Bolt snap on long hose?

[RyanT]

What are the thoughts about leaving the bolt snap off? Am I going to die a slow and painful death? Will the scuba police swoop down and arrest me on the spot?

Yes, both of these will happen. Although I seem to be in the minority here, so clearly it's just a matter of time before these bad things happen to me as well! I don't use one on my long hose. On the boat, the hose stays wrapped around my manifold. In the water, I keep it tucked in my belt and it stays put nicely for gas switches. It's usually in my mouth while exiting the water. If I happen to be breathing a stage when exiting, I just do a quick check before climbing the ladder to make sure it's stowed properly and and on a short dangle over my right shoulder. Works great.

 

[boulderjohn]

In addition to what others have said, making it a habit will help you if you decide to go beyond recreational diving. When you are in a situation where you are switching regulators to use a stage bottle or a decompression bottle, you will want to have that habit thoroughly ingrained so you can clip it off without any fuss or having to pay undo attention to the process.

 

[decompression]

I have gone away from the normal bolt snap attachment to this slick thing that Brett showed me a few years ago. It's slightly adapted for my Poseidons, but runs like that on my "normal" looking second stages. Easily removable, slides down the hose if you need to donate, and holds the second stage much closer to the D-ring which is great

Brilliant, thanks Tom. Although the high angle rescue guy in me would like to say....not a prussik but a Munter hitch.

 

[JohnnyC]

Brilliant, thanks Tom. Although the high angle rescue guy in me would like to say....not a prussik but a Munter hitch.

It's not a Munter hitch, it's a girth hitch or a cow hitch, depending on where you learned it. It's definitely not a prusik.

*IRATA Level 2 here*

 

[Diver0001]

I recently replaced my primary (84") hose. . . it wasn't tucked in properly, became snagged on a tank valve when I back rolled off a boat and developed a nasty bulge where the fitting is swaged on.

You understand that this means you need to replace the hose, right?

R..

 

[tbone1004]

Brilliant, thanks Tom. Although the high angle rescue guy in me would like to say....not a prussik but a Munter hitch.

I don't think it's a munter hitch, doesn't that only have one of the leads through the loop? I know it as a cow hitch or lark's head, and in this instance, a cow hitch made with a prusik loop, which IIRC is a girth hitch?
That said, it's still brilliant, and my vastly preferred method of attaching bolt snaps to regulators.

 

[JohnN]

You understand that this means you need to replace the hose, right?

R..

I recently replaced my primary (84") hose. . .

.

 

[RainPilot]

 

[decompression]

It's not a Munter hitch, it's a girth hitch or a cow hitch, depending on where you learned it. It's definitely not a prusik.

*IRATA Level 2 here*

Yes, girth hitch.......my bad.......

 

[JohnnyC]

I don't think it's a munter hitch, doesn't that only have one of the leads through the loop? I know it as a cow hitch or lark's head, and in this instance, a cow hitch made with a prusik loop, which IIRC is a girth hitch?
That said, it's still brilliant, and my vastly preferred method of attaching bolt snaps to regulators.

You don't use the term prusik loop unless you're specifically using a loop of rope or cordage to form a prusik. It may seem like semantics but for people who actually do this stuff, the distinction is very important. Same thing with calling a small knotted length of rope a cow tail. It's only a cow tail if it's knotted and used for positioning.

As for actually using the method, I've found it no better for backmount than the traditional method. Sidemount it's tits when you don't loop the long hose.