Side-mounting pros and cons for Open Water?

[bigken462]

Can't compare it to real side mounter's, however I do monkey dive with an Alum staged 80, and simple stage reg with 6" SPG. I use a 5 mill suit, and attach a cpl weight pouches to my plate waist belt and off I go. I can ditch the scooter if needed and still easily control myself in the water column with a breath or fin kick or two in either direction. After 10 years of diving, I have yet to find anything remotely close to having that much fun.

Safe diving,

Kenny

 

[DaleC]

Here's a question about sidemounting.
Can one use an ordinary BC with properly placed hip D rings? I know a hose would have to be configured to reach the inflator properly. I've looked at those sidemount harnesses on the net and I'm not sure what is so different from them. I know they are custom tailored for the purpose but, in a "make do" sense, do they offer anything that a BC couldn't provide with a little tinkering? On some british cave sites they are using simple webbing harnesses and clipping the tanks off on them.

 

[Dive-aholic]

Many of the first sidemount rigs were homemade rigs using BCs. My first sidemount dive was in one like that. The reason I bought a Nomad is because I don't like jacket BCs to begin with. The squeeze doesn't work for me and it's also difficult to get one large enough to fit over a dry suit and that also has enough lift for my needs. Back inflates might work a little better, but the ones I've seen on the market are bulkier than the Nomad and don't lend themselves to small spaces.

 

[ucfdiver]

For those of you who haven't seen a Nomad in action, here's a link
YouTube - Cave Diving Weekend - September 2007

Once you see someone in the water with one (after they've had some practice) you really start to see how well the Nomad system works.

Jeff Hancock mapped Ginnie using a modified open water BC sidemount that he sells, but the Nomad really seems to be the most popular around N Fl.

 

[Diver Lori]

Sidemount and boat diving. I've not done it yet, but I asked this very question this past summer on cavediver.net

I got alot of responses, most all of them were to don and doff the tanks in the water, not on the boat. One fellow mentioned he has a line and loop config hanging off the back of the boat where he hangs his tanks before donning, and after doffing.

My sidemount rig is the Transpac with Rec wings and the Rennaker butt plate. I can tell you for a fact, the small D-rings on the Transpac where the Rennaker butt plate is attached would not be able to withstand the weight of my Faber 85's when out of the water.

I went sidemount for purely ease and orthpaedic reasons. There are some cave systems I like to dive, that the entry is a bit off-putting with regards to backmount and slimey rocky areas of entry. I broke my ankle once diving, I don't wish to do it again!

 

[Dive Rite]

Hi guys,

The lift of the Nomad has been increased to 60lbs/27kg, which allows you to wear a wetsuit and high volume steel tanks with confidence.The extra lift is also great for carrying multiple stage bottles, or when diving with double tanks.

In the past sidemounting has always been a matter of throwing random bits of dive gear together and trying to integrate it all into a working system. This meant a lot of experimentation, trial and error and wildly different home-made configurations. The Nomad however, is a single unit that you can buy that was designed specifically for sidemounting.

DR worked on the development of a dedicated sidemount rig since 2006, and a great many configurations were tried and tested. It was put through its paces in a number of tight caves since then and continues to be used by more and more divers all around the world.

The beauty of the Nomad is that it allows you to sidemount, backmount and do single tank diving, all using just the one rig. It has also become very popular with rebreather divers who choose to sidemount their bailout bottles.

If you want to learn more about sidemount diving check out our Solution Finder under the question, 'How do I set up my Nomad for sidemount diving?'

You can also check out some Video about Sidemounting and the Nomad rig.

If you have any further questions don't hesitate to ask.

Best,
Ag

 

[bigken462]

For those of you who haven't seen a Nomad in action, here's a link
YouTube - Cave Diving Weekend - September 2007

Once you see someone in the water with one (after they've had some practice) you really start to see how well the Nomad system works.

Jeff Hancock mapped Ginnie using a modified open water BC sidemount that he sells, but the Nomad really seems to be the most popular around N Fl.

That was a pretty cool video. I'm not cave yet, but perhaps soon. Anyway, I've often wondered how using side mount in open water could save some of the back pains associated with humping steel 108's up and down steps at our local quarries. I do have an extra Transpack, and a two spare single 108's I sometimes use when diving singles. Is there an experimental way I could check this out to see if this is something for me? I have several spare regs, so besides maybe buying a butplate, and the required extended hoses could make it work. I don't really have a mentor in my area, so it would be trial and error and e-diving till I got it right. Bad way to learn something new, but when it's all you have - it's all you have.

What's the chances of a larger diver pulling this off and not costing me my dignity?

Kenny

 

[Diver Lori]

Ken,

As I said in my post, I'm using a Transpac and the Rennaker butt plate. If you PM me your email address, I can send you some digitals of what my buddy and I came up with. If you've got someone in your area than can take aluminum, bend it, and put a couple d-rings on it, you can have them fashion the Rennaker plate. That would get you started in your experimenting.

No offense to DiveRite, but I tried the Nomad and had extreme difficulty hooking my tanks to the butt plate with dry gloves. The Rennaker is more pronounced and personally easier for me.

You'll of course need rings, clips and line to prepare the tanks, but otherwise there's not much else you need.

 

[digital_steve]

In the past sidemounting has always been a matter of throwing random bits of dive gear together and trying to integrate it all into a working system. This meant a lot of experimentation, trial and error and wildly different home-made configurations. The Nomad however, is a single unit that you can buy that was designed specifically for sidemounting.

DR worked on the development of a dedicated sidemount rig since 2006, and a great many configurations were tried and tested. It was put through its paces in a number of tight caves since then and continues to be used by more and more divers all around the world.

The beauty of the Nomad is that it allows you to sidemount, backmount and do single tank diving, all using just the one rig. It has also become very popular with rebreather divers who choose to sidemount their bailout bottles

Same goes for the Armadillo

dive-aholic - i don't use stage bottles, just 2 faber 12.2L (100cuft in crazy american language ) cylinders. I'm thinking the armadillo would cope, but the lift is an issue i'm thinking about. The video of the nomad in action certainly looked impressive... but i know that 60lbs of lift is massive overkill for me.
Now i'm confused!! Gah!

 

[Dive-aholic]

I agree 60lbs is a bit much. I can see why DR developed a larger wing, but I wish they have kept the smaller wing in production as well. I'm sure I'll eventually have to replace my wing and I really don't think I need 60lbs of lift.