Faber HP 23

[Trumptone]

Does anybody use the Faber High Pressure Steel Tank, 23 cf as a pony bottle? From the specs here: Faber High Pressure Steel Tank, it looks like it has decent bouyancy characteristics.

 

[Tug]

For any staged bottle (pony, deco, stage or bailout) I prefer aluminum tanks. I have some 3l tanks for my rebreather but for me, they are a little compact for a pony. The fact that they are about $100 more than an AL tank makes them a little less desirable as well.

 

[Trumptone]

Actual only about $56 difference from an al30. Why would being compact be a bad thing?

 

[Tug]

I like a little bit more length when I'm staging a tank. I've used al19's (similar length) and found that a longer tank rides nicer for me. Of course I used the 19 when I first started diving so it could have just been sloppy rigging on my part. Now that most of my dives require a bailout bottle, I've found that 40'a pretty much dissapear when underwater and trim out nice.

Another thing to keep in mind is the weight as the steel tanks are usually more negative when full.

 

[Tug]

That said, there are some people who use the steel 45's and 50's for bailout bottles, so ultimately it comes down to what you feel is right for you.

 

[CuzzA]

From what I understand, the only major issue is that it's a high pressure tank. Aside from making sure you're getting a full fill from your shop, it would be very difficult to top the pony off with a transfer whip (which may be required over the course of a couple days of repetitive diving or an accidental free flow) unless you're also using/have available HP tanks as your back gas.

Also, I believe it would add limitations if in the future you wanted to use it for other purposes. For example, an o2 hang tank off the boat or high o2 deco bottle. As it's also my understanding that high o2 is limited to low pressure fills.

I would probably go with a standard 3000 psi aluminum 19 which actually holds 20 cu ft., if this is the size tank you need for the job.

 

[Trumptone]

I'm not understanding something... If you are doing a couple days of repetitive diving, why wouldn't you get your pony filled at the same time as your main tank?

My main tank is a HP100. If I went AL, I'd get a 30.

 

[JohnnyC]

I'm not understanding something... If you are doing a couple days of repetitive diving, why wouldn't you get your pony filled at the same time as your main tank?

My main tank is a HP100. If I went AL, I'd get a 30.

I think he was referencing the fact that it's an HP tank and quite a few places cannot or will not fill above 3000 psi. If you've got a filler capable of filling HP tanks to their rated pressure it won't be an issue.

 

[CuzzA]

Right, but also lets say you were doing a weekend of diving which included 3-4 repetive dives each day. Every dive you may lose gas from the pony, assuming you dive with the tank on. So whether it's when you first splash, pressurize/depressurize the reg, a slight free flow here and there, you could end up having a situation where your pony has a lot less gas than you planned toward the latter dives. A tip I learned on here from others is to pick up a transfer whip ($100) DGX Gas Transfill Hose with Analog Gauge | Dive Gear Express® . Then you can top off your pony as needed with other tanks. But, if your other tanks aren't high pressure tanks there's no way to transfer the gas to your high pressure pony to equalize and have a full pony. Did I explain that well enough?

This may not be a concern depending on your type of diving, but I felt it was worth mentioning.

 

[Trumptone]

The high pressure tank would feel about twice as heavy under water than an al 30, would that be that noticeable to you guys?

I've add the transfill hose to my wishlist. Thanks for your responses so far.