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TSandM

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For those of you who have gone to sidemount diving . . . what did you discover, after you made the change, that you DIDN'T like about it? I'm interested in anything from not being able to sit down in your gear to issues surface swimming, or anything related to the diving itself. I'm particularly interested in answers pertaining to non-traditional uses of sidemount, in open water or off boats, for example.
 
Fills can be a pain. It's much easier to screw in one DIN whip into a set of manifolded doubles than it is in 2 independent cylinders.


That's about the only drawback I can think of... :D
 
I went to sidemounting because the cave I was surveying had side passages too small for me to backmount. So for me it was out of necessity for a project.

Disadvantages:
I have found that sidemounted tanks cause more drag than back mounting.
If tanks have unequal pressure,then equalizing needs to be done to keep the gas % the same.
No real standardization,so regulator placement for an OOA scenario can be unique for each individual.
Donning tanks in the water,especially deep water,requires extra consideration so you don't drop a tank.
 
I find access to my front waist band far more problematical. You have to force your arm between yourself and the tank. Part of my problem is being big and having arthritis, but the tanks are indeed in the way.
 
Carrying lots of stage bottles is more of a challenge (because clip placement is SOOOO critical).
Getting into the water from a moving boat (smart bombing a wreck) can be more of a challenge
People ask you why you NEED sidemount when backmount is "BETTER"
The people who ask why you NEED sidemount, refuse to listen to logic
 
note - new to sm, i'm sure most of this will work itself out, and i'm definitely thinking a class will help, but this is what's on my mind right now...

i lost all my muscle memory - i have to pat myself down to find things.
hard to reach my pockets - i have to unhook the back of the tank on the side i want. people say 'reach between' but i can't. i don't know what they're doing differently than i am.
i don't have the hand strength for some of this. opening clips one-handed with a tank's weight on it is really hard for me. i had trouble with this with a deco bottle & it ain't better with a 95.
much easier to get tanks in a fill bath since they're singles, but they want to fall over really badly.
i hate restuffing the long hose. another hand strength issue. very hard to do. so i don't really pull a lot out to start with, and end up making it hard to turn my head.

i think it will be worth it, but it's definitely enough different that i'm having to commit to learning it. since i like feeling competent & i don't now, i'm a bit discouraged & hope it will all be worth it.
 
Everyone talks about how much easier it is above water. I disagree. I much rather put my 108s on my back and hike them to a far off dive site than try to carry 2 singles (even if they are al80s) or make 2 trips. Thats just me personally. In the water I have yet to find many disadvantages, then again I have no dove SM with a large amount of stages.
 
well, it's definitely easier to get into someplace like p3 or cow sidemount. even kitty, i was glad not to have to try to get up on the steps with doubles. but yeah, the repeat trips starts wearing after a while.
 
I have way too many caves to dive now... planning gets difficult with all the options.
 
karstdvr, it's interesting that you said that sidemounted tanks have more drag. We dove the cavern at JB in backmount and sidemount, and I found I noticed the flow far less in sidemount.

For those mentioning dropping the bottles, is it worse than clipping in a bottom stage?
 

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