Stages: 1/2+200 or 1/3rds

[PfcAJ]

Pfft you might want to avoid taking a 250ft scooter mandatory example, try to reverse engineer it to every stage-OOG circumstance, then moan about what is and isn't obvious.

Wat?

We're talking about two completely different dives. Different in application and different in execution. How would you dive a deep no flow cave? How would you dive a shallow high flow cave? Have you done either? If you can ask me, I can ask you, right?

A dive at Ginnie where you drop the scoot and swim (because the cave is too small to scooter) is drastically different than a dive in a great big deep cave. Why should we shoehorn one practice that reduces your flexibility into an area where you don't have to?

To be honest, I'm not real sure what point your arguing, its very ambiguous. I'm saying that there are two main "methods" of scooter diving with stages. One is to keep backgas in reserve and dive stages completely, the other is to dive stages to a point, and drop the scooter when you drop the last stage, and swim a bit. BG only scooter diving is cool if you're close to the entrance and its shallow and you know the gas requirements to swim out.

For those two scooter/stage methods, the OOG management is different. One uses keeping the OOG diver on a huge gas source, the other uses stages because its all you've got less, and the wind is at your back, giving a little buffer. Either way, half plus 200 method keeps your reserve gas on your back.

 

[LiteHedded]

now we're going around in circles and I can't even remember what we're talking about. sounds about right for SB

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

now we're going around in circles and I can't even remember what we're talking about. sounds about right for SB

It looks like your nose and forehead has predator technology.

 

[karstdvr]

now we're going around in circles and I can't even remember what we're talking about. sounds about right for SB

I agree,makes wonder why a Tek to Tek,and not on the regular forum. Considering an unsubscribe to Tek to Tek.

 

[Cave Diver]

well swimming is a whole lot different than scootering.
I'd conserve some backgas to handle the switches and use my own stages

A real OOG diver on a half a stage will breath it down before the next stage cache', so they'll be OOG again. Its slow and raises stress levels.

An OOG diver with a 2/3 stage will probably make it to the next stage cache, but will end up with leftover gas in the bottle, which is now worthless. To make it of any use, you have to take it with you, and more stages=more drag=slower exit.

I think this is part of where the circular arguments come in, not everyone is talking about the same type of stage diving.

Places I've generally had a stage bottle in are higher flow and swimming dives. I can typically exit on half as much gas as I penetrated on, so even with an elevated amount of stress I think it would be hard not to make it back with a 2/3 stage.

As far as "worthless" gas, it would be interesting to figure out at which point increased drag/delayed exit overrides benefit from extra gas. Again, this might be different in scootering, but I'd think that a larger profile on a swimming exit in a higher flow cave might actually give you more "push" to exit faster. Might be a worthwhile experiment.

I dont use a DPV so I'm sure there are issues planning those dives that I'm overlooking.