What # lift size you carry

[rockjock3]

Ah ha! But a lift bag is an smb!

And my Haclyon 6 foot giant smb is a lift bag. Ah Ha

 

[shoredivr]

I actually carry both. If I need to shoot something, the bag is my first choice. Have you ever seen someone shoot an SMB, they spend most there time laying in the water. A bag will be larger to see on the surface. Once you get to the surface the SMB can be better in high seas, but a lift bag that is 2 feet by 3 feet and bright yellow can be seen easier than a 6 foot long pencil. If you really get screwed and they are searching by air I would much rather have a 2x3 foot yellow thing on me than a pencil.

I had an experience a couple of months ago in 2-3 ft swells where two neon yellow 100# lift bags were not seen by a boat, but two 4 ft neon yellow "pencil" SMBs were spotted easily. Group of 4 divers.

This reinforced for me carrying a lift bag and my 6 ft SMB in conditions like offshore Lake Huron.

 

[syntaxerrorsix]

50# DR bag here.

 

[StreetDoctor]

I don't dive steels so I don't know the numbers, but still would think that even with single or double steels you shouldn't ever be more than maybe 6-12 lbs negative even when starting a dive. Again, not very much to swim up at all.

You should only be negative by the weight of your gas at the beginning of the dive. In the case of diving double 130's it's quite a bit more than 6-12 lbs.