jsado
Contributor
Anybody have any pics of a pony,bailout, deco, etc.. bottle with an spg on a 6" hose tied off to the 1st stage? I'm setting up a pony and I'm not really sure how to secure the spg.
Pony SPG on 6" hose????
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I can send one tonight when I get home.
Basically, you can either strap it down against the tank with a piece of bungee, or bend it back around and hold it against the first stage with a piece of bungee.
Basically, you can either strap it down against the tank with a piece of bungee, or bend it back around and hold it against the first stage with a piece of bungee.
There are different ways to do it. I don't have pics with me, but you can find some examples here:
DIR-diver.com - Reg config stages/deco
The third picture from the top kinda shows how it is tied under the first stage with cave line.
HTH
OP
jsado
Contributor
Thanks those pics are helpful. I guess my concern was bending that short 6" hose so tight. I guess I figured that it wouldn't be good for the hose....
DA Aquamaster, if you could post them here that would be GREAT!
DA Aquamaster, if you could post them here that would be GREAT!
Here are more examples, though a little harder to see. A lot of different ways to secure, but the most popular around here is cave line or bungee.
However, if you're concerned about the bend angle, you don't need to bring it forward either. You can run the SPG down and parallel the body of the bottle. If you need to look at the gauge, just flip it forward into view. I do this with my sidemount rig, and works well.
However, if you're concerned about the bend angle, you don't need to bring it forward either. You can run the SPG down and parallel the body of the bottle. If you need to look at the gauge, just flip it forward into view. I do this with my sidemount rig, and works well.
stiebs
Contributor
Not really a problem, just as long as the bend is toward the center of the hose and there's no stress on the flange. I subscribe to the theory that having the hose bent is not an issue, but constant bending and straightening causes weakness. So my SPG is held up against the first stage permanently (using 2 tank o-rings). Only gets released for servicing.
mike_s
Contributor
If bend angle is a concern, try one of the new Miflex HP hoses.
they have them in 6" now for $36 bucks. see XS Scuba MiFlex HP Hose
elan
Contributor
If it's just a pony and not a stage bottle I found it more convenient to have just that micro button SPG that screws into the 1st stage. The precision is pretty good for a pony . You can tell if it's 2500 psi or 2000. I think this is more than enough for a pony,
The deco is different of cause
The deco is different of cause
I've posted this picture before. It shows (left to right):
1. An older small diameter button gauge (the one everyone learned to hate as it was hard to read).
2. A new larger 1" diameter button gauge with a 180 degree scale that is easily read under water and sufficent for pony and deco bottle purposes.
3. A 2" SPG with a 6" hose attached with a bungee.
A few comments:
I agree with the concern for bending things back and forth creating fatigue, but only in metal objects - it is not an issue in rubber products like a hose. A constant bend will, in my experience, increase the potential for weather checking and will lead to premature failure. So I only leave mine bent when I'm diving and store them straight.
A pony needs to be checked on the surface, but under water knowing what is in it is just excess information. You don't use it unless you need it and if you need it you either have enough or you don't and you can't make more underwater.
The same applies to a deco bottle, you need to check it on the surface and generally speaking the rule is to ensure you have at least 1.5 times the gas you need for the dive, so a gauge error or extrapolation error of a couple hundred PSI is not going to be a issue. And again you cannot make more gas underwater, so you again either have enough or you do not and knowing adds only minimal comfort.
With that in mind no gauge at all provides the maximum in reliability as it eliminates the potential failure points. A button gauge is very simple and adds only the bourdon tube itself as a failure point (the HP port already has an o-ring). An SPG on a 6" hose adds the hose as well as 2 o-rings in the HP spool.
So...no button gauge is fine (provided you check the pressure on the surface) on anything except a stage bottle where you need the larger scale and greater accuracy of the SPG. If you have to have a gauge on a Pony or deco bottle, the 1" button gauge makes the most sense - and it does allow you to check the pressure on the surface without a separate tank pressure gauge (with the understanding it may not be quite as accurate, so you need a larger fudge factor.)
Some divers like to have double duty stage and deco regs and then end up having to meet the stage reg requirements in regard to the SPG.
1. An older small diameter button gauge (the one everyone learned to hate as it was hard to read).
2. A new larger 1" diameter button gauge with a 180 degree scale that is easily read under water and sufficent for pony and deco bottle purposes.
3. A 2" SPG with a 6" hose attached with a bungee.
A few comments:
I agree with the concern for bending things back and forth creating fatigue, but only in metal objects - it is not an issue in rubber products like a hose. A constant bend will, in my experience, increase the potential for weather checking and will lead to premature failure. So I only leave mine bent when I'm diving and store them straight.
A pony needs to be checked on the surface, but under water knowing what is in it is just excess information. You don't use it unless you need it and if you need it you either have enough or you don't and you can't make more underwater.
The same applies to a deco bottle, you need to check it on the surface and generally speaking the rule is to ensure you have at least 1.5 times the gas you need for the dive, so a gauge error or extrapolation error of a couple hundred PSI is not going to be a issue. And again you cannot make more gas underwater, so you again either have enough or you do not and knowing adds only minimal comfort.
With that in mind no gauge at all provides the maximum in reliability as it eliminates the potential failure points. A button gauge is very simple and adds only the bourdon tube itself as a failure point (the HP port already has an o-ring). An SPG on a 6" hose adds the hose as well as 2 o-rings in the HP spool.
So...no button gauge is fine (provided you check the pressure on the surface) on anything except a stage bottle where you need the larger scale and greater accuracy of the SPG. If you have to have a gauge on a Pony or deco bottle, the 1" button gauge makes the most sense - and it does allow you to check the pressure on the surface without a separate tank pressure gauge (with the understanding it may not be quite as accurate, so you need a larger fudge factor.)
Some divers like to have double duty stage and deco regs and then end up having to meet the stage reg requirements in regard to the SPG.
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i just keep mine flush against the side of the tank with a 6" hose, held by a thin bungee cord. if (unlikely) i needed to check the pressure underwater and couldnt see the gauge, flipping it up would just slide the bungee towards the neck of the bottle, so it's easy to do.
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