Some bodies they never find - diving with an emergency PLB

[Dave_lucas]

Any thoughts as to what one is better the ResQLink+ or the PLB1?


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[mselenaous]

FWIW
I dive every ocean dice with a Nautilus Lifeline. Created by Scubaboard & owner of Nautilus Explorer & Belle Amie Nautilus Mike. He did this for his own customers on his liveaboards. This isn't a profitable venture...to Mike it's about diver safety, everywhere period.

I'd never had to use until we went to the Socorro Islands in May on Nautilus Belle Amie. One dive was on a point with some wicked current, I was having a hard time staying with the group and started my slow ascent & long safety stops from this deep dive. By the time I reached 20ft I could no longer see the group or Pete, I shot my SMB. Usually the chase boat captains were right there for pick up, but I drifted too far off course. I called out on the lifeline, the captai/crew on the Belle Amie were listening and relayed my location to the another chase boat for pick up. I had drifted almost a mile from my group & nearly 2 miles from shore into the Pacific. Confirmation from the crew that they were in route made it easy to just hang out with my smb.

I read too many reports of divers separated from their boats by currents and my only reply is : Nautilus Lifeline or some other PLB system, don't get off a boat without it.

 

[CuzzA]

I've owned a ResQLink+ for years for my boat. Recently I picked up a Custom Divers canister and carry the PLB with me on every dive. Also, they offer a test service where you can actually test the satellite transmission of your PLB and it works great. Pinpointed me right to my lanai.

Not for nothing, I think the Nautilus is a great product. However, if you are out of range from the radio it's useless and obviously it doesn't have a very large antenna so that possibility is real. Perhaps one day they will incorporate a PLB into the radio and then you'll have the ultimate lost at sea device.


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[kwinter]

I have carried my FastFind PLB for years in the OMS waterproof canister as part of their EDS pouch. It holds the canister and 2 lift bags or large SMBs. They stopped making the canister years ago. But now with DUI taking over the OMS products, maybe they will start making them again if there is enough interest..

 

[Searcaigh]

I posted this before in the A&I section a month ago





I will be testing the waterproofness of this container tomorrow, it has a double O-ring, my daughter will be taking it to Musandam next week when she goes diving there, it is a lot more remote than diving off UAE in the straits of Hormuz.

 

[Lorenzoid]

I have carried my FastFind PLB for years in the OMS waterproof canister as part of their EDS pouch. It holds the canister and 2 lift bags or large SMBs. They stopped making the canister years ago. But now with DUI taking over the OMS products, maybe they will start making them again if there is enough interest..

To sum it up, it seems to me that the viable canister options available today are: (a) Custom Divers (a UK company), (b) McMurdo (FastFind), (c) HDVSEATEK, and (d) have someone like Light Monkey custom-make one for you. The last two options I only learned of in this thread. I couldn't find much discussion of how well the Custom Divers canister actually worked, so I shied away from it. I wish this discussion had come up a couple of weeks ago when I bought the McMurdo canister, which is made of aluminum and kind of clunky.

 

[Akimbo]

... I wish this discussion had come up a couple of weeks ago when I bought the McMurdo canister, which is made of aluminum and kind of clunky.

Unfortunately the smallest in diameter and least expensive housing is no longer in production — the OMS with PVC caps at both ends of a Polycarbonate tube. I paid $40 a few months before production stopped. One nice thing about the transparent tube is you can easily inspect the piston O-ring seals after it is closed.

The downside is the smaller diameter will be more limiting when choosing a PLB to fit inside and there is an extra seal that can leak. Your McMurdo will likely outlast several generations of PLBs and has a great reputation for reliability.

New Subject:
Most PLB manufacturers publish overall dimensions but that isn’t an effective tool for choosing a cylindrical housing since the corner radii aren’t available. It might be worth compiling the smallest diameter circle different models will fit inside of. That would be especially useful for people considering converting a light housing or making a home-brew from Acrylic or Polycarbonate.

Using calipers to measure the maximum diagonal, my FastFind 210 is 51.6mm/2.03". It doesn’t quite fit inside a machined 2" ID cylinder but does (barely) fit inside some 2" ID (nominal) Acrylic tubing in my shop.

 

[DandyDon]

I wish this discussion had come up a couple of weeks ago when I bought the McMurdo canister, which is made of aluminum and kind of clunky.

Sorreee. We have had the discussion before from time to time.

 

[CuzzA]

I should add if anyone goes the ResQLink+ and Custom Divers route you will have to shave off about 1/8" on the antenna cover. It doesn't effect the PLB whatsoever. Also you can buy the Custom Divers canister from their US distributor out of Seminole, FL.

 

[Lorenzoid]

Sorreee. We have had the discussion before from time to time.

"Sorreee," Don, I read all the old threads mentioning PLB canisters, including the one I linked to in the post after your original post above. I did not see the HDVSEATEK or the option of Light Monkey custom-making a canister mentioned in any of the threads I found.

---------- Post added October 8th, 2015 at 01:55 PM ----------

I should add if anyone goes the ResQLink+ and Custom Divers route you will have to shave off about 1/8" on the antenna cover. It doesn't effect the PLB whatsoever. Also you can buy the Custom Divers canister from their US distributor out of Seminole, FL.

I believe the need to shave off some of the cover is mentioned in this thread that I noted above: http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/co...rsonal-locator-beacon-how-never-lost-sea.html