Where do you put your Backup lights when Cave diving Sidemount?

[deepair]

Next Weekend I am diving Sidemount in the caves for the first time. All of my SM dives to date have been in an Openwater environment. I have only dove Backmount in Caves previously and my backup lights were on my shoulder straps and clipped into a d ring. I would think this would not work so well with my bottles sidemounted. Any suggestions? Where do you guys put yours? Is a helmet a must?

 

[SuPrBuGmAn]

Mine are on my shoulder straps, and clipped into a d ring. No issues.

 

[_Slacker_]

Depends on several things such as: your sidemount rig, how you have everything configured, , type/location of primary light, how big you are (bigger is better in this case), and how big your backup lights are (smaller is better). I have one smaller BU light on my harness and more in my pockets. Other locations I have seen, are on your head/helmet/mask, on your tanks, on your harness above the shoulders, on the corrugated hose for your wing...... I'm sure there are other places too.

 

[deepair]

Nomad XT, and SMS 100... I want to try both. Ring bungees on both. Butt mount an older Dive Rite HID. Ok she aint failed me yet! Then Hollis LED3s. I am a stocky, 5'11" 200lb guy. I from a muscle memory standpoint would like to put them on my shoulder straps where they will be at my ribs and tucked away. That is where they have been on my Transpac II for the last 11 years.

 

[Mark Michaud SELAUSAR]

Works fine like Mat said.

 

[deepair]

Yep! Sounds like the plan!

 

[GDI]

Even though you changed over to a sidemount config and the cylinder management is different I would suggest that you be consistent in how you handle redundant gear config as best as possible. In any case work with the config you are operating or intend to operate with and get use to it. Last thing you need in a failure situation (notice I didn't say emergency) is to resort automatically to your normal "use to" config and not find what you are looking for. If the lights work on your shoulders in both configs then go for it by being consistent. Muscle memeory and conditional response.

Case in point. a person who wears a watch on their left wrist, when asked the time will automatically look at their left wrist. If they move the watch to their right wrist the same person without having made the adjustment of muscle and mental memory will again look at their left wrist instead of their right where the watch was moved to....

 

[Bobby]

I also used to mount my BU lights the same for BM & SM from my d-rings and attached to a loop on the webbing, it worked fine. I have now modified it slightly with a loop of bungee coming off the outside of the d-ring retainer to put the BU clip to and have another loop of bungee attached off to the side from my shoulder webbing. There were two reasons for doing this. One my CCR goes on top of my SM rig and the OTSCL's would lay on top of the BU lights making it marginally more difficult to pull a BU out. The second and most important reason was that it keeps the BU lights pulled in snug to my body regardless of what I have attached to my d-rings and it makes flipping the d-ring up easier when attaching stages etc. They are actually a little easier to get at when using the CCR and always stay tucked away cleanly. With the old style of mounting them sometimes they would work there way loose from using a d-ring.

 

[victorzamora]

I initially put my BU lights (Hollis LED3's) on my shoulders, but I now have them in my drysuit pockets. As much as I like the idea of muscle memory, I think you should look at putting them on your shoulders. I think it works better than the GUE bu light placement for SM, unless you're diving the Edd-style H-harness. If you clip the BU light to your top d-ring and pull them upwards. Instead of downwards like "typical" doubles placement, you'll still be reaching for close to the same spot. In one config, you get your d-ring and go down.....the other, you go up. Either way, reach for that d-ring.