Where do I want my gauges, computer, etc?

[Reel Irie]

Trying to figure out my configuration being not very experienced, I would like to possibly do it right the first time...

Saltwater diving mostly - Spearfishing

 

[MrChen]

I started with a 3 gauge console, but I have become frustrated with it. My compass is no where near as accessible as I want it to be. I've got my naked brass spg on order and my compass should be arriving today. I already have a wrist computer and considered the console computer a backup. I'll probably pop it out of the console and find somewhere to mount it so I still have a backup computer.

 

[CT Sean]

I also started with a 3 gauge console and quickly found i didn't like it. Much happier now with wrist compass and PC and a simple brass n glass SPG clipped to left hip.

 

[Malpaso]

Started with a 3 gauge console; spg, depth and compass. Removed the compass and put it on a bungee mount on my left wrist. Just bought a wrist computer, which is on my right wrist. It is a Vyper Air, but I did not buy the AI transmitter. Still deciding if I will. Even if I do, I will keep the spg as backup. Also deciding if I will keep the depth gauge or not. At this point the two gauge console goes in the left pocket of my BC, but I just bought a bp/w so I will need to decide if I want one or two gauges on my left hip D ring.

 

[DevonDiver]

Computer - wrist
Compass - wrist
SPG - left hip (appropriate length hose to prevent 'bowing')

Wrist mounted gauges work really well in DSS type bungee mounts.

 

[Bob DBF]

Usually

Computer on wrist
SPG on left D-ring, I can check it anytime, any situation with a glance.
Compass on right D-ring it is mounted on a very small slate clipped with a retractor.




Bob
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I may be old, but I'm not dead yet.

 

[tplyons]

Computer on wrist
SPG on left D-ring, I can check it anytime, any situation with a glance.
Compass on right D-ring it is mounted on a very small slate clipped with a retractor.

This is what I do as well. I use an air integrated computer on my right wrist.
I have my SPG as a backup on my left hip D-ring.
My Compass is on my right hip D-ring on a retractor.

 

[DivemasterDennis]

It's really a matter of personal taste. I have settled in on a console, but I clip a retractable compass to my bcd. I did not like the feel of the wrist mount computer, and for some reason am not an "air integrated" person. I guess I have more confidence in low tech spg's, though not by reason of any past events. There is something to be said for picking an arrangement and sticking with it. Being familiar with and able to access your equipment is a big deal. So find your comfort zone and then stick with it.
DivemasterDennis

 

[Gren]

Main computer on my left forearm, bottom timer closer to my left wrist. Comp as on my right wrist. Brass spg on my left hip d-ring.

Keeping the computer on your forearm keeps it right in your face if you dive with your arms in front of you making it like a HUD. Makes it effortless to check.

Sent from my Nexus 7 using Tapatalk 4

 

[TSandM]

What you buy, and how you arrange it, will depend a little bit on what's important to you.

I like to be able to see my depth all the time -- I probably check my depth gauge every 10 or 15 seconds when I'm not actively looking at something specific or taking a photograph. So I like that information on my wrist, where it's right in front of me, and on my right wrist, so I can watch it as I add or vent gas from my BC.

I clip my pressure gauge off on my left, partially because the HP hose is there, and partly because it doesn't cross the front of my body and trap or impede anything else. Whether you use a simple gauge or an air-integrated computer is up to you, but if you don't want to buy two depth measuring devices, putting the computer on your left hip will mean you can't watch it during ascents and descents unless you hold it, which ties up a hand -- and that's awkward, for example, if you are hanging onto a line in current AND trying to manage your BC (and dry suit, in my case). My husband uses an air-integrated computer instead of a gauge, but he uses another depth gauge on his wrist.

I use my compass on my left wrist, but I think this is one place where you can argue where something ought to go. A compass on the left wrist requires that you be VERY careful with compass positioning, if you are needing to swim a heading that someone gave you, because it's easy for the compass to end up off to the left of you, and result in an erroneous course. (If you are taking a heading on something yourself, the error is probably going to be consistent enough not to bother anything, or at least that's my experience.) A compass clipped off in a pocket can be brought out and held directly in front of you, but is more susceptible to loss. A compass on the end of a console can be just as difficult as a wrist compass to get into the right position, unless the HP hose is so long that you have a great big bow in it when it's clipped off, which can be an annoyance in rocks or kelp.

I like my equipment streamlined and close to my body. I like my gauges accessible, and I don't want to lose them. So I use a short HP hose, a simple pressure gauge, and wrist compass and computer. Works for me.