Shooting a Sausage

[Lucy's Diver]

Anyone ever do the unreel and drop line method? Attach line to bag. Put a tiny puff of air into the bag to get it under control. Clip double ender or caribiner (I carry a locking stainless caribiner) onto line iself (so it can slide along the line) and let out a good 50 feet of line, now you have the double ender hanging 25 feet below you. Add more air to bag - now you have a good 50 feet of line that cannot be subject to a reel jam.

I've seen people rig reels with a heavy stainless steel nut on the line to do this, but I have found this to get entangled when using the reel on a wreck to navigate.

 

[dbulmer]

No reel, no spool. Just a lead weight attached to one end of some string and an SMB to the other stuffed into a pocket.
To send up they inflate the bag and drop the weight. Usually onto the reef, other divers, tangled around themselves or anything else etc. It seems very popular abroad where people only use a bag maybe once a year.

Thanks String - doesn't sound safe
BTW sorry to hear about your boat woes which I read on YD - hope it gets sorted.

 

[TSandM]

With the small bags we use for ascents and signaling the boat, it isn't that big a deal. I went through all kinds of gyrations, inhaling and adjusting buoyancy, breathing into the bag, releasing bag and rapidly adding gas to wing or suit . . . None of it was necessary.

Andrew Georgitsis showed me that, with a small bag, you can EASILY go a little head down and fin down gently against the lift of a half full bag, which is all you need if you are shooting it from 30 feet or below. In the few seconds it takes to inflate the bag and organize to release it, I don't move off depth anymore, and I can shoot a bag and keep the "30 second move, 30 second stop" pace of minimum deco, where I couldn't do that when I had to do all the gas moving before.

I'm sure with bigger bags, you have to do more. But the average recreational diver is unlikely to need much more than a one meter bag.

 

[String]

Clip double ender or caribiner (I carry a locking stainless caribiner) onto line iself (so it can slide along the line) and let out a good 50 feet of line, now you have the double ender hanging 25 feet below you.

Thats the bad idea i was describing above for so many reasons!

 

[String]

I'm sure with bigger bags, you have to do more. But the average recreational diver is unlikely to need much more than a one meter bag.

Id argue that anyone diving on any body of water where the surface is flatter than a small pond needs a bag over 1m. The small 3ft bags are virtually impossible to spot from any distance from a boat. 5-6ft id say is the minimum anyone should be carrying, especially in the sea.

 

[dbulmer]

Lynne,
I'm an average recreational diver - 4.5 foot is often the bag of choice over here because of conditions. Most skippers can't see the 3 foot bags and you have to bear in mind that most dives here are done in drift conditions.

I suspect there might be other locations too where the larger DSMB is preferred.

 

[mrlipis]

Great topic. Ron, my first deployment was also at Blue hole. I use a finger reel and was taught to start in a stomach up position with the reel and sausage above you. I use my alternate air source on my inflator, hit the purge button and away it goes. I was surprised however the first time I did this, as it will drag your ass to the surface if your not careful. I have become proficient with the finger reel and should a snag or problem occur, simply drop the reel. Worst case scenario, you would have to drag it back from the bottom. Definately something that should be practiced and in reality should be taught in AOW or DM.

Bruce