Steel tanks & wetsuit - some real experience to go with the claims....

[Genesis]

.. I believe that ditching at depth (.vs. on the surface) is a poor choice in nearly all cases....

And also not necessary, as there are other choices.

I hate "solutions" that bring more risk than the original problem being guarded against. That is, if I have a risk of one in 100,000 of something bad, and the "fix" for that can hose me 1 in 10,000 uses, I'm actually 10x WORSE off to try to mitigate the original risk!

Lots of stuff in diving seems to be that way - people and agencies have issued some "rule of thumb" without thinking it through.....

 

[mgri]

Did Genesis just surpass SeaJay for longest post ever?

I'm just poking guys. I like reading both of your posts because you guys like to "think out loud".

Quick question on the weight of a typical DIR/HOG rig. Has anyone every checked to see if all the D-rings and stainless or brass clips adds up to negative weight or do you thinks it's a wash due to the buoyancy of straps and cams? Sometimes I feel like I've got an extra 3lbs of steel and brass.

Mark

 

[Scuba_Vixen]

and swim your butt up..once the suit uncompresses, you can use the reel drag to control the ascent..once at the surface at the boat, reel the weight home...

Not bad thinkin' for a blonde, eh?


Me, I'd still go the Al bp and redundant bladder bc...as previously suggested..



Darlene

 

[SeaJay]

mgri once bubbled...
Did Genesis just surpass SeaJay for longest post ever?

Mark

Not even close. There's been times when I've written small novels... And done that many times in a single thread.

Gen, I don't really see the problem here... The bottom line is, "Can you swim the double hp100's up (AL plate, salt) with a 3 mil wetsuit on?"

If not, then opt instead for a pair of double AL80's on a steel plate and put the extra few pounds on a belt or in some other ditchable form. I doubt you'll ever use that, though, since you'll probably be able to swim this rig up anyway.

And dude, if you don't need it to be ditchable, then put your weight somewhere else... Like thread onto your webbing somewhere. Or, you could use a little of each so that your ditchable is only a few pounds...

 

[Boogie711]

... do you mean as in similar to the e7-100's from PST, or are they a different setup? Just curious.

 

[Genesis]

Twin E7-100s, the new ones with the standard 3/4" neck threads.

 

[SeaJay]

I can't wait to see if you can swim those up, Gen... 'Cause if you can, I might look into that setup myself...

Those new E7's have some serious promise.

 

[divermasterB]

Nice discussion here.

Every time I have been in my doubles setup, I have been in my drysuit.

LP95's w/Steel BP

I dove them once in a pool with no exposure protection and they were very negative. I am going to have to look into an AL BP before I try to take this setup to a warmer climate. Even dropping the AL BP seems like I will need to come up with some more buoyancy. I generally wear a 3 mil shorty in anything over about 72 degrees.

 

[ERP]

Aren't the new E7-100's the same size as the old LP80's?

I have a set of 80's doubled up on a SS backplate and I'm a good 8lbs heavy in fresh water with an empty tank wearing a drysuit and 300wt fleece undies.

I haven't gotten them to the ocean yet, but I figure I'll need only a couple of pounds at most.

I'd think it would be a pretty extreme effort to swim them up full if I were diving wet.

 

[sasdasdaf]

In anything less than a drysuit, your double LP95s are going to be extremely negative. The most positive rig I have dove with was comprised of a drysuit, DUI 400G undergarment (which is very positive) and AL backplate. With double LP95s, I was probably just right in salt water.

So if you are diving with an SS plate, you could switch to AL and improve your weighting. And if you are in fresh water, you should definitely switch.

In a wetsuit LP doubles are a bad idea.