Weight Systems - DIR point of view

Wreck Junkie · Dec 19, 2004

Hi...

With the mediterranean waters getting much colder to persue with winter diving in a wetsuit, soon i shall be changing into a drysuit and a number of queries pop-up. I dive an explorer wings with ss backplate and twin steel 12's. I have an additional MC weight pouch with a 1.5kgs to my left and a light cannister to my right. My options thus are two:

Either add the other weight pouch to the right side and trim both MC pouches to suit the new weight requirements.

Or wear a separate weight belt.

If i remeber correctly from past DIR threads, the MC pouches are not deemed as DIR...is it so? Why?

The use of a weight belt seems more appropriate to me in the eventuality of kit removal situation underwater, where the drysuit would make me super positively buoyant risking an uncontrolled ascent.

Is the weight belt solution the best option? And do DIR practices actually allow kit removal procedures anyway?

Thanks
Wreck Junkie
Malta, Europe

mindGrabber · Dec 20, 2004

If you are thinking about potential kit removal underwater - weight belt is a necessary option due to clear buoyancy reasons.

But firstly I do believe that trying to make that trick in steel doubles is very unsafe.

When you a diving with AL doubles you are weighting you kit close to neutral and you are weighting you body close to neutral too. With steel doubles typically youll get overweighed rig and underweighted body. So underwater kit removal can play a bad joke to you.

Concerning DIR. DIR highly recommends not to dive in a sea with steel tanks. Steel tanks can be used in a cave conditions and only as a back gas tanks (for deco-tanks AL is required).

jonnythan · Dec 20, 2004

What kind of wetsuit are you wearing? What kind of drysuit will you have? I dropped a couple of pounds going from a thick wetsuit to a trilam drysuit.

MXGratefulDiver · Dec 20, 2004

Concerning DIR. DIR highly recommends not to dive in a sea with steel tanks.

???

Every DIR diver I know uses steel tanks ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

Soggy · Dec 20, 2004

NWGratefulDiver:
???

Every DIR diver I know uses steel tanks ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

I know both George and Bob Sherwood, for example, advocate use of Al80s when doing boat dives since they are lighter on a pitching boat and, according to GUE, have better buoyancy characteristics (a stance I vehemently disagree with). The argument is that many people can't swim up a set of steel doubles in the event of complete loss of buoyancy.

dbulmer · Dec 20, 2004

Soggy,
When you say complete loss of buoyancy - do you mean a flooded drysuit and no DSMB/liftbag ? Wouldn't the buddy provide assistance in this case?

Soggy · Dec 20, 2004

dbulmer:
Soggy,
When you say complete loss of buoyancy - do you mean a flooded drysuit and no DSMB/liftbag ? Wouldn't the buddy provide assistance in this case?

The idea is that you should be able to swim your rig up, unaided, with a complete loss of drysuit and wing buoyancy.

dbulmer · Dec 20, 2004

Does this also apply to any ali stages you might have too?

dbulmer · Dec 20, 2004

Thanks - what would happen if suit flooded/wing loss with deco obligation?

Soggy · Dec 20, 2004

dbulmer:
Does this also apply to any ali stages you might have too?

My *guess* is that it would include any gas that you need to safely return to the surface. So, in an open ocean environment, if you needed 2x40s of deco gas, you'd want to include that...Since all deco tanks should be aluminum, and aluminum tank are close to neutral even when full, I don't think this would be a big issue.

I have not taken Tech 1 yet, though, so don't take my word for it.

Weight Systems - DIR point of view

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