One for the Manifold divers...

dlarbale · May 21, 2002

Just a quick question for all you manifold advocates....

If your diving in a cave that you need to travel a long way to first and that has very tight restrictions, how do you set up your manifolded doubles?

The reason I ask is because this problem was quoted to me as one of the reasons for not diving a manifold. Also, makes sense to dive independants so that when you side mount your not altering your reg configuration (opinions please).

Regards - Dave.

JamesK · May 21, 2002

If it is too small for backmounts, you do sidemount. You do not change your manifold at all. Seperate tanks and regs for sidemount and backmount. Well, atleast that is what I would do. Of course, I am not side mounting yet either.

dlarbale · May 22, 2002

Sorry my post was a tad unclear. The scenario is...

You have to walk a long way to the cave then feed the cylinders through a tight restriction that you can't fit doubles through. Once inside the cave it's big enough for diving doubles.

Now an independant setup diver would just pop the cylinders through the restriction one at a time and then strap them in afterwards. A manifold diver on the other hand would...?

Thanks - Dave.

Rick Murchison · May 22, 2002

Me?
I'm not going through any hole that requires me to take my tanks off, so it's a moot point.
By the way, the contraction for "you are" is "you're"
Rick

TexasMike · May 22, 2002

Out of sheer curiosity (I'm not a caver or cave diving trained), are there many cave diving opportunities in Oz like you've described?

JamesK · May 22, 2002

Are you talking about a dry restriction? Basically a sump dive?

roguediver · May 22, 2002

When did this become a grammer class message board and not a scuba diving message board.

:jester:

Wendy · May 22, 2002

In florida I can't really think of too many if any cave openings that are no mount (which is kinda what you are descibing). The only one I can think of is Crystal Beach Spring in the gulf. I don't know about cave diving else where, Florida is the only palce I've been.

Oh, and while I'm thinking about it, how would you get your body in a place that wasn't big enough to pass a set of doubles thru that you weren't wearing? If the opening was only big enough to pass a single tank thru I doubt that very many of us would fit into the opening ourselves, unless we were related to gumby.

dlarbale · May 22, 2002

Ok I'll try to address all the responses in one hit....

Rick - it's not a moot point as your not under the water when you take you're tank off, you're getting to the dive site!

Oh and thanks for the English lesson (while we're on the subject you might want to search for 'Flash Light' in all the posts and let them know that this should be replaced with 'Torch'!).

Texas Mike - Not got into cave diving yet but there's Mount Gambier (near Adelaide) and the The Nullibour (SP?). From what I've been told the later is a b'stard to dive and has numerous resrictions that you can't physically pass twins through (hence the question).

Big James - Yes a sump dive.

Rouge Diver - Thanks for your support (oops that should be you're!).

Wendy - my body bends alot more then a twin tank setup. I'm only going on what I've been told by the cavers here. Very few people here dive manifolds in cave's and I'm trying to work out why - this was a scenario given to me by someone who'd just returned from diving the Nullibour (SP?).

Regards - Dave.

Divesherpa · May 23, 2002

Independents as I dive them are banded just like manifolded doubles, which you can't break apart and put back together. These don't provide any benefit over manifolded doubles when removing and putting back on. Sidemount is a different story.
As to no mount in Florida, no-mount holes are everywhere. There are 3 on Ginnie property alone. Much less some of the holes in the system that require bottle pulling or pushing to penetrate.
It's hard to lay new line in Florida if you won't go no mount. That's almost the only place around that hasn't been dove, and I would say there is more no mount than there is big stuff. It's a lot of fun, but you have to be prepared to do a Braille dive when going no mount.
Cheers.

One for the Manifold divers...

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