New to the board

[tau]

It would probably be helpful to add that I'm usually the guy with the most air left over after a group dive.

 

[BrianS]

Check out the Equipment forums under the Tank section, you'll find a lot of good info there.

I've never been on a board with this much response within a day. Thank you all for willingness to help me gain my experience. I will meet you all soon.

I have one quick question for everyone. I am in the market to get my own tank. I own all my diving equipment except for my tank. I've been renting that at sports chalet. The guy told me there that I would be better off renting theirs until i can figure out what I like. My question is, what is the best all around tank if price wasn't an issue? I'm leaning toward a High Pressure 80. Good or bad choice? Please help.

 

[headhunter]

It would probably be helpful to add that I'm usually the guy with the most air left over after a group dive.

I see you haven't been diving with "the great air consumptionist" Melvin Pasley.

I've heard storys about him staying down for days with an AL 63 and that in order to keep up with him and allow him to get down to a reasonable 800 psi before surfacing, that divers had to dive in teams using surface supplied air in shifts while he finished up his single bottle.

At 6 ft. tall and 143 pounds Melvin cuts through water like the blade of a very sharp knife. It probalby helps that he's in better shape than all of us too!

We're not worthy! :mooner: Oops! That's not the smilie I was looking for. Oh, here it is! :god:

All kidding aside he really does have amazingly low air consumption.

Christian

 

[headhunter]

I've never been on a board with this much response within a day. Thank you all for willingness to help me gain my experience. I will meet you all soon.

I have one quick question for everyone. I am in the market to get my own tank. I own all my diving equipment except for my tank. I've been renting that at sports chalet. The guy told me there that I would be better off renting theirs until i can figure out what I like. My question is, what is the best all around tank if price wasn't an issue? I'm leaning toward a High Pressure 80. Good or bad choice? Please help.

Depending on the dive philosophy you bring to the table the answer will vary.

Personally, I think if you are diving in a wetsuit instead of a dry suit, that for most people an AL 80 is well weighted and suited to the task. You mentioned further down in this thread that your air consumption was good, so it doesn't sound like you need to get a larger tank. You've only got to decide whether to go with an AL or steel tank.

Here is a discussion about Aluminum vs Steel tanks that you may find helpful:

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=77558

Dive safe!

Christian

 

[tau]

I have already decided on steal. My question was on Highpressure or Low Pressure. And what Brand and Type.

 

[headhunter]

I have already decided on steal. My question was on Highpressure or Low Pressure. And what Brand and Type.

If you go with a high pressure PST E7-100 you'll have the following:

• a bit more gas for a longer dive
• a swing in buoyancy of only 7.5 pounds from empty to full
• if you got a low fill of only 2640 psi you would still have 80 CF of gas and at 3000 psi you'd still have 89 CF of gas
• it's 2 inches shorter and only weight 2 pounds more than a Luxfer S080 AL-80
• it's the same diameter as an AL-80, so you could go back and forth without haveing to readjust your straps to switch between this and an AL-80 if you want to do one more dive and the shop is closed for another fill but one of us has an extra AL-80 for you to use

Hope this helps.

Christian

 

[OldmanandtheC]

Hi Tau, I also live in Alhambra and would love to hook up and go diving (Photography now, bugs in Oct!!) I recommend that you sign up for the Wrinkles dive on the 13th (I haven't yet, but my wife finally agreed to let me go). I am still waiting on a Pressed Steel 100 (The delivery date keeps slipping, now "Mid" Aug). Lets both keep monitoring the board, and try to meet up with a group on either Saturday/Sunday the 6th/7th. I can drive.


Mike

 

[tau]

So you are recommending the 100 high pressure over the 80 high pressure. Does brand matter? I hear about PST on this board a lot. Is that Press Steel?

I can't find them in Sports Chalet anymore. Where can I get the 100 HP PST in the LA area? Whats the price?

 

[headhunter]

So you are recommending the 100 high pressure over the 80 high pressure. Does brand matter? I hear about PST on this board a lot. Is that Press Steel?

I can't find them in Sports Chalet anymore. Where can I get the 100 HP PST in the LA area? Whats the price?

Yes, I like PST (Pressed Steel Tank) and prefer the longer tank for the way it distributes the weigh compared to a high pressure 80. But that's just my personal preference. This has more to do with my height and how I carry my weight. The HP 80 makes me a bit top heavy. Some people actually trim out very nicely with the HP 80.

Also, remember that if you don't get a good 3500 psi fill you may wind up with quite a bit less then 80 CF. If a boat only gets you up to 2640 psi, you'll only have about 64 CF in that HP 80. I don't really know if that's much of an issue on boats anymore though.

I prefer PST because it's hot dip galvanized, whereas the Fabers are painted. I just think they are more durable, but some people would disagree.

I see you're not to far from where I live in Altadena and I use Hollywood Divers on Cahuenga in Hollywood as my LDS. They have PST tanks and carry quiet a different variety of equipment than you'll find in a Sport Chalet. I'm not sure about their prices. That might be a good place to look. You can find their contact info online at http://www.hollywoodivers.com. They are a nice knowledgeable group of people over there.

Hope to meet you soon, since we're almost neighbors by LA standards!

Christian

 

[tau]

Thanks for the advice neighbor!