Eclipse Cam Straps PROBLEM

[EireDiver606]

Hey halcyon,

I bought your eclipse 30 a few months and have only been able to dive it now properly.

I am using a single 12L steel 232 bar cylinder and I think that the straps are way too big or else I’m routing them wrong.

This is the problem:
I set up my gear, I tighten the cam straps as much as possible, I lift up my rig and rock it. It’s quite stable. Good.
Next, I hop in water, it feels fine.
After 2/3 of the dive (40 minutes), I feel the tank start to slip and it’s still being held in place but very very loose and I have to hold the tank with my right hand as I finish the dive. It is uncomfortable and unsafe.
To put a temporary bandaid on this problem, I tied rope around the valve and through the top carrying strap on the eclipse. This feels better but is still not a solution.

At the moment Halcyon, I am quite displeased with this product (cam bands) for how much I spent on it and it is ruining my diving to be honest. I thought Halcyon had really really good gear. I don’t know if it’s the wrong size tank, cam bands are weird or I’m just a fool in routing them. Also when I do route the cam bands, the strap is so long on the other side, I can’t velcro intoplace to stop it from coming undone.

Please help me with this Halcyon or anybody who has experienced this or knows what I’m stuttering on about.

Thanks.

 

[tbone1004]

get the cam bands wet before you put the rig on the tank. Nylon stretches quite a bit when it is wet.
Once the bands are wet, then put on the tank, tighten the bands and before you thread the last slot in the cam band, cam it half-way over so it is locked. Then thread the webbing in the last slot and cam it the rest of the way over.
I've been using Halcyon cam bands for nearly a decade and have never had that problem, but you do have to get them wet to get the bands to stretch a bit before you put it on the tank

 

[Diving Dubai]

It's probably you...

You tube video

I personally have the cam band as far to onside as I can, so the velcro grips. I use it with either Steel 15l, or Al 80, and I don't use any rubber grips on the strap.

It helps of course (the first time you size it) to have wet straps.

To fully tighten I unthread from teh first (or last slot) and then wiggle the cam band to get the slack through.

Give you have a wing you have too straps so a tank shouldn't' come loose.

The velcro is only there on the webbing to grip teh loose end. If teh loose end flaps about it doesn't affect the strap tension.

I have the stainless buckles on my rig, but that's just preference rather than any advantage over plastic

Hope that helps

 

[EireDiver606]

Ok yeah I just read the manual that I had reeaad before but forgot about wetting the straps.

You don’t think this is a PITA? Having to bend down and wet your rig before you set up.

Ok I’ll try this and see if it helps but it’s more that I can’t seem to tighten fully even before I get in the water, it’s tight enough but it’s not locked solid tight

 

[tbone1004]

Ok yeah I just read the manual that I had reeaad before but forgot about wetting the straps.

You don’t think this is a PITA? Having to bend down and wet your rig before you set up.

Ok I’ll try this and see if it helps but it’s more that I can’t seem to tighten fully even before I get in the water, it’s tight enough but it’s not locked solid tight

oh it is a complete PITA, but it is what it is. The only rig that I know of that doesn't need it done is the Deep Sea Supply rigs because they have a rubber block that sits in the channel of the rig that can compensate for that stretch.

Now, depending on how strong you are and how good your technique is, you can do it without getting them wet, but you have to be super diligent about tightening them, you'll only be able to cam it about 1/4 of the way up to lock the straps, then you have to be strong enough to cam it all the way over. That to me is more of a PITA than getting it wet.

If you're on a boat, they usually have a rinse tank that you can do it with, if shore diving, it's obviously easy enough, but it's part of pre-dive.

 

[johndiver999]

Wet the strap, put the bc on the tank tight, leave it that way for a week or two in the garage.

 

[EireDiver606]

oh it is a complete PITA, but it is what it is. The only rig that I know of that doesn't need it done is the Deep Sea Supply rigs because they have a rubber block that sits in the channel of the rig that can compensate for that stretch.

Now, depending on how strong you are and how good your technique is, you can do it without getting them wet, but you have to be super diligent about tightening them, you'll only be able to cam it about 1/4 of the way up to lock the straps, then you have to be strong enough to cam it all the way over. That to me is more of a PITA than getting it wet.

If you're on a boat, they usually have a rinse tank that you can do it with, if shore diving, it's obviously easy enough, but it's part of pre-dive.

Ok so you think it’s just the straps not being is the problem?

You’re sure that they’re made for 12L singles?

 

[Compressor]

Perhaps take a picture of the setup on land and let us look at it.

 

[tbone1004]

Ok so you think it’s just the straps not being is the problem?

You’re sure that they’re made for 12L singles?

they're universal, just have to adjust them properly. We use ours on LP72's which are 6.9" OD, AL80's which is the "standard" 7.25" OD, and the big 8" diameter tanks regularly. Just have to adjust

 

[rongoodman]

I'm wondering if you have the buckles threaded correctly. I've never had a similar problem with them and I never bother wetting the straps. (I have seen a tank slip over the course of multiple dives, but it was always the case that the straps had not even adjusted properly to begin with or the buckle wasn't threaded properly, certainly not something that happened in the course of a single dive.)