Pony Sizes

[Divin'Papaw]

I'm in the process of rigging my first pony. (To a non-diver, that sounds really funny!). I went with a 30cf as I want to have enough of a safety margin to have a very high probability of making it up from 130. With my SAC rate, the 30cf will more than suffice. Also, I'm going to sling it on my left side.

 

[Jimmer]

If you do a quick look, there is a thread on pony bottle gauges right now. Covers all the options pretty nicely. Personally I use a regular SPG (an OMS) on a 6 inch long hose, so it stays nice and tucked close to the reg, and is very easy to see when slung on the side.

 

[Divin'Papaw]

I like the reasoning you gave for side over back, it makes much more sense...What about a gauge for them, you cant just hook a reg up to them right?

You'll want a gauge. Either a button or a small SPG. I went with an XS Scuba 2" brass and glass SPG on a 6" hose.

 

[drbill]

As others have commented, the dive profiles you do will make quite a difference. In the days that I did dives mostly in the 80-100' range with no or just very occasional deco, I was fine with a 13 cu ft (I have a very good SAC rate). When I started going to 150-160 with some frequency and occasional short decos, I upgraded to a 19 cu ft. Now, when I dive deeper and incur more frequent and longer deco obligations, I carry my 19 (it's always mounted on my HP120 primary tank) and may butt mount a 30 or 40 cu ft pony as well.

 

[fast5frog]

Hey, you have fun riggin' your first pony Divin'Hoosir lol. I'll be doin the same shortly, I just wanted to be sure I do it right....Thanks alot Jimmer, for all the info

 

[Nemrod]

I have a button guage on mine and since I sling it now and that works fine. It is not needed to reference the guage in the water because if you have a problem (or your buddy) and you go to the pony then your headed for the surface, dive over. N

 

[hlsooner]

My setup is a Luxfer 30 cf tank with a button gauge, attached by a Quick Draw bracket, http://www.quickdrawbracket.com. I barely even notice it is there if I move three pounds to the opposite side. The only downside with this setup is that you can't see the gauge, or air leaks. I depend on my buddy to let me know if it ever starts losing air.