Just got addicted to tech

Katie K · Jul 22, 2011

Hay..

I just got back from Utilla were i did my tech 50... Now Im addicted, I loved it. Who would of thought I'd be a techie, I cant wait to save up ad do tri-mix. six gills her I come... lol

I want to start to get my own tech gear and was hopping for some advice on picking out gear, ie types of back plates, manifolded, tanks regs ect... I upgraded my computer from a profile to a D6, and Ill never go back..

besides that I need to get back in some tech gear and go diving.. any takers??

KT

syntaxerrorsix · Jul 22, 2011

Congratulations.

Is your profile up to date? With less than 100 dives I would consider spending some more time in the water before contemplating deep mix dives. I thought minimum requirements for Tec50 were 100 logged dives, Rescue and Tec45?

MXGratefulDiver · Jul 22, 2011

Katie, you've got some pretty phenomenal diving up there in Barkley Sound ... and lots of tech opportunities available.

What you'll discover is that the deeper dives in your area are considerably more challenging than what you experienced in Utila ... more exposure equipment means more weight ... gloves and hood make manipulating (or even finding) equipment more difficult ... and cold, dark water make narcosis much more of a consideration.

My advice would be to spend some time using your tech configuration on shallower dives, and don't contemplate that "six gill" dive until you've gotten completely comfortable with your safety drills. Find a buddy you can do dives and skills practices with ... tech is where it becomes important to dive with people you can really count on, and whose behavior is pretty predictable. Stressors take on a whole new meaning as you get on deeper dives.

I envy you the six-gill encounters ... I haven't seen one down our way in about four years.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

mselenaous · Jul 22, 2011

Great Kate...it's a slippery slope to the dark side and all it take is $$ - for gear, for training, for travel.
Read the gazillion threads here SB about those topics and you will find a ton of info as well as huge variety of opinions...but all of them culminate in into one idea - Dive, Dive, Dive and Dive Safely!

Personally I like reading the reports folks post about their training classes.

Katie K · Jul 22, 2011

No it wasnt up to date at all... LOL ... but i just updated it..

boulderjohn · Jul 22, 2011

I think it is important to map out your future training and get some advice from the person/people who will be doing it. Not all tech instructors think alike in terms of equipment. For example, a lot of people will tell you that you just wasted your money on the D6. Some will say it because they don't think you should be using a computer at all. Others will say that if you are looking to go farther in tech, that computer does not have the features you need.

TSandM · Jul 22, 2011

Welcome to the TRULY expensive side of diving! Be prepared for wallet anguish . . .

There is an active technical diving community on Vancouver Island. My very, very strong advice would be to connect with an instructor who can help guide you through your gear choices. I know a couple of very good folks up there, although they aren't DSAT instructors. I'm sure either of them would be willing to talk to you and give you some equipment advice for stuff that really works in your environment.

As Bob says, deep diving in cold water is a whole 'nother kettle of fish. Gaining facility with valve drills in a dry suit and gloves requires some time and practice, so get your stuff and do a bunch of simple dives with it, and then go have fun looking at the cloud sponges and red gorgonians! (At least, that's why I got my tech cert

)

DevonDiver · Jul 22, 2011

Regards equipment choices and configurations: Most of the tech divers here will contribute advice based on personal preferences or methodologies that they follow. In reality, those preferences and methodologies tend to conform to the standards defined by the group/team that they dive most regularly with.

Do you know of a group/team/club of tech divers in your diving area yet? If so, it is worth investigating what their patterns are.

James R · Jul 26, 2011

Am I the only one that is curious about this? They took the OP through tec50, but left her (assuming "her" based on user name) with questions about basic gear and equipment to get!

I had a full evening of work with my instructor just going over gear selection and configuration before we ever got in the water the first time.

MXGratefulDiver · Jul 26, 2011

James R:
Am I the only one that is curious about this? They took the OP through tec50, but left her (assuming "her" based on user name) with questions about basic gear and equipment to get!

I had a full evening of work with my instructor just going over gear selection and configuration before we ever got in the water the first time.

Sounds like she wasn't using her own equipment, and is now asking for recommendations about specific brands, etc. What would be covered in class would be the configuration ... and given the choices you can make within the limits of the configuration the questions make perfect sense to me ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Just got addicted to tech

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Katie K

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syntaxerrorsix

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MXGratefulDiver

Mental toss flycoon

mselenaous

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Katie K

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boulderjohn

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TSandM

Missed and loved by many.

DevonDiver

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James R

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MXGratefulDiver

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