Minimalist Setup for Small River Diving (~15ft or less)?

[SlugLife]

First, you don’t need extra weight. That’s a prescription for “needing” the BCD. Many divers today are intentionally overweighted. Try diving your neutral weighting, and not using the BCD. BCDs all have a fair component of drag, and it current that can also cause problems. Do keep the idea of ditching weights if you have problems.

Be sure that your cutting tools have a notch for line cutting. I found out how necessary this is when I was diving my site on the Clackamas River, and found a high strength line on the bottom. I let go, but the line accidentally did a half-hitch around my thumb. I got my knife out very quickly, and cut it before it caused problems. Turns out it was a part of a throwing rope designed to be thrown in a rescue scenario, with a weighted pouch on one end. I use a Wenoka dive knife with a push button safety built into the handle/sheath. That allows one-handed return of the knife to the leg sheath, and it will stay there.

SeaRat

To give you an idea of my type of diving, I have two dives where I recorded the spawning habits of the lamprey eels in the Clackamas River in Oregon. These were conducted in 2017, four years ago.


I am now 75 years old, so you can see that I've been doing this type of diving a very long time (I started diving Oregon waters in 1959).

Note that I'm neutrally buoyant for these dives, and in pretty high current. This is a long video, covering two dives about a week apart. I wanted to include all the video for biologists to see so that they could observe the spawning habits that I saw for these lampreys. But it also gives you a good idea of how I dive, in sometimes high current situations. The Para-Sea BCD I wear is my own invention, and not currently available to anyone. I usually use it in the Clackamas River to attain neutral buoyancy in the holes, which here are up to 23 feet deep.

At 23:25 into this video, I show being caught in fishing line, and how I dealt with that situation.

SeaRat

This is the type of experience I was hoping to learn from.

The rivers I'm looking at are much smaller and more mild, which is almost certainly the right way to get started. For anyone curious, The "San Marcos River", in San-Marcos TX and Comal River, in New Braunfels, TX. For the most part, those rivers are very mild, unless there have been a lot of recent rains.

Your video highlights a few things:

• The importance of having redundant cutting tools & one accessible from each hand.
• Currents may cause significant increases in exertion and air-consumption.
  
• I suppose thinking through it, the thing that I might get entangled on, could also be the thing that rips the primary out of my mouth. I think I'll probably dive with a pony-bottle then, might as well if I have it.

I'll start with my "normal" neutral weight & ditchable weight and see how that goes, as mentioned I can always keep extra weights in the nearby float if I discover I really need them.

This is the simple BCD I have & another plastic backplate without a BCD that I could easily make a harness for. I could use bungee or straps to ensure it doesn't create drag when not in use. I have an aluminum backplate + harness collecting dust, but I don't have a small wing for that. I also have a sidemount setup, which is somewhat minimalist, but I'm not experienced enough with sidemount yet to also add in a brand new environment. So, I'm thinking the sonic-1 for my first few river dives and then re-evaluate.

 

[John C. Ratliff]

So you are suggesting to not wear a BC at all?

Read what I said:

First, you don’t need extra weight. That’s a prescription for “needing” the BCD. Many divers today are intentionally overweighted. Try diving your neutral weighting, and not using the BCD. BCDs all have a fair component of drag, and it current that can also cause problems. Do keep the idea of ditching weights if you have problems.

I am one of the developers of the BCD; I demonstrated the jacket style BCD to the participants, including Scubapro, at IQ6 or IQ7* sponsored by NAUI in the mid-1970s (I think it was IQ7). That style was actually developed by Bill Herter of Deep Sea Bill’s in Newport, Oregon, and was originally made of neoprene. I have a patent on my Para-Sea BC, which I was wearing in the video above.

When diving to only 15 feet, there is no need for a BCD. A BCD is a “buoyancy compensation device” which compensates for the loss of buoyancy as the diver goes deeper from compression of a wetsuit. The loss of buoyancy at 15 feet can be handled by breath control.

So what I was pointing out is that the BCD is unnecessary at depth. But the BCD has a place on the surface. Last Tuesday, I assisted a swimmer with her life jacket in an inflated Para-Sea BC; she had one thrown to her while she was in the water, and couldn’t put it on (which is why a person should have it on before entering the water.

The problem with some BCDs is that they are very unstreamlined in current, so the type of BCD used is critical to good swimming ability in current. One of my first BCDs was built by Bill Herter, and was an inverted “U” in the back of my custom wetsuit. Bill then decided that a better solution was to sandwich the entire back of my wetsuit as a BCD. Now, that was streamlined. I wore that wetsuit for over 10 years, and only developed my Para-Sea BCD as a solution to the problems of the front-mounted BCDs after that wetsuit BCD was gone.

Now, to get back to your question, no I don’t recommend not wearing a BCD. But, I have dived without one for decades too. It’s a matter of comfort and training.

SeaRat
NAUI #2710

*IQ6 and IQ7 were the NAUI-sponsored International Conferences on Underwater Education, and I presented at both.
Here’s an article on NAUI’s IQ:
NAUI IQ Reemerges Alongside Scuba Show; Originators to Attend and be Recognized – NAUI Blog

 

[jale]

thanks @John C. Ratliff for the video and info about a type of diving I have never done.
Just one question: would not a small grapnel or hook attached to the line holder make stops in the current easier? The way sometime we use anchor reef in strong current in the sea?
Thanks

 

[Vicko]

I'd take out the wing and dive just the backplate with a single unbalanced regulator with a din first stage and maybe a spg. I say maybe as it's a entanglement hazard that I would rather not deal with on such shallow dives. What's important is that you get very used to donning and doffing gear underwater and having a cutting device or two in easy reach of both hands.

 

[SlugLife]

The problem with some BCDs is that they are very unstreamlined in current, so the type of BCD used is critical to good swimming ability in current. One of my first BCDs was built by Bill Herter, and was an inverted “U” in the back of my custom wetsuit. Bill then decided that a better solution was to sandwich the entire back of my wetsuit as a BCD. Now, that was streamlined. I wore that wetsuit for over 10 years, and only developed my Para-Sea BCD as a solution to the problems of the front-mounted BCDs after that wetsuit BCD was gone.

On the subject of streamlining BCDs, I've noticed that streamlining is a big focus of the side-mount community. It's tempting to use my sidemount harness, other than I'm rather lacking in sidemount experience.

I'm in agreement, that I don't think I need the BCD if I'm wearing my 5mm wetsuit. However, having the BCD for 1-dive & attempting not-using it seems like a decent plan for proving whether or not I need it. I'll borrow some of the bungee-techniques used by the sidemount community to make it flush against my wetsuit when not in use. It's tempting to cut off those pockets, but those pockets could be useful if I find loot (sunglasses, phones, etc) on the bottom.

 

[johndiver999]

Diving without a BC, solo, in an environment you are unfamiliar with is a bad idea in my mind. You need to balance the benefits of a BC which include being able to wear excess lead for stability on the bottom, the ability to fine tune your buoyancy, the added safety of surface support versus a very slight increase in drag associated with a BC. So,I think you are smart to wear a BC for your first few dives.

You also indicate you are going to wear a pony bottle for a 15 ft dive and maintain that drag is a concern. The pony bottle is going to cause drag, will add complexity, and will definitely add more opportunities for entanglement.

 

[John C. Ratliff]

On the subject of streamlining BCDs, I've noticed that streamlining is a big focus of the side-mount community. It's tempting to use my sidemount harness, other than I'm rather lacking in sidemount experience.

I'm in agreement, that I don't think I need the BCD if I'm wearing my 5mm wetsuit. However, having the BCD for 1-dive & attempting not-using it seems like a decent plan for proving whether or not I need it. I'll borrow some of the bungee-techniques used by the sidemount community to make it flush against my wetsuit when not in use. It's tempting to cut off those pockets, but those pockets could be useful if I find loot (sunglasses, phones, etc) on the bottom.

You'll find that those pockets are what you will use most; I use mine every dive. My Tuesday dive netted two fishing lures, three golf balls, and almost a dozen pieces of fishing lead. I try to get as much lead out of the river as possible. Somewhere I have a photo of snails feeding an lead sinkers, and thus introducing lead into the food chain of the river.

I like your thoughts on the BCD. Do some experimenting with the diving and techniques.

SeaRat

 

[John C. Ratliff]

thanks @John C. Ratliff for the video and info about a type of diving I have never done.
Just one question: would not a small grapnel or hook attached to the line holder make stops in the current easier? The way sometime we use anchor reef in strong current in the sea?
Thanks

I find a lot of handholds on the rock on the bottom. Having a grapple may sound good, but it introduces something else in my hands. Also, some of the rock on the bottom of the Clackamas River are very smooth due to erosion (we have high flows in the winter/spring). So a grapple would not in my opinion be an advantage for my diving here. I use the handholds much like a rock climber would use handholds on a cliff, and that seems to work well for me.

SeaRat

 

[John C. Ratliff]

I mentioned lead sinkers as a problem. Here's a video I put together about "Getting the Lead Out" of fishing.


This will also give you a better understanding of how I dive the Oregon rivers.

John

 

[lowwall]

I have a patent on my Para-Sea BC, which I was wearing in the video above.

The link doesn't lead directly to the patent. I've attached it for those interested.

Edit- BTW, this is the most readable patent I've ever seen. Clear descriptions of history and prior art and how the device works along with excellent illustrations.