LP95's - Where nice to manage both in and out of the water however found them short being 6 foot and had slight issues managing my trim in the water.

AL80's - Where exteremly light compared outside of the water, however i was required to carry more lead due to the positive buoyancy of the tanks when empty.

Hp130's - Love them. They are heavy out side of the water however once you do several dives you tend to become a little more conditioned for them, however i do end up avoiding any sort of a rocky entry due to the weight shifting. Now locally i tend to only dive sandy entries or boats so i have not had much of an issue. And if we do have a rougher entry i still have my Al80's.

When it comes to the HP vs LP, The LP's tanks where nice as getting a fill has never been an issue and if anything many would think the 2400 PSI tanks where 3000 and i would get a nice fill, however several times i have been stuck getting only a 3000psi fill in my HP ( 3442 ) tanks. However again due to the size of the tanks i have never had an issue of not enough gas, however have had some issues of the need to modfiy my dive due to the change in mix.

As for Wings, I am GUE / DIR Practitioner so i do dive a Evolve 60 wing ( Doughnut style ) Very nice and very easy to dump.. With a 12 pound stainless steel plate ( being 310 pounds ) This keeps me slightly negative in fresh water, however would trim out amazing.

Could you please elaborate a bit more on this? Are you talking about your NDL time?

 

[RJP]

Diving twins advise

Mmmmmm, twins...

 

[Michael_Lambert]

Could you please elaborate a bit more on this? Are you talking about your NDL time?

Sorry,

When i said modify my dive it would be due to the fact i would have boosted the required O2 into the tanks before having the Dive shop top up the tanks to the rated pressure. If it happened that the shop could not give me the HP fill then it would leave my mix rich in the tanks which then would limit my dive, so if i was planning 130 feet on the best mix , and my final mix was richer then i had to re evaluate my MOD and re plan that particular dive.

 

[The Chairman]

Having been a veteran of many backmount doubles dives, I am working my way to side mount. Far easier on the back.

 

[Michael_Lambert]

Having been a veteran of many backmount doubles dives, I am working my way to side mount. Far easier on the back.

This is something i have really been considering as well, Gotta admit i love my 130's but climbing in and out of a rough entry with them on can become pretty painful.

Exspecially when you do a dive off a Shale rock ledge in near perfect conditions but you surface and are forced to deal with that shale rock ledge in large swells! Ended up with some damaged and missing gear after that dive