Carrying a Dive flag

[Tommed]

I am looking for ideas as to how to best manage a dive flag. How do you folks secure it? Do you hold the reel in your hand or clip it off to your BC? Do you use a velcro release? How do you keep from getting tangled up? Thanks for your comments.

 

[ssdiver2003]

dont worry about the reel, have your rope some 30-40 feet long and have an ankle weight attached to it ...you probably wont go deeper than that in the beginning anyway...should you move around alot under water,just move the weight around too...

 

[Ron Brandt]

Head into Wal-Mart. Go to hardware. You will find , for about 2 bucks a plastic "thing" designed to keep electrical cord organized in the shop.Not the reel kind,just the solid orange plastic one .

Under no circumstances attach that flag to you with a clip.Unless of course you want a free tow underwater from a boat hooked on! Yes,it does happen.

The weight attached to the bottom is a good way also and have used that method lots.


Ron

 

[Manfred]

It's not a good idea to tie the flag to yourself, a while back some guy tried top pull me out of the water. He thought the flag was lost. I use one of those plastic extension cord reels for 4 bucks at walmart and a quarter inch nylon rope. Most times I use an anchor and don't bother towing it

 

[Dr. Jay]

Found out the hard way you want to have something to wrap it around. I figured I could just wrap it around itself and hold it together with a bolt snap. Didn't happen, and I ended up getting tangled in it.

1. Get a thin rope. Like a thin yellow one.
2. Get one of those "kite string" thingies mentioned before (see attached photo - Item A.)
3. Tie it off to the flag and maybe attach a weight to your end somehow.

Like mentioned before, don't attach it to yourself.

You can probably just stick your arm through the hole of the "kite string thingie", or get something you can easily hold on to.

I know some use a reel, but to me it seems like killing ants with a flamethrower. If you want to sink some money into the reel, go ahead. But if you have to ditch it or you loose it, there goes 80 bucks.

Just my 2 cents.

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Using a reel is an option but requires some skill to use without getting yourself tangled as the thin nylon line will wrapm itself around a reg or tank valve very quickly if you allow it any slack. I'd stick with one of the more conventional and cheap plastic thingies to wrap the line around. A 1/8 to 1/4 inch poly rope also makes sense. It is one of the few cases where a floating rope makes sense as the slack will float up over you if you indavertantly get some in the line.

In our state you have to stay within 75 feet of your entanglement hazard...err I mean dive flag. Some states are more generous and allow 300' which makes it easier to anchor the flag or fly it from the boat.

Boaters in our state also for the most part do not know what a dive flag is nor do they stay the required 75 feet from it, so in my opinion it presents more risks than it prevents.

 

[finstotheleft]

This past weekend, I jimmy-rigged a dive flag to a boat oar, and duct taped the oar to a tree stump in the water where I was diving.

Not that I recommend this...

 

[grouchyturtle]

How heavy of a weight is enough of r asmall float?

Also does anyone know what the distance is in NJ?

 

[scywin]

2 lbs should do it. Remember that you have to lug it around!

I don't understand your distance question. I live in NJ, so it is now time for all the Turnpike jokes!

 

[inkabodpain]

The dive shops around here have a metal (negitively bouyant)tow handle with tabs to wind your line around.I'de rather let it fly from the kayak or the inflatable though.Not attaching it to yourself is great advice...dive safe good luck.