DSMB norms in Cozumel?

[kmurray719]

Particularly for those who tend to surface before the rest of the group - show the captain your SMB - better yet, write your name or something to identify you with a big black sharpie on your SMB, show it to him pointing out the unique markings, and if you surface early let him know you'll be surfacing at xx minutes!

I always show the captain my SMB and tell him my name is on it in big letters in case I do have to use it. Not just in Cozumel, but anywhere I'm on a live boat. "Hot pink with my name and a shark on it" is a little flashy, but it sure makes it easy for people to identify that it's mine!

 

[FT]

Well, that was quite the discussion starter. Thanks to all for chiming in.

Of course we will bring our one SMB and reel, in case Mother Nature really decides to put the "drift" in drift diving. Sitting on the fence about buying a second one for the other half of the buddy pair; maybe a cheaper model just to use at the surface. Deploying it at depth is still not second nature and we wouldn't mind getting some practice in, but didn't want to be a PITA if this is Really Not Done.

 

[Ron Lee]

Deploying it at depth is still not second nature and we wouldn't mind getting some practice in, but didn't want to be a PITA if this is Really Not Done.

I do not understand the concern over you deploying yours for practice. Discuss it with the DM well before the dive and determine when it is appropriate. Whether you deploy it at 15 feet, or 30 feet or 45 feet is immaterial as long as you become proficient in a safe manner. Personally, I doubt that you gain much deploying from really deep.

If you might consider deploying it at 50 feet as you are ending the dive and ascending, the difference in time deployed compared to doing it around 15-20 feet is just a few minutes...maybe one or two. If you are waiting for the boat to show up because you are separated from the group....so what? Do a nice safety stop and surface after making sure no boats are approaching.

If your boat does not show up in reasonable time, flag down another boat or determine your next best course of action.

 

[Sideways]

I just have a spool with 50' of yellow line. I totally blacked out the line at the 15'- 16' mark, that way it's easy to deploy properly for my safety stop. I'm not as graceful as the DM's I unwind my 15' (I have a loop tied at the 25' mark, so I don't unspool the whole reel) with the current at my back, then inflate and release. This is what works best for me and I don't get inadvertently pulled up with the marker after it's inflated. Again, just practice till your comfy...should only take a time or two really. But then your set!!

 

[Skittl1321]

Sitting on the fence about buying a second one for the other half of the buddy pair; maybe a cheaper model just to use at the surface.

I'd get one for both halves of the buddy pair. If separation occurs, you can't guarantee you'll be separated together.

(I did see a number of divers without them, though, mostly new divers. Honestly, if it wasn't for Scubaboards, I wouldn't have even known they existed, so maybe it was the same sort of case for them? You can't get something you don't know about. Personally, I had an SMB and a whistle.)

 

[Hawkwood]

...

(I did see a number of divers without them, though, mostly new divers. Honestly, if it wasn't for Scubaboards, I wouldn't have even known they existed, so maybe it was the same sort of case for them? You can't get something you don't know about. Personally, I had an SMB and a whistle.)

Every diver should have both. Starting at the beginning of the year at our shop, every student has an SMB and whistle included in their student package. We raised the cost of the class a whopping $25 to do so.

 

[Skittl1321]

Every diver should have both. Starting at the beginning of the year at our shop, every student has an SMB and whistle included in their student package. We raised the cost of the class a whopping $25 to do so.

I read on the forums that PADI has added deploying an SMB to their OW standards. I think that is a smart thing.
Whistle also didn't come up in our OW class, but I pretty much bring a whistle with me on any activity outdoors, so I bring it diving too.

 

[mstevens]

Sitting on the fence about buying a second one for the other half of the buddy pair; maybe a cheaper model just to use at the surface.

If you shop around you can get a decent Delrin finger spool with 100 feet of line and a small SMB for a total of USD$20-30. This would be a pocket SMB for occasional use, not one that you'd use as a DM.

My philosophy about emergency gear is that everyone needs to carry it even if they won't use it - it's also there for buddies, rescuers, etc. Think redundant second stage (octo) as an example.

Deploying it at depth is still not second nature and we wouldn't mind getting some practice in, but didn't want to be a PITA if this is Really Not Done.

Lots of Cozumel DM's are instructors, love to teach, and are interested in maximizing safety. I'll bet if you tell your DM that you'd like to learn how to use your SMB properly that they'd be delighted to help if conditions make it appropriate. For example, your first Barracuda dive might not be the time. If the DM doesn't want to (and, honestly, such a thing has never happened to me in 32 years of diving - good divers love to share skills), I would seriously consider moving to a different shop or requesting a different DM.

---------- Post added February 19th, 2014 at 10:53 AM ----------

+many on a good whistle, such as a Storm Whistle. They're cheap, lightweight, and take up no space to speak of. I won't dive without one.

Did you know they work reasonably well underwater? If you need to get attention it's non-obvious but can be effective.

 

[DreaminOfSand&Salt]

We (wife and I) have the true SMB without an over-inflation valve - can these be used at depth if you are careful on how much air you put in them or do we need to get new ones for release at depth? Thanks, Brian

 

[cvchief]

We (wife and I) have the true SMB without an over-inflation valve - can these be used at depth if you are careful on how much air you put in them or do we need to get new ones for release at depth? Thanks, Brian

I have a valve on mine, but I still worried about exploding it. I ended up with a limp wienie the first couple times. No matter how much I jerked on it, it just laid on the surface.....