Octo on bungeed necklace?

[vjanelle]

The bungee material I use is just shock cord.. its basically a 2mm bungee cord used for rock climbing.

 

[Hatul]

The guy who uses a bungie on his primary is using it kind of like a cord that keeps your glasses from getting lost. He's the first diver I've ever heard of doing that, and personally I would not, but to each his own. If an OOA diver were to mug you for your primary, you'd want to make sure that it could release easily.

The necklace is not tied to the regualtor, so if someone were to pull on it it would release. It's just held around the mouthpiece by the elastic stretch.

Adam

 

[ptyx]

The Atomic Reg comes with a swivel and may not be usable with MiFlex.

Non standard hoses? ewwwww

Do they make longer bungies? We are a little material challenged here in Curacao.

Cut it exactly how you like it? Shock cord/bungee is sold by the foot. You can use surgical tubing as well - it might be easier to find - or thick braided line. Shock cord is convenient, but I don't think the material really matters as long as it's convenient and comfortable.

Does the 40" hose remain streamlined and out of the way?

Yes. And easier on the jaw as well. Depending how high you put your tank, I'd recommend measuring what length you need before ordering a hose. In doubt, longer is better.

 

[Just another Cinderella]

I have been around a lot of vacationing divers the past two years, also have been looking at photos in Alert Diver, Diver and other mags and it is rare to see a long primary hose. If PADI is now training donating ones primary to a distressed diver, why aren't they also rec. a long primary hose.
What percentage of recreational divers use a long hose set up ? What is the down side and why hasn't it become the standard ?

 

[halocline]

I think the comment that PADI is now teaching donating the primary is not correct. In that particular OW class, the students were all using octo/inflators. (PADI shines once again as a beacon of educational excellence...) So those students donated their primary, as do all divers who use octo/inflators. In PADI OW classes where the students have traditional octos, they are taught to donate those.

The answer to the question "why hasn't the long hose become standard" is probably similar to "why is the jacket BC so popular" and many others. The recreational dive gear/educational industry changes slowly based on marketing, not on evolution of dive training in the tech community. That is, until it becomes cool enough to sell it to OW students.

The fact is that OW recreational diving is a pretty safe activity, and like it or not PADI deserves some credit for that. But it also means that rec divers can get away with far less than optimal safety practices and still be pretty safe.

Don't ever confuse popularity with intelligence.

 

[ptyx]

I have been around a lot of vacationing divers the past two years, also have been looking at photos in Alert Diver, Diver and other mags and it is rare to see a long primary hose. If PADI is now training donating ones primary to a distressed diver, why aren't they also rec. a long primary hose.
What percentage of recreational divers use a long hose set up ? What is the down side and why hasn't it become the standard ?

Historically, the long hose comes from cave diving - where a standard hose doesn't allow to pass air through restrictions, towing two divers on a single scooter, or generally while navigating the cave. It makes a lot of sense there, and in wrecks as well.

In open water, since you can ascent as soon as someone is out of air, the long hose isn't as critical - people you'll see with a long hose in OW environments are usually DIR divers or other tekkies who got lost on the way to their caves

That said, one OW scenario where the long hose is really convenient is if you have a buddy who uses a lot more air than you do. With a 7ft hose you can share air during the dive to 'balance' the tanks, without having the receiver having to hold on to the donor like a limpet.

Ultimately, primary regulator configuration (long, short, routed above or under arm) and secondary configuration ('traditional', necklace, integrated) are independent decisions - as long as you go with a combination where you can share air.

 

[vjanelle]

I have been around a lot of vacationing divers the past two years, also have been looking at photos in Alert Diver, Diver and other mags and it is rare to see a long primary hose. If PADI is now training donating ones primary to a distressed diver, why aren't they also rec. a long primary hose.
What percentage of recreational divers use a long hose set up ? What is the down side and why hasn't it become the standard ?

My instructors went over the long hose thing since they all use it.. basically it went "if you're using a long hose and bungeed necklace donate that, otherwise the octo is there for your buddy to grab in an OOA emergency". PADI training doesn't specifically go over which regulator you're supposed to give since the point is to get the person air. If you have to, buddy breathe.

Your octo is supposed to be a 'functional regulator' which pretty much means it should perform at least as well as your primary. What the first stage its connected to has numerous discussions about.

As for the long hose, not everyone needs a 7' hose, but you shouldn't try to use a 2' hose that some people gear up to their primaries. The various DIR sites(flamesuit on) goes over the 'long hose vs normal hose' for recreational diving and pretty much says its a cave diving/tech/scootering/etc thing. For rec diving it should be long for you and your buddy to ascend with and not butt heads or stress the OOA diver during a safety stop.

 

[RAWalker]

I am also of the school of never put a complete loop around your neck (including ties) it is a choking hazard. I never wore jewlery that I couldn't easily break. The tubular neckless holder is such a hazard! If you get to close to something in a low vis condition it could get caught. Also during a OOA with a panicked diver while reaching for your primary the secondary second stage can still be ripped out of the neckless making it harder to find.
For these reasons I've decided to not use a neckless. I do however recognize what is being attempted with the Octo on a neckless being easy to find. My choice however is a Inflator/Octo. I find it easy to find without the loop choking hazard.
This doesn't exclude using a long hose primary. They do not make a complete loop when properly configured. At this point for the type of diving I'm doing a 5' hose is best for me. I'm not penetrating caves or wrecks. But I have also decided on the convenience of a 19cuft pony with a quick release as an addition to my primary.

 

[vjanelle]

Just don't use cave line to make a necklace with or any other non-stretching material. It also has the added benefit that if you have an issue, your buddy knows where your nearest regulator is to put it in your mouth(ie, around your neck), and knows it hasn't been dragging through the silt.

Choking hazard? ... yeah. If you're in an overhead environment your main issue will be that you just turned your tanks off. If you're in open water... I'm not sure how you'd manage to choke yourself unless you had a yard of shock cord flapping around or used non-stretching cave line. If your buddy has an OOA situation and grabs your octo out of the necklace, then takes your offered primary, you do remember how to recover a missing regulator right?

 

[Brishar]

I dive a Atomic M1 first stage with two Atomic M1 second stages, the primary on a mi-flex 5' hose, the secondary on a 22" mi-flex hose.

I had previously used the standard Atomic B2 hose that has the swivel attached before I went to the long hose I now use on a single tank set up.

I much prefer this for the diving I do now, although I realize opinions may vary.

Since you stated that diving gear is a little limited in your part of the world, and if you choose to explore a little more before purchasing, suggest you e-mail Larry at Scubatoys. He was quite helpful to me and they are also a Atomic dealer. I got my mi-flex hoses and my second M1 second stage from Scubatoys and I couldn't been happier with the service I received. You will also need a additional part called a barrel, but Larry knows all about that.

Good luck on your decisions and don't drop that camera unless absolutely necessary!

Was in Key Largo last week and on a night dive, an unfortunate soul had a camera "disappear" off it's handle and strobe assembly. An expensive lesson about making sure everything was tight before jumping in. Oh, well.

Be safe, Brishar