BDC/Wing - to bungee or not?

[MattS]

but only if you are weighted to be neutral at 3 metres when your set is at 50 bar in the first place

Now I am confused...not difficult

So how are/were you weighted?

[MattS]

Dunno - persevere for a while because every time I've changed anything with my kit it's taken a while to get used to it

Par for the course. In this case I made 22 dives over 6 days from 6 to 62m using the said infernal twinset. I never really became one with it.

(and get round the head games).

I don't do head games, I don't think it mixes with the sport we are involved with.

I firmly believe that a good diver should be able to dive in anything

Somewhat agree. I am quite prepared to dive with whatever is available as long as it is not blatently dangerous. I have dived some (ahem) interesting configurations in order to meet an objective. I don't see any point stressing myself trying to make something work though.

- bourne out by my jumping in with the London Hellfins in buddy comando and pool fins (after checking Janos didn't have a camera of course )

I think there are a couple pictures of me in said twin AL80s somwhere. I am lets say compact, so imagine two dirt big cylinders with a pair of ankles sticking out the bottom. Damn funny....and you don't want to ask about the dive I did in flip-flops!

If it's really that awful, I still have a choice - put up with it or avoid the need for twins in a wetsuit.

Well I did put up with it, but I avoid ALs like the plague.

From what you say, Frase and I may have had an easier time of it as neither of us needed much weight. In 5 mm full length wetsuits with the twin 80s I think he had backplate plus 1kg and I had backplate plus 2kgs.

I hope you will answer my previous question. I always weight for worse case, neutral on near empty cylinders, without stages. Generally I carry a little less weight than the average, even for my size. As is the way I did not really notice how uncomfortable it was until I got to the deco.

On our deepest dives (56 and 50 meters) we had Ali 80 stages as well - I can't remember feeling uncomfortable due to kit at any stage

Hmmm. Lets put it like this, when I started driving I had a 15 year old Maxi, I thought it was fine. I can still drive a Maxi, but I would much rather drive my year old Astra Van.

- in fact I do recall a conversation on how much easier everything was regarding buoyancy and trim.

That's what spurred the question. I have had the conversation many times - Ali cylinders are the spawn of Satan. Most recently I did one dive in the Red Sea using an Ali single earlier this year, whinged, got told I was being a wuss by the dive guide, nicked their steel, then listened to them whinging about how they had forgotten how bad Ali cylinders are.

With no wing? - I don't know how easy it would have been to swim up

Definitely an exercise worth trying, as is trying to swim up a heavily overweighted/negative buddy. I tend to think many people over-estimate their ability in this area. Even if you can do it your breathing rate is likely to go through the roof, which brings some nasty contents and CO2 problems on a 50m ascent. That's basically why I use a redundant bladder for wetsuit diving. I did the exercise from 20m, realised just how much effort it was and that it could be avoided completely.

but with little weight we never needed that much air in the wing anyway so can't imagine it being that bad.

As Connor says, at the start of the dive you are around 6Kg overweighted due to the contents of the cylinders - IIRC the old BSAC A test was only 2Kg on a weight belt. The worse case for this experiment is immediately after you get to the bottom.

[Clare Gledhill]

Originally Posted by MattS

I don't do head games, I don't think it mixes with the sport we are involved with.

Lucky you Matt. Personally I find that there are often two steps in changing anything about my kit particularly relating to trim. First I hate it because it is different, then I get used to it, then I find that if I change it again I hate it because it is different etc. etc. etc. Head games

I'm sorry if you have found that you haven't got on with Ali 80s - but I'm not teasing - I genuinely preferred the set up - and preferred the Ali single when diving in the Maldives. We are all different and will prefer different things.

What I did find interesting was that when I returned to the UK I had a very uncomfortable dive first dive back in a dry suit - I felt very head tippy - until I stretched out my legs a bit to get my balance back. I mentioned this to Fraser who said exactly the same.

We came to the conclusion that we had adjusted the trim to suit the Alis and had to adjust back again when we came home. Looking at the photos in Egypt our heels are certainly much higher than normal - which was not a conscious decision for either of us - but must have helped.

I *hate* being over weighted - although I agree with you that being under could be just as bad. I weight myself as described - at three meters on cylinders with 50 bar (tbh I tend to do it at 30 bar just to make sure)

Definitely an exercise worth trying, as is trying to swim up a heavily overweighted/negative buddy.

Yes - good point and I'll try to argue at home that I need to go back to the Red Sea soon to try it

Now - if this thread hasn't been done to death - back to bungies

[MattS]

back to bungies

Where else you going to stow the redundant inflator when not in use

[Mark Chase]

Originally Posted by Gledders

Yes - good point and I'll try to argue at home that I need to go back to the Red Sea soon to try it

As an aside did you know that you will not be alowed to trimix dive in Dahab in a wet suit unless you use a double bladder wing?


If you plan on anything interesting youd best take a dry suit as well.

ATB

Mark Chase

[Mark Chase]

Originally Posted by Gledders

I firmly believe that a good diver should be able to dive in anything .

Coooooolllllll


Monday the 9th your doing the Moldavia on my CCR then

Free ascent mind none of that SMB nonsence


ATB

Mark Chase (sorry just taking the piss )

[Diving Dude]

Originally Posted by Gledders

..... I firmly believe that a good diver should be able to dive in anything........

Wow, Clare...............respect................... this is what lot of us have always believed and the first time l've EVER seen it admited on a internet forum by a derer