Using AIR 2

[lexvil]

I consider every dive a solo dive, sometimes with other people. An octo/inflator is a reasonably good alternative air supply, they breath ok and some like the SSI are as good as a lot of regular second stages.

some group think dogma is ok for training but for some people it makes them unthinking divers who can’t comprehend any alternative action in an emergency than the ones drilled into their head.

use the A2 for the warm water and enjoy yourself, it’s less clutter.

 

[johndiver999]

I’m not a new diver (or not as new as my profile here suggests) and I have no association or affiliation with BSAC. Incidentally, I’m based in Europe but rarely dive there - I dive in warm waters only.

I have no horse in this race. I *really* want to buy an AIR 2 or SS1, but only if I can be persuaded they are a good choice *for me* in an *emergency situation* with a panicked diver (the situation you described was not an emergency - I have no doubt the AIR 2 would work perfectly well in the scenario you describe).

I’ve read every single reply on this thread and unfortunately I’m not persuaded. I was just sharing the BSAC article for info in case anyone finds it useful.

EDIT: Perhaps worthwhile noting that my BCD (an Apeks WTX wing) doesn’t have any valves on my shoulders to dump air. That’s factoring into my decision.

If you don't have a pull dump, then you just remove the air 2 from your mouth and press the deflate button. If that sounds too difficult for you to manage in an emergency, then practice it OR use an octopus.

I pretty much always use a pony bottle, so I have an additional consideration in that I don't want or need the added complexity of three second stages. If I never used a pony, then I would be more ambivalent about the inflator. Sometimes I dive with a standard inflator, no octopus (and a pony) and it makes me feel a little less secure when with a buddy, when solo it matters little to me.

 

[rhwestfall]

You don't need to take it out of your mouth to vent your buoyancy device. Just push the deflate button and it will vent out the exhaust (you can stick your tongue in the mouthpiece if you are concerned)...

Just go modestly head up...

 

[Green Frog]

Well I kicked over this hornet’s nest recently, and oddly enough the AIR2 Gen 2 in question turned out to be too far gone to be worth servicing. This would have been a logical time to “de-convert“ to a “conventional” set up with octopus, but fortunately a Gen 4 came my way, so I’m doggedly sticking with the system!
some of us would rather fight than switch.

 

[Cthippo]

Going off on a tangent (because this is SB)...

Since I've started diving with a pony I've been thinking that it gives me another option for donating air, which is to just give them the pony and send therm up on their own while I follow on my back gas. Sure, if someone is panicking and need to be managed then primary donate and control the ascent, but if they are fine, but having an equipment failure or uncomplicated OOA and can manage themselves, I'm liking the though of giving that another 40 CuFt of air and not needing to be physically attached to someone else.

Thoughts?

 

[lexvil]

Going off on a tangent (because this is SB)...

Since I've started diving with a pony I've been thinking that it gives me another option for donating air, which is to just give them the pony and send therm up on their own while I follow on my back gas. Sure, if someone is panicking and need to be managed then primary donate and control the ascent, but if they are fine, but having an equipment failure or uncomplicated OOA and can manage themselves, I'm liking the though of giving that another 40 CuFt of air and not needing to be physically attached to someone else.

Thoughts?

This fits the BSAC guideline posted too.

 

[Angelo Farina]

As a someone who is considering moving to an inflator/integrated second stage set up, I found this discussion really helpful and can see both sides of the debate.

However, I noted earlier comments about the BSAC being against such a set up, and I want to look into that further. It seems from this BSAC article that they do indeed recommend against such a set up.



Personally, that’s enough to move me away from the idea and I hope someone else finds this information useful, even if some in this thread will inevitably disagree with it (there are some strong opinions here).

Bsac and Cmas are not against an Air2. They are against the idea that the Air2 is the only alternate air source.
Bsac and Cmas are also quite against the octopus: the recommended setup is two complete independent regs on two separate valves.
Possibly on a compact twin tank (7+7 liters at 232 bars or even 300 bars).
Less recommended, but still allowed, is a 15 liters tank on the back and a 5 liters pony.
Remember that recreational divers certified by Bsac and Cmas are allowed to perform deco dives: hence a proper amount of redundancy is required.
If you add an Air2 to a pair of complete regs, providing a THIRD air source, this is perfectly fine...

 

[Cthippo]

I find it interestng that the US and European (including UK, whether they like it or not) approaches differ in what problem they are most concerned about. In the US the focus seems to be on OOA emergencies and seem to assume that equipment failure, specifically in the first stage are unlikely. The emphasis is on alternate sources of air, either a fully redundant twin, pony, or a buddy to supply air. On the other hand, the European setup seems more concerned with regulator failure, emphasizing redundant first stages on a single air source.

I think the difference is fairly subtle in the real world, but interesting none the less.

 

[Ukmc]

Interesting discussion, folks. Seems to come up from time to time with the same arguments. I think, the most sound comment was that both systems work well, as long as the diver trained with it/ on it.
So it is really a preference. My son was trained on octo. That is what he likes and dives. I was trained on Air2, dove it for a while, did not like how it felt in my mouth during buddy-sharing. Added octo. Dove with both Air2 and Octo for a while . My wife loved Air2 when she started to dive, so now she is a proud owner of my air2 (and everything else I have, of course…) . As the result, I have two high quality second stages for primary and octo now and happy with my setup. My other son, I think is liking Air2 as well. So it is 2 and 2 in my family. Go figure...

Of course, my setup is the best

 

[mcohen1021]

Because it was a lot more enjoyable to do the dive than floating on the surface for 45 minutes in a current to get to the exit point..

LOL - ok, i can go with that