Redundancy lesson learnt and start of the incident pit

[StuartC]

prompted to post this after seeing the DSMB poll elsewhere on here.

I learnt a useful lesson about kit redundancy on recent trip experience where my buddy and I were caught in a downcurrent off the reef as the dive was canned due to current and missing the majority of the reef at about 18m.

I had just descended and managed to get onto the back-end of the reef, when my buddy joined me. The current was running, as advised in the briefing, and the guide called the dive with the bulk of the group ahead of us.
They began flying past as the current swept them off the reef and the group began it's ascent to the surface.

Buddy and I found we were going nowhere despite some heavy finning, and whilst the rest of the group continued to the surface we seemed to be stuck at 17m going fast across the sand. Bubbles swirling around indicated we were in the downwash of current coming over the flat reef.

Fortunately, depth was limited so we drifted quickly along still stuck at 17m.
OK, not a problem, it's the start of the dive and plenty of air and no deco time remaining.
Grabbed onto each other to prevent separation and I commenced DSMB deployment as normal.

Blob went up fine and we started ascent. Unfortunately, blob came back down to meet us and was seen bubbling away from a leak at the top.

bugger

I didn't waste time reeling it in and redeploying/attaching buddy's to my reel as the boat would be tracking us and needed our marker.
Buddy sends blob up and reel jammed sending the whole lot to the surface

double bugger

Reeled mine back down and had to inflate it 3 more times before we completed our safety stop (with a minute of deco courtesy of my Suunto) and we're back on the surface with a 15 minute "dive" logged.

Lessons learnt:
1) carry a backup DSMB and line - they went straight on the christmas list before we'd got back on the boat!
2) be wary of the model of Beaver reel that jammed on deployment by my buddy and for others on the same trip...[hindsight is a wonderful thing when I see people's comments about the quality of this particular bit of kit in other threads...]
3) think through and plan ahead for what if scenarios where it's not just 1 thing that starts to go wrong. The incident pit started quickly on this one and could've been worse had the depth been limited, or we'd become separated or been near the end of our dive.

[Finless]

Originally Posted by StuartC

Lessons learnt:
1) carry a backup DSMB and line - they went straight on the christmas list before we'd got back on the boat!

Already do! :smug look:

2) be wary of the model of Beaver reel that jammed on deployment by my buddy and for others on the same trip...[hindsight is a wonderful thing when I see people's comments about the quality of this particular bit of kit in other threads...]

Aproblem with the reel or the user's fault?

3) think through and plan ahead for what if scenarios where it's not just 1 thing that starts to go wrong. The incident pit started quickly on this one and could've been worse had the depth been limited, or we'd become separated or been near the end of our dive.

It is recommended (well, by me) that you clip your reel to your buddies reel when he sends up his blob. If his reel jams then .........

[StuartC]

Originally Posted by Finless

Already do! :smug look:

so do I now, but most would expect 2 full sets between a buddy pair to be sufficient. I now know differently!

Originally Posted by Finless

Aproblem with the reel or the user's fault?

couldn't comment, but fair to say one user was very glad to sell the Beaver reel to the guide at the end of the week who needed one.....

Originally Posted by Finless

It is recommended (well, by me) that you clip your reel to your buddies reel when he sends up his blob. If his reel jams then .........

Thanks, I will be giving this a go when we're in Sharm next month!
there's another thing I've learnt from posting on YD.


PS Finless, are you OK? this was a sensible post

[Finless]

Originally Posted by StuartC

so do I now, but most would expect 2 full sets between a buddy pair to be sufficient. I now know differently!

It usually is.

couldn't comment, but fair to say one user was very glad to sell the Beaver reel to the guide at the end of the week who needed one.....

I think my original reel (now backup) is a Beaver and I never had a problem with it that wasn't my fault ......... usually too much loose line.

Thanks, I will be giving this a go when we're in Sharm next month!
there's another thing I've learnt from posting on YD.

I learnt the tip from someone at my Club ......... although, TBH, he only ever employed the method when on deep dives.

PS Finless, are you OK? this was a sensible post

Hmmmmm ...... I have been convinced recently that most of Stargate is actually factual and that I am being appraised, for ascendancy to a bodiless mind entity, so I am trying to be good and impress the invisible amorphous blob whose decision it is. It's also a big decision on my part but since I suspect that sex, with anyone else, is unlikely to occur again I thought the bodiless state of existence might not be such a bad thing. I shouldn't have any deco worries anyway.

[StuartC]

that's better, thought somebody had hacked your login...

Originally Posted by Finless

invisible amorphous blob

won't the boat find that difficult to track your position in the water if you use this on the end of your line?

[Freeflow]

Originally Posted by Finless

but since I suspect that sex, with anyone else, is unlikely to occur again I thought the bodiless state of existence might not be such a bad thing.

Until you get the urge and can't do a bit of manual labour that is...

[Harlequin]

Hi Stuart and thanks for the post.

I always carry a back-up and take a primary in when I know it's needed. Surprised to hear about the Beaver reel though as I cary a Beaver, like this:

http://www.beaversports.co.uk/catalo...els/RE.PUF.jpg

But am VERY careful when reeling in so as to avoid it snagging when it's next deployed.

Glad to hear you got out of that one safely, can never cary too much redundancy

[StuartC]

Hi Harlequin,

that's the beasty
1st jam required a screwdriver being taken to the assembly once it had been recovered on the boat - didn't see the details myself, but the owner was happy to see the back of it at the end of the trip.

I was most pleased with my Custom Divers ratchet reel, and got lots of practice with it.


Not so pleased when the Beaver dSMB sprung a leak in the seam at the top(and I guess in hindsight seeing this model do the same for a buddy in the Farnes in Sept last year should've forewarned me.)

The way this type gets rolled up obviously stresses the seam around the top of the bouy, since that's where it went for both mine and the one I saw go last Sept.

[Finless]

Originally Posted by Freeflow

Until you get the urge and can't do a bit of manual labour that is...

That's a point!!!!

Can you imagine being an amorphous gaseous blob with itchy lobbocks and nothing to scratch with .. arghhhhhh, I've just defined a state of hell!