Manifolded twinsets: Tony Backhurst / Grand Sea Serpent / Marsa Alam

[Tom D]

Evening all,

Quick question:

I'm booked on the Grand Sea Serpent next week, departing from Marsa Alam, through Tony Backhurst. Our group has booked a few manifolded twinsets, but we've received so much conflicting advice from TB and the Sea Serpent people I thought I'd double-check here.

TB have suggested various things from needing to take our own wingnuts (fair enough), to needing to take our own bands (y'what mate!?). I'm considering taking my buddy blocks / bands and a second SPG just in-case I need to use indies, although would prefer not to.

So, has anyone else rented a manifolded twinset out of Marsa Alam? What can we expect? Any surprises? Are they steel banded? Do they use a twin-boot and you do have to bring your own bands?

Many thanks,

Tom

[Scuby]

And a sub-question: if they do come steel banded, were they the standard 11" spacing, or just randomly placed on the cylinders?

David

[Fiona]

In June we were on Hurricane so a different fleet but I would guess they would be the same as they rent them in.

We did have play around with the bands for a while and one of the rods on mine wasn't quite straight so when I tightened them up the spacing went all to cock. We changed the rod round in the end. We did have to place the bands where we wanted them so for us at the break of the shoulder

I can't remember if I used their wing nuts or mine but I did take some with me.

Ours weren't booted because they use ali 80's but they were manifolded and banded.

My recommendation would be to email Sea Serpent Fleet I know I did a couple of times before our trip on GSS in 2005 and they were very good at replying.

[David D]

I hired a twinset for a recent trip on the Hurricane. £80 for the week, organised through Tony Backhurst.

I found it difficult to pin TB down, dealt with George. Helpful enough, but he seemed very reluctant to even say the word 'twinset'. Not sure if that's because he didn't know what a twinset was, or more likely, he felt he couldn't guarantee that one would show up on the day. Best advice would be to get it all in an email which they will forward to the fleet base in Egypt and hope that they're switched on at that end. My experience with GSS fleet and guides wouldn't fill me with confidence. Two years ago I ordered a pony. I was handed the pony and told I should have brought my own method of attaching it to the cylinder. They made no effort to sort the issue, and the pony remained unusable for the week.

I took my own OMS wing and S/S BP in October, but I also took a BC just in case. Bands and blocks would probably be an idea.

The set was ok, aluminium cylinders, what looked like Custard Drivers bands, and a manifold I didn't recognise. Not that I'd recognise anything other than MDE. It had seen better days and didn't fill me with confidence, valves with not even remotely smooth actions, but it held up for the week, no leaks.

V-weights would have been nice, especially with aluminium cylinders, and even though I requested some in my email, none appeared.

I took my own mushroom nuts and thankfully they fitted the bolts which were set at a standard 11". I dropped one when I took my gear out and after a search of the deck it looked like I'd have to use the wing nuts supplied. Which would have meant fcuking about with the bolts. Two minutes later I decided to go back to the search for the missing nut and thankfully it turned up.

[Tom D]

Thanks for the replies.

Have given in and packed my twinning bands, after all, what's an extra kilo amongst friends? I'm rehearsing that line for the check-in desk on Wednesday!

Very excited now as it's my first Southern Red Sea trip! What are our chances of seeing sharks at this time of year off The Brothers?

Cheers,
Tom