Pony bottle setup/config

[jepuskar]

Hi,

I am going to purchase either a 13cf or a 19cf pony bottle to use on my upcoming dive trip. I have already decided on mounting it to my main tank and have a couple questions regarding the next steps.

I am going with the Aeris small HP pressure gauge for psi monitoring, but what about the reg setup? What should I do about the regs? Is there a cheap option for a first/2nd stage for this purpose.

Also, on a side note...would it be worth while to mount a a 2nd reg coming off of that pony on the back of my main tank with a 5-7 foot long hose....so if my buddy was OOA and I was swimming away or had my back to them..then an airsource would be closer to them...or is this just being a stroke?

Also, how bout trim...is it just a matter of countering the weight of the pony by moving some weight to the opposite side of your body than the pony is on?

Thanks,

JAson

 

[Cave Diver]

C'mon Jep.

You've been around this board long enough to know the answers to these questions.

First question is "Why do you need a pony bottle?"

If it's to avoid an OOA emergency there are two much better ways to do this. First is pay attention to your SPG. Second is to develop good buddy skills so that your buddy is close enough to help in the event of an equipment malfunction.

Note that I did not say that he was there to help in the event you went OOA. That's because if he was truly a good dive buddy, you would also be monitoring each other's gas supply and turn the dive before either of you ever got critical. Therefore, he would simply provide redundancy in the (unlikely) event of a catastrophic gear failure that made you go OOA.

If you truly want to go with a pony option then you need to consider the depth from which you may be bailing out in order to decide the capacity of the bottle.

I think that an octo as well as a primary reg on the pony is overkill and would avoid it.

If you want a 7' hose, put it on the main tank on your back and rig it hogarthian style.

A small pony shouldnt unbalance you terribly, but moving a small amount of weight should be sufficient to compensate for it.

 

[Scubaroo]

Well if it's just for a pony bottle on a trip, a new entry-level reg like an AquaLung Calypso or Sherwood Brut can usually be had on eBay for <$150. There's a plethora of used regs there as well you could pick up for a lot less, but they would probably need servicing.

Scubapro Mk2/190s aren't much more expensive.

 

[jepuskar]

I am very aware of proper buddy skills and diving techniques.....I worded my post in a way to help avoid someone asking me why I wanted a pony, but sure enough, the first response was one questioning it.

It is an independant air source...what more do I need to say?

"A small pony shouldnt unbalance you terribly, but moving a small amount of weight should be sufficient to compensate for it."

Thank you for that comment....obviously I am new to the whole pony thing and wasn't sure how bad this would affect things.... I think I am leaning towards a 13cf....19cf seems like overkill.

Scubaroo.....thanks for the reg suggestions....I'll probably get something along what you mentioned...definetly want to save on costs for this.

Jason

 

[ElectricZombie]

jepuskar,

The pony bottle is a really bad idea. I'm sure you know the reasons so, I'm not going to mention them again.

However, if you still insist on carrying one, I would not mount it to my tank if I were you. These fancy mounting brackets you see for pony bottles look really nice, but they do not work. I know a couple of guys who use this method and when I challenged them to remove the pony bottle like in a real emergency, they could not do it. Forget about mounting it to the tanks or putting a really long hose on it. Rig your pony like a stage and carry it off your left side. You can easily remove/re-attach the pony if you need to this way. The reg will be with the cylinder out in front where it can actually be used. If you absolutely are convinced that you need a pony, this is the way to do it.

I would reconsider the idea of a pony though...ut:

 

[jepuskar]

I'm not sure if your being sarcastic or what, but what are the bad reasons for having a pony?

I really think your kidding, but for the sake of not knowing any better...what gives?

 

[ElectricZombie]

No, I'm not kidding or being sarcastic...pony bottles are an extremely bad idea...you don't need them and they cause people to ignore proper dive planning.

There is a lot of discussion on why pony bottles are a bad idea if you want to do a search.

Pony bottles are not needed. With proper gas planning/management and a good buddy (He is your backup), running out of gas is a non-issue. Carrying a pony bottle is like saying that you plan to fail. People don't plan their dives, don't monitor their air, don't practice out of air skills, & have poor buddy skills....they then expect the pony bottle to be some sort of solution...it's not. They are totally dependant on the pony and totally ignore proper planning...people need to think more, not less. Carrying a pony says that you are not commited to perfecting skills and that you can't manage your gas. Instead of solving the problem, people compound it by adding a piece of unnecessary gear that they are not even comfortable implimenting. You actually end up creating a lot more problems. People make such a big deal about pony bottles and they can't even access them when needed. I see using a pony as a sign that the diver in question is too lazy to learn proper gas management, OOA Skills and buddy skills.

If you insist on true redundancy, switch to doubles. Pony bottles are a solution to a problem that should not even exist.

 

[jepuskar]

ok..so anyway...

I am getting a 13cf pony for a redundant air source and I want it mounted on my main tank.

I'll get a basic first/2nd stage setup..probably put pink or yellow wrapping around the hose....not sure which way I'll route the hose though...I'm thinking on my left side because I don't have any hoses on that side and my octo comes around my right. This will probably mean the tank will go on my left side.

I am a pure recreational diver who just enjoys having fun and being safe. I like the idea of having another redundant air supply and this pony bottle seems the way to go for me, I just want to make it easy.

Thanks for any other suggestions.

Jason

 

[Dryglove]

Ill throw in a few of my experiences.Let me state i am neutral for use of pony bottles.I used to use a 13cuft attached to my tank using a fancy two piece aluminum quick disconnect pony mount.It was a nice solid mount and easily removable underwater by the person needing it.There is no way i could remove it and hand it off myself.

The problems that concerned me is that i could not see the little button pressure gauge mounted to it so i had no idea how much air was in it after i donned my gear.On one dive i started with a full pony and ended the dive with an empty pony and never even so much as used it.I never even knew the gas leaked out cause i had to dive it with the valve open and ready to go as there was no way to reach the valve during the dive.That would had been a disaster had i needed it.Then theres always the decision of where to put the reg and hose.

I currently dive small doubles with an isolator manifold and love them.

My next pony set up for when i do dive single tanks will be either a 30 or 40 rigged like a stage bottle.I have tried it out and is a great set up.

The things i liked is that the SPG is easily visible and once the tank is pressurized you can turn the valve off eliminating the risk of accidently losing your gas.It balanced out much better than being mounted on the main tank.The reg, spg and hose are in one nice package where you can easily see and get to it. A 30 or 40 tank should give you more than enough gas to make it to surface under stress on a NDL along with safety stop.A 13cuft is very marginal in my opinion.

Here is a site from one of the members here on bailout bottles.

http://www.magnificentrelief.com/Dive Docs/Bail Out Final.htm

I am not trying to discourage on your choice but am just pointing some issues out that i had with mine and what i prefer and why.

 

[jepuskar]

I never really considered mounting the pony on my side..the whole idea seems kind of foreign to me...looking at a 13cf tank...i'm sure it is no big deal though.

thanks for sharing your experiences.

jason