Suitability of SM BC's for long surface swims

I often have to do long surface swims to get to a dive spot from shore and I am wondering if I had a SM BC, would it be as easy as with the BM BC to do the surface swim or if it would be more difficult? Anyone here has experience or thoughts on this matter please?

much more difficult to do surface swims in sidemount. Nothing is as easy as backmount doubles for surface swimming. You can sort of get away with it if you clip the lower clip to hip D-rings, and the necks have clips to the shoulder d-rings, then you can get away with it, but I wouldn't make a habit of it. One of those "right tool for the job" things....

Hmm I quite often have to do swims to get to the dive.
It's not terrible, but definitely not as easy as when I had a bcd jacket.
If you have a snorkel, then it's about fine as you can stay head in. Else you'll be on your back which I personally don't find most comfortable position.

However, I think this might greatly depend on what rig you use. A nomad or SMS100 would be "fine" I think, as they seem to have some lift at the shoulders, so swimming on your back shouldn't be too annoying with those.

Agree with tbone, surface swims aren't as enjoyable with SM, there are ways of changing tank positions but generally I'd find alternate means if I had to do prolonged surface swims.


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I do long(ish) surface swims in the Razor about 2-3 times a year.
A torch in one hand up out of the water and about an hour of total time and about a kilometer of distance each time, but I like to increase that by going back and forth in the group a few times.

I found using the sidemount bcd much more comfortable than only using the drysuit, nobody would use a backmount bcd for this however.

The head stays out of the water easily since the small buoyancy needed is concentrated at the hips.
Since you only need a very small amount of air in the wing you can turn freely and no air moves around in the drysuit.
And you also have the tools with you to open the occasional bottle

You are much lower in the water, however, than with a conventional bcd, waves in particular can be a pain.
If exhaustion becomes a problem I fully inflate the wing and take a breather on my back until everyone has caught up again, entered the zodiak, or left the water.
Then I deflate and continue refreshed enough to beat any conventional bcd on a long distance.

I avoid surface swimming myself and rather take the regulator again and continue at a foot of depth while the rest of the group is at the surface.
If I did not like that as much I would actually inflate the SMB and use it as a pillow for a short nap.

Razorista:

I do long(ish) surface swims in the Razor about 2-3 times a year.
A torch in one hand up out of the water and about an our of total time, about a kilometer of distance each time, but I like to increase that by going back and forth in the group a few times.

I found using the sidemount bcd much more comfortable than only using the drysuit, nobody would use a backmount bcd for this however.

The head stays out of the water easily since the small buoyancy needed is concentrated at the hips.
Since you only need a very small amount of air in the wing you can turn freely and no air moves around in the drysuit.
And you also have the tools with you to open the occasional bottle

You are much lower in the water, however, than with a conventional bcd, waves in particular can be a pain.
If exhaustion becomes a problem I fully inflate the wing and take a breather on my back until everyone has caught up again, entered the zodiak, or left the water.
Then I deflate and continue refreshed enough to beat any conventional bcd on a long distance.

Click to expand...

That is a seriously long surface swim. Kudos to you.


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decompression:

That is a seriously long surface swim

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Depends on how lucid you are when you start and even more on the overall level of intoxication in the group.

You forgot the irony tags, by the way

No irony meant , that is a long surface swim. As a triathlete I know distance very well and that is a tough swim in BM or SM.


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decompression:

No irony meant , that is a long surface swim. As a triathlete I know distance very well and that is a tough swim in BM or SM

Click to expand...

Oh, thanks for the compliment then.

But what I was talking about is actually a big party. SAR (German inland equivalent) people mostly. Recreational divers like me, we just float along. (most of us just a little drunk, I do not drink myself though, since I mostly have to drive home myself afterwards)
It is really easy in a drysuit (and harness in my case), one time I was freediving for a pair of dropped fins in the end, that was much more exhausting and it was only 3 meters or some other minute depth, I take more weight along since.

I actually do not think it to be much, when swimming you sometimes talk to people who look forward to doing that in bathing-trunks in winter, while you float along in your drysuit. Sometimes they talk about swimming distance I would starve on and under much more taxing conditions (jumping from a boat in a rescue coverall for 'log-term exposure' drills, or something).

If you do that for competition it is even more challenging I think.

But:
From my point of view I would never leave my Razor at home again for something like that.
A sidemount BCD is not optimal for surface swimming, but much better than nothing at all or drysuit only.
Without tanks it is great actually, with them just 'ok'.
Also more comfortable than some backmount BCDs (not all, mind you), but the main difference is: a simple harness you just take along, a massive jacket you leave in the car.