Fundies lift bag procedure

[lakewinni]

Hey, I'm interested in taking fundies in the next several months and I hear that you need to be able to deplot a lift bag in the class. Is that correct? And if it is what is the proper procedure that they teach you to do this. I want to practice it the right way to make it easier when I eventually take the class.

This is my guess at the proper procedure but please correct me...
-get spool and lift bag in hands
-unclip double ended bolt snap from spool
-pass spool through loop in line to tie to lift bag or snap to bolt snap on lift bag
-add air to bag
-apply drag via finger to spool
-monitor bouyancy
-clip bolt snap to line and then spool when done

Thats more or less what I do now but is there anything different?

Thanks

 

[Vie]

In the class, you will actually be deploying a small SMB, referred to as the "bag" (Halcyon Small Alert Marker, 3.3' long, 6 lbs lift, is often used), not a lift bag.

For normal open water "DIR" diving, the "bag" is usually pre-connected ("pre-loaded") to a spool in the pocket but for the Fundies class, I think one is now required to demonstate the act of attaching a "bag" to a spool.

Imho, don't bother to practice before class - everything will be well explained and demonstrated in class.

 

[texdiveguy]

That would be about it,,,,spool should hang free after double ender applied at last step.

 

[PfcAJ]

When I went through fundies, I was taught like this:

Tell your buddy that you are going to shoot a bag. Tell him to hold at a certain depth (this gives you a visual reference while you fiddle with the bag, it is a team effort).

Pull out your spool and bag. Using the double ender from the spool as a weight, thread the line through the eyelet on the bag, pass the spool through the loop, remove the double ender and clip it off. Wind up the slack line so there is no more than about an inch of line between the spool and bag.

Check your bouyancy, add a bit of gas to the bag (I used a half breath or so), check over both sides of your shoulders, and if clear, release the bag.

Once the spool stops, clip it off with your double ender at the desired depth. Give your buddy the ok, and you're done.

Tips: Don't hold on to the spool tightly. It can pull you up with it. Get the bag out in front of you, this prevents it from getting caught on your kit and you can see if its wraped around your finger (this happened to me). Get your trim, bouyancy and all that squared away before you start. Don't be afraid to stop in the middle and regain control of your bouyancy and trim. Keep your buddy in front and use him as a reference, he is less task loaded than you are. Keep an eye on your depth gauge to check for creeping up or down. I stopped after every step and made sure I was in control of depth and bouyancy. It isn't a race.

If you're using a Halcyon SMB, make sure you don't hit your tooth on that metal nipple thing. Ouch!!

 

[TSandM]

Yes . . . pass spool through loop in line. Check buddies, check above before releasing bag. Keep entire assembly well away from the body throughout.

The procedure will be demonstrated above water (as much as possible, anyway) and probably underwater as well, if it's like our class.

 

[Reinoud]

Hey, I'm interested in taking fundies in the next several months and I hear that you need to be able to deplot a lift bag in the class. Is that correct? And if it is what is the proper procedure that they teach you to do this. I want to practice it the right way to make it easier when I eventually take the class.

Don't try to practice things you've learned from the internet. Chances are big that you will miss some of the details your instructor will point out and you will end up having to unlearn what you've practiced...

The most important things during deployment of the liftbag are team awareness and trim. These are the main topics of the fundamentals class. The rest of the stuff is just there to distract you from the important things and see whether you do them while you are concentrating on attaching your spool to your SMB

 

[Chris Sawallich]

For normal open water "DIR" diving, the "bag" is usually pre-connected ("pre-loaded") to a spool in the pocket

Dont get caught up in the "pre rigging" There are alot of people who do. Definately make sure you know how to attach your spool to the bag. there are situations where, you may be out of spools and you need to attach, one of your team members spools to your bag, or vice, versa.... Practice attaching that bag...