Megalodon or Megalodon't

cathy · 14th April 2006, 06:56

Well, I've finally given into my boyfriend's harranguing, and got myself my own user id....

So...rebreathers, eh.....?

After a Christmas-like experience when our Meg's arrived 2 weeks ago (I arrived home from work to find Jon sat in the midst of piles of rebreather-parts and packing materials in the middle of the living room with a big grin on his face), and us completing our training with Cedric last week, my first response was GIVE ME BACK MY S600!

The first 10 hours were a nightmare - I had bruises on my knees from the many rapid-descents to the pool/ocean floor, and looked forward eagerly to each 'switch to open circuit' drill (see photo). The difference from having air poured into my lungs to actually having to draw it from the loop, and trying to get my head around the fact that breathing out now increased my buoyancy were proving quite taxing for my poor brain...

I was on my 9th OW dive before I felt I was really starting to get the hang of this new monstrosity I'd just bought - and what a dive - the Bremmen in near-perfect conditions.

I'm even starting to appreciate why it's reffered to as 'flying'

I feel I must point out, that all the problems I'm having are to do with me, and not my Meg - it's an excellent piece of kit - it's versatility & robustness are very impressive - it's already been dropped, kicked, bashed around, etc., and I suspect this is only the beginning...

Quick question - I got canister in silver, not the usual black, and it appears to have some signs of oxidisation, which Jon's (in black) hasn't - has anyone noticed this before?

I'm hoping that with (a little?) more practice, my up-down-buoyancy-thing will sort itself out (I'm ok at constant depth

), and that I'll be able to start appreciating the reduced-deco obligations, and the promised ability to sneak up on fish with my camera (nudibranchs have been my speciality to date - they don't move very fast

)

Well, that's all for now - that was my 'brief' introduction....anyone know what the conditions in Truk are like in October?

PS Cedric's excellent - even if he is French (he actually made a joke!)

PPS I officially have no sense of humour

Gibbon · 14th April 2006, 07:01

pah like you ever listen to me!

cedricverdier · 14th April 2006, 08:17

Hi Cathy and Jon,

Nice to see you actively participating on the Rebreather World forum.

Don't worry: I'm French but I have a good excuse. I'm also Swiss...

Cheers

rogeringebo · 14th April 2006, 09:05

The more you dive it the better it gets.......
Im sure convinced....since I got Rebreather certified a year ago I havent dived 1 OC-dive.......but close to 100 Rb-dives.....not to bad in cold Sweden...
Cant wait to get back to Thailand a be able to dive my Meg on a daily basis...

Best
Rodge

Sue · 14th April 2006, 20:14

Hi Cathy

Don't worry ... my first dive with a rebreather was something like that, adding the fact that I was in Canada with 6 C water and raining like hell between dives. My first thought was "I'm going to die here". Hopefully the Kiss has a second stage regulator on the mouthpiece. I remember I did so many flushes (turning it to OC) on that first dive, that I have almost exausted a cylinder that now, can last for three dives!

Some dives later I began to relax, have "re-learnt" how to breathe, controlled my buoyancy, and started to enjoy it.

Some more dives later, I was totally convinced and never wanted to dive OC anymore. I went on a very short trip to Malta and I couldn't take my Kiss with me, so I did 2 dives on OC - YUCK - it really sucked: I missed the silence, lack of bubbles, my throat was dry, and had a short bottom time to avoid deco.

So, since I started my CCR training, about 100 dives ago, I did just 2 on OC.

Next week I will be starting my Meg training, and have now decided to sell all my OC stuff.

I'm sure you will start to enjoy it and forget about open circuit very quickly!

Good luck!

Sue

***ScubaDadMiami*** · 14th April 2006, 21:50

I'm just a

. But, I am glad to be beyond the initiation stage. It does get better. Yes, it's well worth it!

01RMB · 14th April 2006, 23:32

The hardest thing as an experienced OC diver when we are first learning to dive a CCR is to remember the humility we had when we first started out on OC. It does get better as you get used to the differences and then you won't want to go back.

***caveseeker7*** · 14th April 2006, 23:52

Quote: (Originally Posted by 01RMB)

The hardest thing as an experienced OC diver when we are first learning to dive a CCR is to remember the humility we had when we first started out on OC.

Worse, really, because back then EVERYTHING was new.
Changing to rebreathers, everything is DIFFERENT.

robinfante · 15th April 2006, 02:08

My initial experience was much like yours Cathy. Kind of blind-sided me, but my body was very freaked out by the warm moist gas. The first time I took a hit off the dil add (prism) I could feel my whole body relax, like "ah, cool and dry, that's the stuff.!" I popped up in the pool, vented the gas, sank to the bottom, and couldn't draw a breath (the adv was out of place.) Had the sudden realization that in 600 something dives I was the closest I'd ever come to panic, and was going over that line if I didn't get on bailout NOW and sort it out. It was a very humbling experience. Don't worry though, as you are already seeing it all starts to flow, soon you'll be just another one of us junkies, craving your next hit.

RebreatherDave · 15th April 2006, 04:07

After 30 years of oc, I finally crossed on over to the dark side, lol....

Other than initially conducting of myself like an OC newbie with bouyancy "issues", it was exactly as expected. WOB is perfectly natural, and other than a little slower underwater, things are peachy.

14th April 2006, 06:56	#1 (permalink)
cathy New Member Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Apr 2006 Location: Malaysia Posts: 6	Megalodon or Megalodon't Well, I've finally given into my boyfriend's harranguing, and got myself my own user id.... So...rebreathers, eh.....? After a Christmas-like experience when our Meg's arrived 2 weeks ago (I arrived home from work to find Jon sat in the midst of piles of rebreather-parts and packing materials in the middle of the living room with a big grin on his face), and us completing our training with Cedric last week, my first response was GIVE ME BACK MY S600! The first 10 hours were a nightmare - I had bruises on my knees from the many rapid-descents to the pool/ocean floor, and looked forward eagerly to each 'switch to open circuit' drill (see photo). The difference from having air poured into my lungs to actually having to draw it from the loop, and trying to get my head around the fact that breathing out now increased my buoyancy were proving quite taxing for my poor brain... I was on my 9th OW dive before I felt I was really starting to get the hang of this new monstrosity I'd just bought - and what a dive - the Bremmen in near-perfect conditions. I'm even starting to appreciate why it's reffered to as 'flying' I feel I must point out, that all the problems I'm having are to do with me, and not my Meg - it's an excellent piece of kit - it's versatility & robustness are very impressive - it's already been dropped, kicked, bashed around, etc., and I suspect this is only the beginning... Quick question - I got canister in silver, not the usual black, and it appears to have some signs of oxidisation, which Jon's (in black) hasn't - has anyone noticed this before? I'm hoping that with (a little?) more practice, my up-down-buoyancy-thing will sort itself out (I'm ok at constant depth ), and that I'll be able to start appreciating the reduced-deco obligations, and the promised ability to sneak up on fish with my camera (nudibranchs have been my speciality to date - they don't move very fast ) Well, that's all for now - that was my 'brief' introduction....anyone know what the conditions in Truk are like in October? PS Cedric's excellent - even if he is French (he actually made a joke!) PPS I officially have no sense of humour
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14th April 2006, 07:01	#2 (permalink)
Gibbon Southern Monkey Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: East Devon Posts: 226	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't pah like you ever listen to me!
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14th April 2006, 08:17	#3 (permalink)
cedricverdier S21 M.I.B. Current Rebreather/s: Evolution Megalodon Other Rebreather/s: Not Bought Yet Inspiration Classic Inspiration Vision Sport Kiss Classic Kiss Join Date: Apr 2005 Location: Worldwide! Posts: 486	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't Hi Cathy and Jon, Nice to see you actively participating on the Rebreather World forum. Don't worry: I'm French but I have a good excuse. I'm also Swiss... Cheers __________________ Cedric Verdier PADI Course Director, ANDI-IANTD-PSAI-TDI-DSAT-DAN-NAUI-CMAS Instructor Trainer Trimix (CCR and OC) and Cave Diving Instructor Trainer www.CedricVerdier.com DIRrebreather member
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14th April 2006, 09:05	#4 (permalink)
rogeringebo Done with bubbles Current Rebreather/s: Pelagian Other Rebreather/s: Megalodon Classic Kiss Pelagian Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Stockholm Sweden Posts: 671	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't The more you dive it the better it gets....... Im sure convinced....since I got Rebreather certified a year ago I havent dived 1 OC-dive.......but close to 100 Rb-dives.....not to bad in cold Sweden... Cant wait to get back to Thailand a be able to dive my Meg on a daily basis... Best Rodge
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14th April 2006, 20:14	#5 (permalink)
Sue Rebreather World Writer Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Sport Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Portugal Posts: 161	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't Hi Cathy Don't worry ... my first dive with a rebreather was something like that, adding the fact that I was in Canada with 6 C water and raining like hell between dives. My first thought was "I'm going to die here". Hopefully the Kiss has a second stage regulator on the mouthpiece. I remember I did so many flushes (turning it to OC) on that first dive, that I have almost exausted a cylinder that now, can last for three dives! Some dives later I began to relax, have "re-learnt" how to breathe, controlled my buoyancy, and started to enjoy it. Some more dives later, I was totally convinced and never wanted to dive OC anymore. I went on a very short trip to Malta and I couldn't take my Kiss with me, so I did 2 dives on OC - YUCK - it really sucked: I missed the silence, lack of bubbles, my throat was dry, and had a short bottom time to avoid deco. So, since I started my CCR training, about 100 dives ago, I did just 2 on OC. Next week I will be starting my Meg training, and have now decided to sell all my OC stuff. I'm sure you will start to enjoy it and forget about open circuit very quickly! Good luck! Sue
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14th April 2006, 21:50	#6 (permalink)
*ScubaDadMiami* Moderator Current Rebreather/s: Optima Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: Florida, USA Posts: 1,890	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't I'm just a . But, I am glad to be beyond the initiation stage. It does get better. Yes, it's well worth it! __________________ Howard Packer IANTD CCR Instructor Miami Beach, Florida CCRDiveTraining.com
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14th April 2006, 23:32	#7 (permalink)
01RMB Evolving Current Rebreather/s: Evolution Other Rebreather/s: Join Date: May 2005 Location: Brisbane, Australia Posts: 186	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't The hardest thing as an experienced OC diver when we are first learning to dive a CCR is to remember the humility we had when we first started out on OC. It does get better as you get used to the differences and then you won't want to go back. __________________ Cheers Rod
(Online)

14th April 2006, 23:52	#8 (permalink)
*caveseeker7* Who loves ya, baby Current Rebreather/s: Sport Kiss Other Rebreather/s: Prism Topaz Join Date: Jan 2005 Location: Too far from Neverland Posts: 5,284	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't Quote: (Originally Posted by 01RMB) The hardest thing as an experienced OC diver when we are first learning to dive a CCR is to remember the humility we had when we first started out on OC. Worse, really, because back then EVERYTHING was new. Changing to rebreathers, everything is DIFFERENT. __________________ Cheers Stefan Be Water, My Friend - Bruce Lee Sponsor Lou in Race For Life!
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15th April 2006, 02:08	#9 (permalink)
robinfante I have a smoking gun Current Rebreather/s: Megalodon Prism Topaz MK 15.X Other Rebreather/s: Sport Kiss Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: mountain lakes nj Posts: 129	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't My initial experience was much like yours Cathy. Kind of blind-sided me, but my body was very freaked out by the warm moist gas. The first time I took a hit off the dil add (prism) I could feel my whole body relax, like "ah, cool and dry, that's the stuff.!" I popped up in the pool, vented the gas, sank to the bottom, and couldn't draw a breath (the adv was out of place.) Had the sudden realization that in 600 something dives I was the closest I'd ever come to panic, and was going over that line if I didn't get on bailout NOW and sort it out. It was a very humbling experience. Don't worry though, as you are already seeing it all starts to flow, soon you'll be just another one of us junkies, craving your next hit.
(Online)

15th April 2006, 04:07	#10 (permalink)
RebreatherDave Maximum **** Current Rebreather/s: Inspiration Classic Other Rebreather/s:** Join Date: May 2005 Location: L.A., where the debris meets the sea Posts: 227	Re: Megalodon or Megalodon't After 30 years of oc, I finally crossed on over to the dark side, lol.... Other than initially conducting of myself like an OC newbie with bouyancy "issues", it was exactly as expected. WOB is perfectly natural, and other than a little slower underwater, things are peachy.
(Offline)

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