Primary light won't light ...

[JeffG]

You have a well-established track record of doing that--using age as an inappropriate proxy, that is, not apologizing.

He does like to "go to town" on some users. Its too bad his post about me was deleted.

 

[Dive-aholic]

No question!

Abort the dive! Book says turn the dive. We teach Turn the dive. Everyone turns the dive!

There is no question here. Don't start giving people bad advice with "Diving with a backup because it's OK." Would you keep penetrating if your mask was broken, or if you lost half your gas? Your Primary light is just as important as your other gear.

What happens if you keep going in on your backup, and there's a siltout. Now your buddies can't see you, and the situation gets alot worse.

I don't care how much experience you have. Diving without a primary light is bad advice.

The point was brought up that if it's no good for penetration, than it's no good for exit! Well, on exit, it's all ya got! and I prefer that to running into rocks headfirst! If the crap really hit the fan and I lost every light, I would try to get out using the light on my VR3, but I wouldn't use it to keep penetrating!

Got it?... Good.

Safe Diving

Who said anything about a backup not being good for penetration? Like I said, my back up is bright enough to signal other divers on my team from behind and get their attention. And I still have 2 more back ups. Some people only dive with 3 lights. I dive with 4. So does my regular dive buddy. Just because my first back up doesn't have a canister attached to it doesn't make it unsuitable as a primary. I can see just as much and it has just as long, if not a longer, burn time as my can light.

 

[Mike Edmonston]

Just because my first back up doesn't have a canister attached to it doesn't make it unsuitable as a primary. I can see just as much and it has just as long, if not a longer, burn time as my can light.

I think you may be right, as long as the required backups are present. As I stated earlier, a chart showing the actual illumination and signaling capabilities of the new LED lights would be a good starting point as some of these are getting bright enough to be used as primaries. Also as discussed in numerous previous threads, the longer burn times seem to favor using these lights for extended dives.

Just because a light is designated a "backup" by the manufacturer, does not necessarely mean that it is weak. There are some mighty bright "backup" lights out there. Even Dive Rite had a hard time designating the status of the hand held 10 watt HID. Was it a primary, or a backup? It really comes down to how you use it.

But let's say that you're penetrating on your Handheld (whether led or can), and it flooded and went out. Would you turn the dive, or keep going on another comparable backup? Even though it now only leaves you with 1 backup? Is that an acceptable amount of risk?

Safe Diving

 

[Dive-aholic]

By that time, I've had 2 lights fail and the dive is over. Obviously Murphy has just joined the team and I don't like diving with Murphy.

 

[Mike Edmonston]

By that time, I've had 2 lights fail and the dive is over. Obviously Murphy has just joined the team and I don't like diving with Murphy.

Sorry, I did not explain myself fully.

You start the dive with 3 lights. All equally bright handheld LED's suitable for penetration. Let's assume that 400ft in, your Primary LED floods out. Would you go the backup and continue diving (Same level of illumination), or would you turn the dive because you now only have one backup left.

Safe diving

 

[Dive-aholic]

I wouldn't start a dive with only 3 lights.

 

[contender]

My primary has never failed to come on before the dive, but it has failed about 75 feet into the gallery in Devil's. I knew before the dive that I was having problems with my light, and that it may very well fail. For that very reason I added 2 more backup lights that day, so I had a total of 5 on me. We were diving in a team of 4 so when the light failed I moved to the lead man and we kept going, with me on a backup. We made it to about the Hill 400 line when my brain started telling me how much of a dumb idea this was. I realize that I could have kept going in relative safety, but I turned the dive. Right as I turned the dive I was handed a note passed up the line from the rear man; it said "let's get out of here", so apparently I was not the only one my head was talking to. Yes it probably can be done but I don't think it's worth the risk of doing. The way I see it if I am 99% sure I am safe, then this really means I am 100% sure that I am not safe.

Chad

 

[JeffG]

I wouldn't start a dive with only 3 lights.

How many lights do you need?

 

[Dive-aholic]

Primary, mask light, 2 back-ups.

 

[Mike Edmonston]

I also carry a "Chemical light" in my drysuit pocket. That's my last ditch, gotta get out, everything else went to hell in a handbasket backup light. I don't expect to do much more than to see the line with it, but that's all I should need in order to get out (In a perfect world )

Safe Diving