Pony bottle/alternate air

[DandyDon]

How many of you use a single tank set up and are recreational divers as opposed to tech divers? I dont use a pony or aa source but have thought about it. I have an octo of course, but nothing redundant like a pony. I have an extra 1st and second to use on one, but i have a few questions:

1. Is it difficult to travel with?
2. Is it difficult to get it filled by the dive op?
3. Isnt it quite a bit more weight?
4. Is it really necessary for warm water recreational diving?
5. Have you personally ever had an aao on your personal gear that caused you to need it?

I am also concerned about it being bulky. Unless I attach it to my primary tank on my back. I dont like anything hanging from my bc if I can avoid it.

Thoughts?

Oh I am certainly a recreational diver. My pony is usually the only one on the boat, but oh well. After a couple of bad insta-buddy experiences, it's my primary buddy.
1-We had some confusion in the early TSA days, rumors of them being confiscated, etc, but I kept packing mine in checked luggage - drained completely, but never bothered to remove the valve. Now TSA finally has a stated policy*; Drain, remove valve, and pack in luggage or even carry on.
2-It can be, but usually not. On Cozumel, most shops do not have their own compressor but send tanks to a fill station, but even this can be worked out. Technically, it's supposed to be vized every time it's breached, but in the real world - you keep the handling clean, remove & replace the valve yourself, and the Ops just check the current vis & hydro.
3-Oh yeah, for my 19 cf about 12# I guess. Only 5# or so negative in the water with my reg, but you need an adequate BC to deal with that. It is 12# heavier climbing the ladder, and I don't unclip it - don't want to risk dropping it. In Coz last week, the boat crews lifted it out for me, cursing under their breath. :shakehead see this chart If used, you'd already be in trouble, so the last thing you want is a runaway ascent, so I weight myself based on the empty buoyancy of 1.4# + 1-2# for reg - and drop only 2# really.
4-Nope
5-Yep, once - and I really screwed that up. That's when I stopped carrying on my back tank and started slinging it so I can see everything, handle everything, etc. I've used it several times with insta-buddies.

* That came out of Spare Air's lobbying, as the early TSA rules were killing their business. I would not consider a Spare Air, but I am glad they got the rules printed.

3. Weight wise, I dopped a few pounds of lead when I first started with the pony.

Joe, please consider my discussion on that.

 

[Nemrod]

I am not recreational or tech, I am what ever suits me at the moment.

I often use a pony but may or may not and may use doubles as well of various sorts depending on my needs.

I sling my pony now though in the past I ran it back mounted like an independent doubles set but assymetric. I mount a full regulator with approx 28 inch hose. I double the hose back on the tank and tuck under bungee material with the second sitting beside the valve. I turn the unit on before the dive. I often dispense with the octapus if I am carrying the pony, no need to carry three second stages. When I deploy it I just reach down and take hold of the second stage and pull, the hose feeds smoothly from the bungee and quickly the second is in either my mouth or the OOA diver. No need for long hoses wrapped all over the place, I do use a Tekna T2100 on the pony most of the time which has no left or right or I use a durable Voit MR with a swivel on the second with MkV first. I like the MkV clone type first stages because the turrent allows easy positioning of the hose.

A 19cf pony (also same for a 30) is essentially weightless save for the regulator which is minimal, there should be no need to get a jumbo BC, I manage often with no BC and pony.

N

 

[bentex]

Thanks for all of your answers!

Another question and probably a noob one.

If your first dive of the day is deep and you use air, and your second dive is shallower and you use Nitrox, what gas do you put in your pony?

 

[markfm]

Air -- good at any depth.
(This is using a pony within standard parameters, where it is a bailout bottle, switching to it is the end of that dive, time to ascend.)

 

[shoredivr]

My pony setup is the same as Divin' Hoosier's.

 

[DandyDon]

Thanks for all of your answers!

Another question and probably a noob one.

If your first dive of the day is deep and you use air, and your second dive is shallower and you use Nitrox, what gas do you put in your pony?

My pony has Air Only written on it so that no one will ever make the mistake of putting Oxygen into it. Even if the Op has Nitrox already blended that could be added, I want air just in case I have to use it below MOD for Nitrox.

Stage bottles may have high mixes or even all O2, and they may be the same mini-tank O2 cleaned, but that's a different discussion.

 

[String]

I like my pony. Its a much neater solution for my shallow dives than twin 12s.

FWIW my pony setup is a side slung 3l pony with a simple reg bungeed to the tank. I dive with it turned off but pressurised.

If you wear it back mount you will want the air turned on BEFORE starting a dive.

 

[fire_diver]

I carry a 19CF, loaded with air, slung on my left side, with it's own reg set and SPG.


FD

 

[DandyDon]

My only regular dive buddy went with me last time - first time he'd been in salt water in a year, altho we have practiced in a spring a couple of times. He's a vacation diver - not someone I'd ever trust. In fact, he's so bad about drifting away from me, I told him HE needed one, too.

One my other trips of the last year, I had different buddies different days - some good, some worthless. My choice was get a pony or stop diving.

 

[Jay Roy]

I like my pony. Its a much neater solution for my shallow dives than twin 12s.

Im stunned some people advocate diving with NO redundancy at all over taking a redundant air source.

The "find a new buddy" comments are laughable. It must be great to live in a perfect world where you create your own 100% reliable buddy that can always go wherever you go at the same time just for your diving pleasure.
The rest of us in the real world dont have the luxury of a cloned perfect buddy at all times so have to take other precautions.

FWIW my pony setup is a side slung 3l pony with a simple reg bungeed to the tank. I dive with it turned off but pressurised.

If you wear it back mount you will want the air turned on BEFORE starting a dive.

There is more to diving than diving..I have one buddy who I dive with pretty much exclusivly and we do it at least 100 dives a year together..The thing is, I'm not sure what I enjoy more, our time in the water or the time our families spend together out of the water....