My first Sidemount Kit, piecing it together

[Underwater Tourist]

Just to make your life a little easier, some manufacturers (apeks, scuba pro and probably others) sell sm regulator sets with all the hoses, elbows, gauges, etc included. I am 6’2’ and got the apeks set a couple of years back and didn’t have to make any changes to the hoses they provided. Super easy and simple

Ordering from EU is also waaaay cheaper than buying anything in the US or Canada.

Xdeep pouch is pretty small as an fyi, people very often skip it and buy the pouch from a different manufacturer.

Also all the rigging for sm tanks and deco tanks can also be bought as a set for a tiny premium compared to buying all the pieces and then putting them together. Just don’t go for branded scams, click around here and you can find all the same stuff without paying 100$ for a boltsnap Shop Diving |

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I know a number of instructors that won't allow miflex reg hoses for sidemount. They are floaty, take a set that won't straighten out, and they can and have kinked shut. Save the LP miflex for things like an air hose to fill tires and such.
There is absolutely no benefit to miflex reg hoses for sidemount. And they are unfriendly to the hairs on the back of your neck and drysuit seals.
And go with a 110 elbow. Much friendlier to use and route.

Also this 4 feet 1/2 inch plastic tubing is way too much. If you are thinking of using it for the worm clamps. You need about 12 inches to do 6 clamps. Cover the clamps in flat tubular webbing. If you want I have enough here to do probably 10 8 inch clamps. I'll sell it to you cheap sized properly for those size clamps.

I have 2 clamps already made up for an al40. And I have a 40 cu ft bottle for sale. Needs hydro but it will pass. Black or yellow color available. Brushed al is fine but not necessary and they are already rigged for SM use.
You also do not need a turret first for your deco bottle. Totally unnecessary. A compact sealed diaphragm 1st is fine. HOG D2 was always my choice.
And again. No miflex! It will be a pain in the ass to manage and if the reg becomes depressurized, the way you stow it properly, it's likely to kink shut. If your shop is trying to push miflex hoses, RUN.
Find another SM instructor that actually knows what they are doing.

And you sure don't need 3/4 bungee! 3/16th will hold anything that you need it to on a deco bottle. You need to be close to Hercules grip strength to stretch good 1/4 inch bungee underwater with gloves on. 3/4 would be like 1/2 inch rope. Or a chain.
I used 3/16 from Piranha for the deco bottle and my main cylinders up through LP95's and it was fine.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Buy HOG Premium Sidemount Regulator Package Online | Divers Supply

HOG Premium Sidemount Regulator Package

www.divers-supply.com

But call and tell them you want rubber hoses. Complete package is 959.95

 

[VikingDives]

Hi everyone, I am preparing to dip my toe on the technical side of diving and am interested in learning sidemount next. I went to the TDI shop to ask a few questions and to get an ideal of what I would need. Well they suggested two ScubaPros MK25, well at roughly $1100 EACH I said nope aint gonna happen. After chatting with a few people I discovered that I could substitute with Hog, Dive Rite or Apek regulators. They are good quality and priced well. I'm displaying the list, looking forward to the comments and thanks.


Regs:

2 - regulators with turret and 5th LP port out of bottom (Scubapro MK19 EVO or MK25 EVO are good options)

1 - 7 ft miflex regulator hose

1 - 30 inch miflex reg hose

1 - 90' elbow

2 - 6 inch rubber HP hose

2 - stream line HP gauge

1 small bolt snap


Tanks:

2 - jubilee (metal worm) band

2 - large bolt snaps

2 feet para cord

4 feet 1/2 inch plastic tubing



Harness:

Xdeep Stealth Tec 2.0

butt pouch

Light:

Can light with sidemount gland (prefer UWLD)



Fins:

f1s, slip stream, turtle, avanti, etc.

NO split fins

Spare mask - any

2 - 6' smbs different colors

1 reel/spool


Sidemount Deco tank:

AL 80 or 40, brushed Aluminum

2 large bolt snaps

8 feet 3/4 inch bungee

jubilee band with nylon cover or vinyl tubing

reg with rotating turret on first stage O2 cleaned

6 inch hp hose

Streamline pressure gauge

40 inch black, blue, or green miflex hose

2 elastic/rubber hose retention bands

For the xDeep, I'd recommend that you don't just buy one off the shelf. Use xDeep's tool to get exactly what you want.

full disclosure - I'm a tech sidemount diver and an xDeep/hog dealer, but I used their gear before I started selling it. I'm also not a fan of the HOG 2.5 inch spgs. Too many have broken too soon for my liking. Stick with the 1.5. They're small, but bulletproof.

 

[Tigerpaw]

Can you buy these as a set together or do you have to buy piece by piece from different suppliers?

I can get everything all at once at the dive shop, they have it all.

 

[Tigerpaw]

And THIS is why I come to Scubaboard!!! Thanks everyone for your input, it has been helpful and it's not as expensive! FYI, the shop I'm going to take the course with is a TDI shop. To be fair the person I spoke with said she would get back with me because that list came from one instructor. Evidently there's another instructor with a different outlook, so I'll update if they reply back.

 

[gmerick]

Read the note on DGX about short HP hoses: High Pressure Hose in SHORT Lengths I've had 2 Miflex and 3 rubber hoses fail over the past 2 years. These hoses were purchased from various suppliers; I do NOT fault DGX. For my upcoming LOB trip, My SM rig uses 4 short hoses, so I ordered 6 of the DGX stainless 6" hoses.

 

[Tigerpaw]

I'm enthusiastically excited for you but not your pocket, it's all second hand-hand made in my house

For side mount I'm going that route as well.

 

[Tigerpaw]

Have another question for everyone, since we're talking about sidemount. I'm going to buy everything in sections until I accumulate the entire kit. I'm thinking about completing the e-Learning now and do the class and Open Water afterwards in the Dec to Feb time frame, which is when I estimate I'll have the entire kit. Wanted to get opinions on that strategy. Thanks.

 

[Underwater Tourist]

Have another question for everyone, since we're talking about sidemount. I'm going to buy everything in sections until I accumulate the entire kit. I'm thinking about completing the e-Learning now and do the class and Open Water afterwards in the Dec to Feb time frame, which is when I estimate I'll have the entire kit. Wanted to get opinions on that strategy. Thanks.

I did the same thing when I was getting my stuff as I couldn’t buy everything at once

For e-learning there is Steve Martin who put up a video series on SM. It’s one of the highest quality elearning material I have seen in scuba. He put a lot of effort into it and it shows

Sounds like a good strategy, and with sm getting so popular maybe you can even rent the entire rig for 40bucks or so and do 1-2 pool dives just to get a feel for it