deaconbest
Registered
Hi guys,
Ive recently worked out a few kinks in my sidemount setup, and thought Id share with you all in case someone else has/had my problems.
When I initially did my sidemount training, I started using the bungee wrapped around the valve.
This is a good set up, but for me with large shoulders and a really long torso, I found that the bungee rode a bit under my arms. When I got in the water, it would keep my tanks trimmed really well and close to my body, so I dealt with it. Eventually, I relocated the bungees to the a back d-ring of my nomad, and found that the angle worked a bit better and causes less rub, while still holding the tank close.
In terms of fit, this felt a lot better, but I still had a couple problems.
(I dive sidemount open water, mostly from shore. This is actually the reason that I started sidemount, so the long steep walk down to the beach with tanks on my back could be replaced with bringing my tanks there without all my gear on, and then suiting up.)
The second problem I had was that in dry gloves or thick wet gloves, I found it really hard to grab the bungee, and separate them, placing one around my valve while getting smashed by the waves and tide. The solution I came up with was to take a short section of paracord and tie a zipper-pull to one side of the cord (short enough to interfere with anything) which made it a lot easier to separate the bungee, thus solving this problem.
The third issue I had, which I actually got some great answers from scubaboard a few months back, was that I also found it difficult to attach the bottom of my tank to the butt plate while getting smashed by those same damn waves. I tried butterfly clips, which worked a bit, but I soon got used to the XL snap bolts and went back to that set up.
Then I tried the ring bungee system.
This, for me as a shore entry sidemount diver, is the holy grail. I can clip the top of my tanks in the water at first, thus preventing my valve and first stage from accidentally hitting the rocks, or sand while donning my tanks in the surge.
If you dive in the same situations as this, Id definitely recommend at least trying the ring bungee system to see if it makes your life a bit easier. I feel as though I have more control over my tanks while donning them at the beginning of the dive.
As an added bonus, when you couple the ring bungee with a tank choker, you can infinitely adjust the height of the tank based on your setup.
Finally, with this system, you use stage straps on your tanks this makes lugging them around a whole lot easier than trying to walk half a mile holding steel 100s by the valve.
I hope some of this helps someone out, Ill try to take some pics of the setup when I get home to clarify for anything thats muddled.
Ive recently worked out a few kinks in my sidemount setup, and thought Id share with you all in case someone else has/had my problems.
When I initially did my sidemount training, I started using the bungee wrapped around the valve.
This is a good set up, but for me with large shoulders and a really long torso, I found that the bungee rode a bit under my arms. When I got in the water, it would keep my tanks trimmed really well and close to my body, so I dealt with it. Eventually, I relocated the bungees to the a back d-ring of my nomad, and found that the angle worked a bit better and causes less rub, while still holding the tank close.
In terms of fit, this felt a lot better, but I still had a couple problems.
(I dive sidemount open water, mostly from shore. This is actually the reason that I started sidemount, so the long steep walk down to the beach with tanks on my back could be replaced with bringing my tanks there without all my gear on, and then suiting up.)
The second problem I had was that in dry gloves or thick wet gloves, I found it really hard to grab the bungee, and separate them, placing one around my valve while getting smashed by the waves and tide. The solution I came up with was to take a short section of paracord and tie a zipper-pull to one side of the cord (short enough to interfere with anything) which made it a lot easier to separate the bungee, thus solving this problem.
The third issue I had, which I actually got some great answers from scubaboard a few months back, was that I also found it difficult to attach the bottom of my tank to the butt plate while getting smashed by those same damn waves. I tried butterfly clips, which worked a bit, but I soon got used to the XL snap bolts and went back to that set up.
Then I tried the ring bungee system.
This, for me as a shore entry sidemount diver, is the holy grail. I can clip the top of my tanks in the water at first, thus preventing my valve and first stage from accidentally hitting the rocks, or sand while donning my tanks in the surge.
If you dive in the same situations as this, Id definitely recommend at least trying the ring bungee system to see if it makes your life a bit easier. I feel as though I have more control over my tanks while donning them at the beginning of the dive.
As an added bonus, when you couple the ring bungee with a tank choker, you can infinitely adjust the height of the tank based on your setup.
Finally, with this system, you use stage straps on your tanks this makes lugging them around a whole lot easier than trying to walk half a mile holding steel 100s by the valve.
I hope some of this helps someone out, Ill try to take some pics of the setup when I get home to clarify for anything thats muddled.
