Just curious, How much different between OC Sidemount & sidemounting bailouts for CCR?

[bamafan]

The SMS will suck for Mexico. As mentioned the rails aren't designed for aluminum tanks. Now for bailout it is probably somewhat ok as you normally won't be breathing the tanks down and if you do I doubt floaty cylinders will be a concern. The SMS and other Florida style rigs are awful to travel with as they are really heavy and weight is a concern traveling. I would recommend getting a basic harness and wing. There are the Razor and Stealth as well as all the copies but if you are only using it occasionally I would order a setup from Deco / Oxycheq with a simple Tiki Bill wing.

DECO - Dive Equipment Company - Sidemount - BCD's

Andrew Goring at Sump Uk on Facebook has some interesting options too. And if you get lucky you might find a Razor or Stealth used at a good price.

 

[tstormdiver]

Not sure what neck bungies you are using with the prism (is there a backplate on that or are you using the whole SMS75 BC?). If you are using the old school style (loop over the knob) with a butterfly dring the absolute simplest conversion is to keep using both and just put a 2lb lead brick on the bottom part of the cam band around the Al80. They'll hang just like in your photo even as you use up the gas. I would probably use a shorter 2nd stage hose on the left tank and put that reg on a necklace. Leave the 7ft on the right tank.

All in you need:
2x 2lb bricks that most MX shops loan for free when you rent tanks.
A 40" LP hose that you probably already have on a stage reg someplace.
A piece of bungie and a new zip tie.

Simple and not alot of fluff for an OC trip to MX.

My CCR configuration is with a backplate. I have the SMS75 harness on the way. Because I already have the wing (bought separately), is why I chose to go with the SMS75. As for the bungees. it is a thick loop slid through a quick link attached to the backplate.

 

[tstormdiver]

There's some very effective approaches for diving aluminum cylinders. Trying to bastardize aluminum cylinders to behave like steel cylinders (adding cylinder weights) is not one of them. Steel and aluminum really do benefit from different approaches.

But creating 'mock steel tanks' is what a lot of divers with more steel, than aluminum, cylinder experience will advise. Stick with what you know, I guess. But it's not optimum, by any stretch of the imagination. It can, however, be more convenient if you're diving steels at home most of the time...and only doing brief trips to warmer climes where aluminium is norm.

I get what you are saying here. I haven't dove sidemount yet, other than my bailouts. I typically dive backmounted steels.

If you're constricted in rear attachment options, then do look into loop bungees. These create a useful rotation effect of aluminum cylinders, torquing them into the side of the torso. This also means that your attachment points, front and back, don't need to be spaced so far apart.

I do that currently with my AL bailouts & yes, it works beautifully.

Depending on your waistline, you could probably get away with putting a simple D-ring at the rear, where the BCD is tightened down on the waist strap. And another D-ring forward on the hips.

Personally, I find switching D-rings much easier and less cumbersome than a sliding D-ring approach. Rubber O-rings, such as those which come with XDeep sidemount rigs, aren't that slick to manipulate.

The rubber O-rings do, however, make a great attachment point on the shoulder straps through which to route your (sliding) loop bungees.

Not a bad idea, if I am picturing what you are saying correctly. I do have regular D-rings on my waist I use for reels & such (let hang under the cylinders).

 

[tstormdiver]

The SMS will suck for Mexico. As mentioned the rails aren't designed for aluminum tanks. Now for bailout it is probably somewhat ok as you normally won't be breathing the tanks down and if you do I doubt floaty cylinders will be a concern. The SMS and other Florida style rigs are awful to travel with as they are really heavy and weight is a concern traveling. I would recommend getting a basic harness and wing. There are the Razor and Stealth as well as all the copies but if you are only using it occasionally I would order a setup from Deco / Oxycheq with a simple Tiki Bill wing.

DECO - Dive Equipment Company - Sidemount - BCD's

Andrew Goring at Sump Uk on Facebook has some interesting options too. And if you get lucky you might find a Razor or Stealth used at a good price.

I get it, You don't really care for Hollis, fair enough. I already have a harness ordered & on the way, since I already use the wing for the CCR, so that is a non- issue. The SMS75 is lighter than any of my rec BC's (Aqualung & Mares) & I travel with them all the time. I probably will not use the rails anyway, as they are too low for me to effectively reach. If needed, I will put another butterfly D-ring on the crotch strap. Devon Diver's idea of just moving the attachment point to a waist D-ring from the crotch strap, when the cylinders become light, seems a viable option. This rig would be for the occasional trip to Mexico & maybe to play with at the local quarry. For FL caves, I will stick with my CCR or backmounted doubles.

 

[bamafan]

It has exactly zero to do with Hollis. All of the Florida rigs suck for traveling. I have an Armadillo and have had a SMS 100 and a Halcyon Contour. I always have trouble with weight when traveling and the Mexican / minimumlist rigs are much lighter and work much better with al 80's. Personally even if I was going on an ow single tank dive trip I would take my Razor and just single tank side mount dive. It is a lot smaller and lighter than any of my other bc's.

Now as far as the issue with the Hollis SMS line again it isn't Hollis it is just a bad design they copied from Oxycheq. The rails on top of the wing will raise the tank as you inflate the wing. With steel tanks as your ballast your knees will drop as the tanks are your mass and will generally be level. Facebook and YouTube is loaded with examples of this. So like I said it isn't a bashing of Hollis it is just a bad design.

 

[tstormdiver]

OK, gotchya about Hollis. But the reality is, that is what I have to work with. Once again the weight of the unit is not prohibitive, so no issue there. You keep going on about the rails,... Not sure what it will take for you to understand.... I DO NOT use the rails; I can not reach them. They are useless to me. In fact, I will probably remove them. I have found the air distribution in the 75 wing to be beneficial to help keep my rear up without loading up on counter balance weight at the head.

 

[rjack321]

My CCR configuration is with a backplate. I have the SMS75 harness on the way. Because I already have the wing (bought separately), is why I chose to go with the SMS75. As for the bungees. it is a thick loop slid through a quick link attached to the backplate.

I use the same setup for sidemounting my AL80s on my CCR. Although they don't float perfectly horizontal (depending on the gas inside) I have a backmounted CCR on anyway so its silly to agonize over the BO cylinders too much.

I'd just move those bungies over to the SMS harness. Weighting AL80s to act like steels isn't really a permanent solution but it works and basically avoids lots of messing around for one trip. Will you be diving dry or wet in MX? Any need for stages or just using 2x Al80s?

I