Ideas for ultralight solo rig for petite diver gal?

[aquacat8]

Interesting options and very nice pics... she looks great in the water! Thanks for your ideas

 

[EricTheDood]

Another option is a backmount LP50 twinset.

DGX Custom - Doubles Package - Faber LP-50 | Dive Gear Express®

 

[aquacat8]

Those look very James Bond

 

[Aotus]

+1 for side mounting a couple small tanks.

You get a redundant gas supply, easy to carry one piece at a time, two small tanks instead of one big and one small. If not, the lp50 (independent) doubles as redundancy sounds good too, but will be a little heavier than an AL80...but may not require further training and a new BC... BUT, you're in FL right? World class sidemount instruction available there, and sidemount BCs can be found pretty cheap. For your purpose (and small size) check out a used XDEEP Stealth 2.0 (or splurge and get a new Stealth Rec), a Hollis katana, or an old Hollis SMS50 (super cheap used).

 

[Aotus]

I love the idea of mini doubles in SM and for shore dives it could be a sweet option. But the reality of boat dives in South Florida in SM not so much. She would need two set ups to have enough for a 2 tank trip and getting back on the boat, up the ladder rigged, would be a challenge. She could arrange to hand off the tanks but I think the effort would not be worth the benefit, especially in sporty seas.

Now if I get to continue with SM cave @gfaith idea has appeal. See post 16.

The $1200 Sidemount Diver

why does everyone think getting on a boat with SM tanks is a problem? the suggestions here are for two small tanks, not that heavy. And yes, if the water isn't super choppy, you can hand them off and it gets even easier. And why does she need two "set ups"? If she wants to use up two sets of tanks, she just needs to swap the regs onto the second set. The rigging is done ahead of time, the tanks always have their bands and whatnot. Takes 8 minutes to swap from one tank to the other if you're not in a hurry. The only hangup I can think of, is if an operator isn't ok with SM.

 

[uncfnp]

why does everyone think getting on a boat with SM tanks is a problem? the suggestions here are for two small tanks, not that heavy. And yes, if the water isn't choppy, you can hand them off and it gets even easier. And why does she need two "set ups"? If she wants to use up two sets of tanks, she just needs to swap the regs onto the second set. The rigging is done ahead of time, the tanks always have their bands and whatnot. Takes 8 minutes to swap from one tank to the other if you're not in a hurry. The only hangup I can think of, is if an operator isn't ok with SM.

Don't know about everyone but as a petite female I know that climbing the ladders on the boats I frequent in south florida, especially in the seas that seem to always be present when I dive, with two tanks hanging by my side, would not be my first choice as a solution for the op and in fact why I decided not to dive 50's sidemount after giving it serious consideration. Its the bulk and length that would be the factor. But I admit I haven't actually tried it. Would be willing if anyone wanted to loan me the tanks. Would be happy to post back a review.

Remember the op, a petite female that does not like the bulk and weight of the 13 cf. I could easily be wrong but it would be an expensive experiment for her to invest in (even used) unless someone has a rig and tanks she could try first.

And by "set ups" I meant pairs of tanks. Four tanks total. That she would likely have to buy, not rent.

 

[WetRocks]

And by "set ups" I meant pairs of tanks. Four tanks total. That she would likely have to buy, not rent.

Actually, an LP50 filled to 3600 is only ~9cuft less than an AL80 at 3000. So she would only need the 2 LP50s to get the same bottom time as someone on 2 AL80s. Bring a third if space allows but no need for 4.

 

[uncfnp]

Actually, an LP50 filled to 3600 is only ~9cuft less than an AL80 at 3000. So she would only need the 2 LP50s to get the same bottom time as someone on 2 AL80s. Bring a third if space allows but no need for 4.

Now if she had the money and interst AND could get reliable cave fills I might have to agree its a viable option for her.

 

[Kharon]

VDH Universal plate (very light and minimal with or without a wing)
No BC! (which also eliminates the BC hose and all that puffery)

Could you expand on this. I'm intrigued. What would I need beside a plate and harness? Do they make a single tank plate?

 

[2airishuman]

I meant the whole rig is heavy to trudge across sand for a shore dive or to climb a ladder with, but I was renting aluminum 80's so if I could go back to a steel 72 or something like that maybe I could carry a 19 if I had help rigging, practice, and maybe some gym training. I have back pain already that comes and goes so trying to avoid that!

I go to the gym and do squats and deadlifts, without that, I would not be able to dive the way I want to dive.

A possibility to consider is to make more than one trip to the water's edge. At times I put my pony cylinder and dive float/flag in the water first, go back for my kit, and the clip in the pony after I've entered the water and put on my fins. It takes practice to clip on a slung pony in the water, but most people can learn to do it. It may take some adjustment in the placement of D rings and in the length of the rigging to make it work well.

Actually, an LP50 filled to 3600 is only ~9cuft less than an AL80 at 3000. So she would only need the 2 LP50s to get the same bottom time as someone on 2 AL80s. Bring a third if space allows but no need for 4.

I would not recommend building up a rig that depends on 33% overfills to be workable. Fills like that are only available in limited geographic areas and only from a limited set of shops within that area, and may not be available indefinitely. A DOT crackdown or the perception by dive shops that one is impending could end that practice for people who do not have their own compressor.

Could you expand on this. I'm intrigued. What would I need beside a plate and harness? Do they make a single tank plate?

Most backplates have a raised area in the center to accommodate the wingnuts or other fasteners for banded doubles. VintageDoubleHose.com offers a plate designed specifically for single-tank diving that lacks this raised area in the center, which allows the cylinder to sit somewhat closer to the diver's back, with various possible benefits and drawbacks depending on the body shape of the diver. It can be used with or without a BC. There are various other means of fastening a cylinder to a diver without the use of a BC that have been popular over the years, among them plastic "backpacks" and tank harnesses that do not use any sort of backplate at all.

Diving without a BC involves its own skills and tradeoffs. You have to be weighted properly, of course, and need some alternative means of staying safe at the surface if something goes wrong. A towed float, for example, can provide this. And you have to limit your diving to conditions where the buoyancy swing is small, generally warm water or shallow water.