Higher lift bcd?

[tbone1004]

I just learned something new today. How much more weight would you use in a river if experienced?

it depends on the river and the actual flow you are experiencing and the depth. Higher flow, more lead. Unfortunately many people just strap as much as they can on there. You can mitigate a lot of it with good technique and big screwdrivers, but you do need enough on there to be able to prevent yourself from tumbling. AL80 and a stab jacket should be 20-24lbs if I had to take a wild guess, vs the 40 that was on there....

 

[ams511]

Hey Guys ,
Got a question . I currently have a Aqualung pro LT BC. I went diving over the weekend on the Cooper River . Was A LOT of work with the extra weight used . (Almost 40 pounds !) Im looking for a better bc I can use for river diving that has a lot more lift to ease the work load . What are some good BC’s with a ton of lift ? If anyone has suggestions and maybe pics of their setups that might help too .. thanks

I would give Randy at Piranha a call. This seems like something that fits your needs (45 lbs of lift) and the price is reasonable. There may be other BCs in the 50 lb range, you can check Leisure Pro's website for informaton.

Another option is to use an old-school scuba float made out of a truck inner tube with a milk crate in the middle and put your weights inside when done with the dive.

This is off point, but why are you interested in river diving enough to change your rig? I tried it once and that was not for me. What am I missing?

 

[Bestshooter]

Not changing my currrent rig cause I like this , just making another one suited for this diving better .

I would give Randy at Piranha a call. This seems like something that fits your needs (45 lbs of lift) and the price is reasonable. There may be other BCs in the 50 lb range, you can check Leisure Pro's website for informaton.

Another option is to use an old-school scuba float made out of a truck inner tube with a milk crate in the middle and put your weights inside when done with the dive.

This is off point, but why are you interested in river diving enough to change your rig? I tried it once and that was not for me. What am I missing?

 

[TGIF]

I would say Scubapro's HydrosPro is a great option because it is (a) neutrally buoyant, allowing you to drop weight, and (b) has a lift capacity of 40 lbs in men's.

 

[scubadiver888]

it depends on the river and the actual flow you are experiencing and the depth. Higher flow, more lead. Unfortunately many people just strap as much as they can on there. You can mitigate a lot of it with good technique and big screwdrivers, but you do need enough on there to be able to prevent yourself from tumbling. AL80 and a stab jacket should be 20-24lbs if I had to take a wild guess, vs the 40 that was on there....

This is the first I've heard this. I typically use the same weighting for a river dive as a lake dive. What determines more weight? Would shallow water mean more weight? Would faster flow mean more weight?

I've been in rivers which are maybe 2 knots and as deep as 100 feet. I've also been in rivers which are 10 to 20 feet and 8 knots (with speed boats overhead). In both cases, I just go with the flow. So long as I'm not fighting the river I tend to not tumble. Occasionally, the current will grab a fin and start to flip me around but I can usually adjust my fins and flare my arms to turn myself back around.

 

[tbone1004]

@scubadiver888 deeper means you get some help with wetsuit compression if you're diving deeper.
Faster flow typically means more lead. There are techniques to get around it if you have to fight the flow, but most people tend to just slap a bunch of weight on there to make it easier

 

[Addicted2H2O]

If you're looking for something in the 40+ range, the Zeagle Ranger fits that bill. And it's a very customizable modular system so you can build it to suit your needs. I do agree, though, that at 38 lbs of lead it would seem you're likely overweighted. I can understand a few extra pounds to help keep you from floating away while on the bottom but wow that's a LOT of lead! But if it's what you're comfortable with, then so be it. Just make sure you can dump weight in an emergency situation.

 

[Basking Ridge Diver]

I went diving over the weekend on the Cooper River

So - for what it is worth - I dove the Cooper River with my son. For me personally - it was a one and done. But if you are going to continue to dive it for Meg teeth and fossils.

I would recommend a different approach.

First is - you don't need all of the lead you are talking about - here is why. When you put all the rocks and teeth and what ever else you are adding to your dive bag. I was (and I am guessing you are too) doubly over-weighted - lead on the belt and booty in the bag. Because I was new at this game - I was grabbing anything that looked like a bone or tooth and stuffing it in my bag - more than 3/4 of the bag turned out to be rocks. So the more senior guys would help me sort and throw the rocks back. No joke - my BC was struggling at the surface to hold me - my bag - and my 16 yo son on the surface - found out his inflator elbow was not screwed in properly and he was losing air out of his BC. So I was supporting way too much weight... So as others have said back off the weight. If you are not able to hold to the bottom with the screwdrivers or you really believe you need that much weight to lay on the river bed.

Second is practice using a lift bag - shoot your goody bag to the surface with a lift bag and you go up using the DSMB.

If you think you are going to do these dives a lot you may want to consider a BP/W. And you can search on Tobin and how he calculates lift - it is more than the dead weight you want to lift. You need to consider your buoyancy items as well - wet suit and such... You can find other BP/W rigs and get two wings - one for your normal diving and one for Cooper River if the suggestions don't work for you.

Anyway this may help and it may prevent you from spending money a rig just for Cooper River...
Safe Diving.

 

[scubadiver888]

Ah, I get it. I'm used to diving rivers without a lot to see (shopping carts, car tires, absolutely nothing, etc.). It is more about the drift and maybe the marine life.

Rather than severely overweight myself and depending on the composition of the river bed, I'd probably try adding just a few pounds than bringing something like a knife sharpening steel and stick it into the ground to anchor myself. One hand holds the steel and the other hand is free to grab things off the river bed and stash them.

Additionally, I dive a drysuit, so if I needed extra lift at the surface (grabbed too much goodies) I could just inflate my drysuit at the surface. If diving wet, I like the idea using a DSMB or lift bag. You can also get wings with two bladders. Dive with one bladder and use the second bladder to stay buoyant at the surface at the end of the dive.

 

[tbone1004]

@scubadiver888 cooper river diving is lucky if you have about a foot of vis and is strictly for artifact hunting so it's very different than drift diving in a river that you can actually see things.