Interested in Side Mount Diving

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Teller

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I recently heard about side mount diving through a tech instructor who told me that I could save some money by going the side mount route vs. doubles on my back. Is this true? I only have recreational gear right now. I am using the Zeagle Ranger. Can I use the Ranger for side mount? Is there any other special gear I will need.
 
I recently heard about side mount diving through a tech instructor who told me that I could save some money by going the side mount route vs. doubles on my back. Is this true?
I am not sure I would pursue SM doubles diving simply because it is less expensive than BM. But, to answer your post, I do believe it is less expensive. One primary difference is that you do not need a manifold to connect the tanks, as you do with BM (independant BM doubles excluded from that comment, as you might well imagine). But, you also do not need tank bands to connect and correctly align the BM tanks, either. That reduces the expense of setting up for doubles diving quite a bit. So, personally, I think SM provides a less expensive introduction to doubles diving, as you do not need to purchase a manifold, or tank bands.

But, the best part of SM (at least for me) is that I prefer the trim characteristics of SM to BM. Basically, I now like diving SM doubles more than BM.
I only have recreational gear right now. I am using the Zeagle Ranger. Can I use the Ranger for side mount? Is there any other special gear I will need.
Generally, an optimal SM configuration involves a buttplate, or equivalent, that allows you to clip the lower attachment point of each primary tank behind you, rather than on the side, like you would clip a stage or deco bottle. YES, you CAN clip a SM bottle with a Ranger - I have done that a lot with deco bottles on a Ranger. Therefore, can you use a Ranger for SM? Yes. But, is it optimal? Probably not.
 
I would agree with Colliam that Sidemounting possibly ending up being cheaper is not a great motivation to go that route. Choose it if it serves your diving.

Whether it is "cheaper" or not depends on what you have by now or not. True, you won't need bands and manifold. However, you would prefer to get left and right valves for the tanks, and might end up paying a little extra for the 'odd' ones because your tanks probably all came the regular way this far. You will also need an extra SPG because both regs need one. Unless you can re-configure your current BC you will need a whole new SM rig which very easily costs more than many BP/W combos. Even if you reconfig your BC you will minimum need buttplate and bits and bobs to make it passable.

You will also need parts for tanks that one does not use with BM. You might be able to recycle parts like cam bands from your rec kit or get stuff like clamps cheap but just like bands with doubles, you need to have something to connect the tanks to your rig.

So, there are things that one needs with BM but not with SM and vice versa. I would evaluate what you want to do first, and choose what equipment you need to do that. The savings really aren't going to be worth it to direct this choice.
 
I am not sure about cheaper. Both systems need a wing,but backplate is much cheaper than ie the Nomad without a wing. Most people prefer the Left and Right valves when sidemounting,and sometimes it is cheaper to buy the whole manifold than the individual valves. Backmounting has the bands,but sidemounting you have other rigging hardware,cambands etc. I am almost tempted to say perhaps sidemounting is a little more expensive depending on what route you go.
 
I am not sure about cheaper. Both systems need a wing,but backplate is much cheaper than ie the Nomad without a wing. Most people prefer the Left and Right valves when sidemounting,and sometimes it is cheaper to buy the whole manifold than the individual valves. Backmounting has the bands,but sidemounting you have other rigging hardware,cambands etc.
Very good point. If you set up a SM rig from scratch, with new gear, it is still a bit of an investment.
I am almost tempted to say perhaps sidemounting is a little more expensive depending on what route you go.
Possibly. In fact, you can acquire used gear for BM (e.g. BP/W) that may reduce the price, while used Nomads / Razors / Armadillos haven't begun appearing on eBay to any extent. At the same time, the gearhead / DIY enthusiast can probably tweak some gear to come up with a jury-rigged SM configuration.:wink: There are a few used TransPacs available, and you could pick one up, add a buttplate, cannibalize the cambands, and rig some bungees, etc, And, divers who want to start as inexpensively as possible could even take a couple of AL80s, both with standard (RH) valves, sling them like L/R deco bottles on whatever BCD they have (and a Ranger works for this), and dive them. As I said in my previous post, I wouldn't consider this optimal by any means, but it can be done. In fact, 'I have this friend' who did that, just to see if it could be done - wasn't very streamlined, and definitely didn't look as cool as Steve Bogaerts in his SM videos, but it can be done. At least, I have been told by my friend that it can.

Previously, I have not been a big fan of the TransPac as a BCD, instead recommending that newer divers who are looking at taking a 'gear plunge' consider a simple BP/W as their first BCD. However, I recently have begun suggesting that people at least consider the TransPac as first step, if they think they may ultimately want to dive double tanks. The TransPac can serve them for BM single tank diving, and with the addition of a buttplate and bungees (and possibly some gear consulting from an instructor and/or a SM-savvy LDS) they can move to SM double tanks. I don't have a case history to use as a success story quite yet, although we have converted several BM divers in the shop to SM - they just went ahead and bought Nomads.
 
I am using the Zeagle Ranger. Can I use the Ranger for side mount? Is there any other special gear I will need.

Some of the early sidemount rigs were made with OW BCs,and were very functional. This could be done,with some work,and getting to know somebody that can do the sewing. Actually if you talk to some of the puritanical sidemounters,the current rigs with a wing don't work nearly as well as jacket type BCs.
 
IMHO, you can easily modify the Zeagle for SM with minimal investment, so you may end up with SM rig being substantially cheaper than Twins. Sure, price not the main benefit or reason for SM, but it is also a legitimate reason...

What you'll need? Two Cam bands (you can ask in dive clubs or shops for old, scrapped BCs and remove the cam bands, buy new ones, or used ones- it is not expensive), each with a dog clip- you can easily find dozens of sites with photos and examples of how to rig them (try in cavediver.net forums).

About 4 D-rings: two on the shoulder straps, connected to the Bungee loop (using a dog clip, some prefer carabiners etc), another on each side of the waist, where the CAM bands are to be connected.

You can easily DIY some alternative "buttplate" using some webbing and D-rings (again, search for it in cavediver.net- I'll try to post photos of my rig next week) or try something like DSS "Tail plate" (there are also some other similar alternatives used for rebreather bailouts- google for it). any of the mentioned above will pass through the BC crotch harness.


You need to be able to pass the tank valves through the bungee loops (depends on the shape/type of your valves, some not necessarily need to be left/right type!), the cam bands to the "buttplate" (or waist D-rings when the tanks are getting empty). You can skip the buttplate thing and connect directly to the waist D-rings, but it may not be comfortable and it can discourage you to continue with SM...


I am not well acquainted with your BC, but I think you can easily find a way to thread the bungee loop as a single piece of bungee, or use two smaller individual loops.

One more thing you'll probably need to improvise, is something to hold/restrain your wing. As the wing is designed to fold over a single (or doubles, depends on your wing size/shape), when there is no tank on your back it will fold in a most peculiar way. Not only funny, but also entanglement potential and you may find it difficult to drain air from it during the dive if it folds too much. To overcome it, you can use an "No Single Tank Adapter" (NSTA), that is- something that attaches instead of your tanks. I just use a flat, thin aluminium plate about 15" long and 7" width, which weights nothing and its sole purpose is to "flatten" the wing when it is inflated- it looks like a rgular STA, just wider. My buddy made something cooler- he uses the BC cam bands but instead of a tank he puts there half of a PVC sewage pipe with 6" diameter (I think), so the wing folds around it just as with a regular tank..

Regulator setup: most likely you can do well with regular hoses, and there are infinite ways to route them (I'd think each SM diver has its own way to route regulators), so you'll have to play to find what's good for you, and at some point you'll consider getting a right angle adapter.


I think this all you need to begin! Search the web for DIY sidemount rigs and you'll get some pretty ideas how to use your BC. I am quite sure that using existing gear you can build a SM rig with minimal expenses. After all, it is just a piece of bungee, some D-rings, dog clips, cam bands that will allow you to experience and help you decide if you want to buy a dedicated rig, or stay with what you have.

The good thing is that it can also serve as BackMount too, but I can't imagine why you'd want to do such as thing. Usually there is no going back :wink: most likely that the bungee and improvised buttplate can stay also during regular dives so all you have to do is remove the NSTA (or whatever) and put a tank instead...

And, if your buddies are BM, you need to practice with them some air sharing etc, as it is different.
 
the cam bands to the "buttplate" (or waist D-rings when the tanks are getting empty). You can skip the buttplate thing and connect directly to the waist D-rings, but it may not be comfortable and it can discourage you to continue with SM...


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Connecting to the waist d-rings works great,and is a better connection point for tank control. More likely you'll want carrabiners attached to the tank versus bolt snaps,and it is best if the d-rings are turned 90 degrees,so they are not longitudinal anymore.(The d-ring and carrabiner are perpendicular).

Cam bands work,but they have their own inherent failure. If you will bed dedicating tanks to sidemounting,then hose clamps offer a better,more secure connection.
 
Cam bands work,but they have their own inherent failure. If you will bed dedicating tanks to sidemounting,then hose clamps offer a better,more secure connection.

Sure, hose clamps are better.

However, if one doesn't own tanks but rents them, then having cam bands is not a bad compromise.
 
I recently heard about side mount diving through a tech instructor who told me that I could save some money by going the side mount route vs. doubles on my back. Is this true? I only have recreational gear right now. I am using the Zeagle Ranger. Can I use the Ranger for side mount? Is there any other special gear I will need.

Side mount will not really save you any money. In the long run, they are both about the same amount of money. The savings is in not having to buy all backmount gear and then switching over to sidemount. :D

The best thing to do is either find some divers who dive both methods and watch them in the water and also try the rigs out. Or you can take a course with an instructor who teaches both. Either way will save you a lot of money in the long run because it will allow you to try the gear before buying. A caveat - interview potential instructors carefully. Over the past year, there has been a growth spurt in PADI Sidemount instructors who began sidemount diving and sidemount instructors in the same weekend. If you go the instructor route, find an instructor who actually dives sidemount and has been for a while. While backmount has a few different configuration options, sidemount has many more and finding someone who is experienced will be much more beneficial to you in the long run.
 

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