Pony tanks Good or Bad? - POLL

Are pony tanks Good or Bad ?


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cornfed:
Well what's the point then? :grin:

Seriously though, in my very limited experience with ponys they seem to be a crutch. A substitute for better planning, if you will. There are several people on this board that are strong advocates of better planning and gas management for recreational diving. Normally recreational dives are planned soley on NDL and gas requirements are given little thought. Ponys then become a solution to the problem of not planning your gas needs. Just my two cents.

The funny thing about rec diving is that most rec divers don't feel that their diving is "serious" enough to warrant planning a dive and diving the plan - eg. uw photographers. One of the rec divers I talked to spoke highly of a pony bottle system for those times when you're chasing that must-have photo and then need to do deco. I haven't gotten the photo bug yet, but each to his/her own I guess.

Hantzu
 
snuggle:
i have to agree with diverlady that it is up to the individual diver wether or not they take a pony with them..if they feel that having one with them outways the risk of entanglement then its up to them..as another member pointed out as well your buddy doesnt always see whats going on and if you have to react without his or her help then its good to have aa source to help you ..its all depends on the type of dive and the diver..its a personal choice..some of you divers swear by doubles and thats fine others will swear that a pony saved their life at one time or another..i think though that it should be used for why it was made.in an emergency..


I guess that you haven't considered intentional stage/pony bottle use... Many divers use these as both. Case in point, alot of the divers I know use a stage/pony bottle as well as having their doubles with the isolator bar. Yes, divers diving solo, and completely recreational should always have enough in reserve in the pony bottle to do the mandatory and safety stops, but if they are doing recreational diving like you mentioned I think that they would be avoiding the hazard of entanglement such as wreck penetration and marine life right....?
 
How do you avoid the hazard of marine life? Dive in a cave? :D
 
http://www.ship-wrecks.org/shipwreck/study/willie1.html

"Prinz Willem - Milwaukee - 10/18/1997

A dive fatality occurred on the wreck of the Prinz Willem, five miles off Milwaukee Harbor on October 18, 1997. The wreck lies nearly on its side in 90 ft. of water, with its rail rising to 40 ft.

The fatality was the fourth to occur on the popular wreck since its sinking on October 14, 1954. The 34 year old male diver was with a group of thirteen other divers and descended alone to the stern of the wreck where he penetrated the engine room of the wreck using a wreck reel. About 15 minutes into the dive, two other divers noticed the victim with his ankle wrapped in line from his wreck reel, floating motionlessly near a skylight over the engine room. The diver had ditched all his gear except his drysuit and fins in his efforts to free himself. The two divers removed the victim and brought him to the surface where CPR was administered. The victim's tank was found to have 1800 psi remaining and his pony tank was still full. The Coast Guard was onsite immediately, but the diver was pronounced dead after Police and fire boats arrived at the scene 25 minutes later. The diver had done many dives on the Prinz Willem and was supposedly Trimix certified despite having only three years of dive experience. His equipment was adequate for the dive and he had no known medical conditions.

The most likely scenario for this accident is that the diver's BC/tank became entangled in his wreck line and he ditched them in an effort to remove the line from them. His leg then became wrapped in the wreck reel line, perhaps intentionally, while his BC/tank fell due to being negatively buoyant, leaving the diver with no air source. "
 
Uncle Pug:
http://www.ship-wrecks.org/shipwreck/study/willie1.html

"Prinz Willem - Milwaukee - 10/18/1997

A dive fatality occurred on the wreck of the Prinz Willem, five miles off Milwaukee Harbor on October 18, 1997. The wreck lies nearly on its side in 90 ft. of water, with its rail rising to 40 ft.

The fatality was the fourth to occur on the popular wreck since its sinking on October 14, 1954. The 34 year old male diver was with a group of thirteen other divers and descended alone to the stern of the wreck where he penetrated the engine room of the wreck using a wreck reel. About 15 minutes into the dive, two other divers noticed the victim with his ankle wrapped in line from his wreck reel, floating motionlessly near a skylight over the engine room. The diver had ditched all his gear except his drysuit and fins in his efforts to free himself. The two divers removed the victim and brought him to the surface where CPR was administered. The victim's tank was found to have 1800 psi remaining and his pony tank was still full. The Coast Guard was onsite immediately, but the diver was pronounced dead after Police and fire boats arrived at the scene 25 minutes later. The diver had done many dives on the Prinz Willem and was supposedly Trimix certified despite having only three years of dive experience. His equipment was adequate for the dive and he had no known medical conditions.

The most likely scenario for this accident is that the diver's BC/tank became entangled in his wreck line and he ditched them in an effort to remove the line from them. His leg then became wrapped in the wreck reel line, perhaps intentionally, while his BC/tank fell due to being negatively buoyant, leaving the diver with no air source. "

How about the diver had trouble with wreck reel/line and it had nothing to do with the pony bottle. I do not think there is enough information to draw this kind of conclusion. I am sure I can find stories to fit my argument as well.
 
I just ran across that on another board and thought it was interesting.. not necessarily trying to make a point about pony bottles other than they make really crappy buddies.
 
A fellow spearfisherman who dives with me occasionally is alive right now because he had a pony this summer.

Now he had a TOO SMALL pony, but still, without it he would almost certainly have died. The alternative to his pony was an ESA from 130' - unlikely to be successfully made.
 
Uncle Pug:
I just ran across that on another board and thought it was interesting.. not necessarily trying to make a point about pony bottles other than they make really crappy buddies.

I tried to make this point earlier; I would rather rely on a Pony than a buddy. A buddy may not see you or understand your situation, but a pony is always there.
 

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