Getting rid of the last bits of junk ...

WhiskeyBravo

So the problem is additional drag imposed by the BCD wing, and the solution is: remove the oral inflator/LP hose and replace it with 2 micro cylinders.

So I am just slow but how does this solve anything?

If the wing is a bother and not used or valued then simply dive without it. I have done that in lakes a couple of times but enjoy the redundancy in saltwater.

jasondrake

For me it wasn't about drag but about reducing clutter. My modified wing is bungied tightly, has no hoses (one less failure point on whichever reg) and can barely be seen when I'm wearing it, even with the mini-cylinder. But should my suit rip at depth, I have 25kg of buoyancy available which can easily be dumped during ascent allowing deco to take place no problems. Without having to dump any weight or gas or expensive toys, or experiencing a runaway ascent.
So I suppose it's about reducing the wing from a primary buoyancy device to an emergency buoyancy device, thus removing clutter and failure points. Works for me.

mverick

There is one thing that is suprising to me now that I think of it.

With everything Engineered to the nth degree not to let you kill yourself on your unit. Seemingly taking away a lot of the controls for the Experienced diver. You all of a sudden throw in that you want to remove the BCD. Which, in my opinion would be more of a Well experienced unit. Not a Won't kill you unit.

If you can be trained to work without a BCD. Can't you be trained to do the other things you've engineered out?

AD_ward9

Yes, it does seem like a more advanced thing to do, but I think it really is the opposite.

Removing the BCD forces divers to sort out their buoyancy, and then not change things without checking out everything in a very shallow dive. This is a probably a good thing. It is a good think for me anyhow, as it means I have less weight to carry along.

The clutter is my motive and it has the effect Jasondrake has pointed out: the beauty of diving without any clutter. This is also a safety thing: how many times have you wasted minutes hunting for a contents gauge or line cutter that you can't find because the CLs are in the way, the BCD hose is there, etc.

I have got rid of the handsets, all tank senders are RF to an OLED HUD, there is a wee cable to the PDF with its voice annunciation (in addition to the HUD), but that is routed alongside the Rebreather breathing hose, so is not noticeable, and there is an autobail out hose in that bundle too. This leaves the BCD hose as the only item that flaps about, or is in front of me.

The BCD does impinge on CCR safety negatively, in that people usually use the same gas as the dil. An equipment designer has no control over how much they syphon off for the BCD, and some divers play with their BCDs as they go up and down over obstacles underwater. Getting rid of the BCD except as the lifevest on the surface, brings in a different thought process.

You mention training to do without something, but the problem is the BCD is generally used to allow people to dive that should have sorted these things out first. Take away the BCD hose, and they have no choice but to do it.

The main practical problem found so far is the increase in buoyancy as gas is used from tanks. Especially if you carry big bail out tanks like me, and use them. Without the BCD carrying some gas in it to compensate, then there is a strong upward pull by the end of a dive. Thinking how to deal with that one...

Alex

Nad

I'm little by little go on 10L steel tanks. I put on them a slice of a kind of hard foam and they are neutral or just slightly positive if empty. Personally I find the solution better than bigger and heavier 11l alu tanks.
Nad

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mverick

Put a bc on each bailout tank. But, then you have to manage those at depth.

And, that's what I first posted about. Having 2 80's and you have to use them.

But, in your theory. You weight yourself correctly. Ie, with the tanks or the Rebreather. Remove the RB and send it to the surface while bailing out with the tanks. Have your weight set up where when you dump the RB it rises and the weight you have on is perfect to allow you to rise slightly while you use your gas....

You do know that all tanks can very in weight though. So, on any tank you use you'd have to weigh them. Also, test them for there bouyancy since the internal volume can also change minutely. So, using your own tanks I could see it. If I wanted to dump the Rebreather. But, I don't. LOL... But in your theory. Dumping the RB that won't help you anymore would de clutter you. So that would be the propper way.

Just wondering, what is the use of Tank sensors? Check them before you dive. Don't need them. Another failure point. If you have bailout and have plugable O2 and Dil. If you did have a problem. Just plug the bailouts in. They do have gauges. Since you would be monitoring there usage. Not really needed on the Rebreather. Bubbles are a great indication of a problem.

Or, Just use a BC... Small BC isn't restrictive to me. I do like that you Dee hosed it.

I've always wondered about Backmount CL's with the hoses running under the arms. So, nothing coming over the shoulders for snags. And, when the mouthpiece rises it goes to your face. Unless your upside down. Your windpipe doesn't come over your shoulders, should Rebreather hoses?

teomannaskali

On the tank pull thing. Something that cannot be done practically
but you could fill the tank with water to not make it pull down

But if you have started using the tank then you could also deflate the loop which whould make up for the positive buoyancy.

If it is an emergency then you would have your buoy up, you could send the tank up...

Janos

What do you do if you find a nice piece of brass, a couple of kilos of scallops, or an unconcious diver?

I can't see that diving without an easy-to-use BC is going to be practical.

Janos

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mverick

If it's an emergency you'd still be breathing off of it. Or one of them.

2stoned

The thought of the streamlined, no clutter dive gear is enticing.
The thought of not having enough compensation for a loop flood or assisting a flooded mate to the surface is not.
I would prefer to keep the bladders at all times, but a redesign may be appropriate, I did like the idea of a stomach bladder.

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