Pony or no Pony ?

[LI Diver]

Bonaire has terrific vis so you are not likely to lose sight of your son. However distance can be deceiving underwater, and as comfort levels increase both you and your son will drift farther and farther apart underwater looking at whatever captivates you. Yes it's not likely that you will have a failure, but running out of air does happen, even to the most safety concious diver. No it hasn't happened to me but I know a few divers with loads of experience who have.

I sling a 19 cf pony on every dive I do. I don't even notice it. At first you will. The only part I notice is my absolute comfort in knowing that if the sh** hits the fan I can make it back from 130 and under. My buddy who appears bigger than you at 6-3 280 can make it back from a 110 under duress w/ enough for a long safety stop. Tested yeasterday "controlled/planned". If you can afford to drop a few hundred bucks for yourself and son I would.

Having to explain to the wife and others that you brought your son into a hostile environment with as much safety precaution as possible is easier than the latter. Sorry if this sounds brash but I am so much happier diving with one.

No apology needed MT my thoughts exactly, I love to dive with my son and when I first saw him snorkeling and cavorting with the fish it warmed my heart. However it is a HUGE responsibility and I hear ya. It would be nice to dive with another adult as I alluded to in the previous post but I almost feel as though I would be betraying him!

 

[LI Diver]

I don't sweat bringing it on travel. It's a steel bottle with the valve removed, in checked luggage, rides in a piece of foam sitting on my BCD. The reg comes with me, carry on, no different than my main regs and computer. Toughest thing is remembering to remove the knife from the console, put it in checked luggage.

Using the QD, I balance it with two pounds on the other side (weight in a tank band pouch), seems to be clean. According to some, perhaps it should be a 3 pound balance, but 2's been working.

Thanks Mark, QD? if thats the sea quest bc than I have the same one. Even if I opt not to take one on this trip then I will keep all the dives shallow and I definately want to get one in the near future.

 

[ChrisA]

... What happens if your just tooling along and zip goes your air? Is there a gasp response? What if you get a mouth full of water (or an airway?) at this point, how long can a person keep from doing something if your buddie is got his head in a lobster hole or taking a photo?
Ed:06:

You will get about a breath and a half of warning. Also as you asend you may get a little more air. In an OOA situation I'd be worried about getting bent because almost certainly you'd be headed up like a rocket. I use a pony bottle for some dives but not most dives

 

[markfm]

QD = QuickDraw, a kind of tank bracket for ponies. It mounts on a standard tank band.
Quickdraw + pony gauge (small SPG, screws directly into the HP port) + 19CF + pony reg set (small first stage, second stage) ran $300 - $350.
If you dive salt, wipe down the QD pins around the ball bearings, every so often (my LDS suggested a small shot of WD40, at the bearings, with a good wipe, works well; pull the pins before doing this so you aren't applying the WD40 to anything else -- this is purely to clean the pin bearings)

 

[LI Diver]

QD = QuickDraw, a kind of tank bracket for ponies. It mounts on a standard tank band.
Quickdraw + pony gauge (small SPG, screws directly into the HP port) + 19CF + pony reg set (small first stage, second stage) ran $300 - $350.
If you dive salt, wipe down the QD pins around the ball bearings, every so often (my LDS suggested a small shot of WD40, at the bearings, with a good wipe, works well; pull the pins before doing this so you aren't applying the WD40 to anything else -- this is purely to clean the pin bearings)

Oh ok thanks mark!

 

[stu_in_fl]

most of the answers saying you should go for a pony have lots of dives behind them - so after doing a lot of dives they decided it was right for them with the type of diving/environments they regularly use (and then went ahead and got one).....

.....I'd still wait and decide later if I were you....(for example if you think that in the future you plan to do some more deep/technical style diving the get gear that could be used for that so you don't need to buy twice - in which case a 13 is a waste of time, even a 19 is limited - maybe a 30 or 40)

if you're really set on getting one - see if your LDS will lend you one and take it to the pool to play (and then travel on a local dive), you can then see how much extra hassle (if any) you find in using it....also see if slinging in front or behind you work better for you - pros and cons to each way - (there are long heated debates on that question so you can search on the SB threads - but you'll see there are lots of differeing opinions.......)

 

[Xanthro]

I usually a pony supporter, but in this case I'd say it's not needed.

One, you have a dive buddy, your son, the two of you should be close enough to support one another. If you are not, work on your buddy skills, it will serve you well in the future.

Two, you don't have that many dives. Adding a pony can be a task load, and you'll need to check and deploy, and practice with it. This adds to your dive task load. It might be better to wait a few dives.

I often dive alone or with boat buddies, or people I've just met, so I carry a pony because of the circumstances of my dives. You will be diving in nice warm clear water with the same buddy, and the chances of a pony actually helping you are very small. It's unlikely you'll need it, and if you have a situation, your buddy should be right there.

Remember, there are reasons to be near your buddy other than OOA. So you should be in constant contact. Neither of you should be just swimming away, something that often happens with unknown buddies.

 

[Charlie99]

most of the answers saying you should go for a pony have lots of dives behind them - so after doing a lot of dives they decided it was right for them with the type of diving/environments they regularly use (and then went ahead and got one).....

OTOH, you will notice that the professionals that regularly dive in ES601's intended destinations DON'T carry a pony bottle. Likewise on the many Maui dive boats I frequent. The DMs could easily afford the price of a pony tank, but don't carry one. I've never asked why, but can make some guesses:

A pony will create additional clutter and drag. This may cause problems if one has to swim against either currents or downdrafts. Swimming against a current happens a lot more often than do catastrophic reg failures.

The benefit of a pony is minimal when you have a buddy and his gas nearby.

 

[JeffG]

and if you have not become part of the Borg Collective (aka DIR), definitely use a pony.

--Matt

and if you are, you can just save your money and not live a life of fear.

 

[stu_in_fl]

Originally Posted by stu_in_fl
most of the answers saying you should go for a pony have lots of dives behind them - so after doing a lot of dives they decided it was right for them with the type of diving/environments they regularly use (and then went ahead and got one).....


OTOH, you will notice that the professionals that regularly dive in ES601's intended destinations DON'T carry a pony bottle. Likewise on the many Maui dive boats I frequent. The DMs could easily afford the price of a pony tank, but don't carry one. I've never asked why, but can make some guesses:

A pony will create additional clutter and drag. This may cause problems if one has to swim against either currents or downdrafts. Swimming against a current happens a lot more often than do catastrophic reg failures.

The benefit of a pony is minimal when you have a buddy and his gas nearby.

yes, perhaps my posting was a little ambiguous - I was intending to infer that some people were recommending a pony based on what they found their own level of experience or situation warranted, rather than looking at this particular case.

I agree completely that in this case, there is no reason why a pony bottle would really benefit this person...and perhaps cause more problems instead of fixing a non-existant one.

-- S