Aloha Joe
Contributor
I had so much fun in my first class - so much that it's hard to describe without using expletives. I should try - I had a blast, it was super fun, more than I expected. The instructor is absolutely amazing (unbelievably good) and scuba just feels really natural and intuitive to me. I started with a Freedom Plate (backplate) and harness, and a used regulator rig, and was anxious about piecing things together for my first kit. But it all came together at the last minute and I really love the platform, and now I just need to make some tweaks. I emailed the instructor last week and asked if she was OK if I used my own 'different' gear than the class, and she preferred that I learn in what I plan on using. She's great at accommodating, even recommending and supporting my trying the 'primary donate' OOA method, for example. Anyway...
General gear questions:
Fins: I've used short, stiff snorkel fins and felt that the thrust was low for the amount of effort required (low efficiency). Now I have Mares Avanti Quattro - they are long and soft, and the thrust and efficiency are very good but I find that control is bad (ability to make small, precise adjustments - maybe due to 'delay' from fin flexing?). Do stiffness and control go hand-in-hand? Is a stiff 'vented' fin the solution to get control (from stiffness) with good thrust and less effort (from vents)?
Power inflator - we used the inflator (well, deflator) to adjust BC fill volume as opposed to using the 'dump'. With the inflator tied to my shoulder strap it was hard to raise high enough, and with it loose it was long and in the way, and yet hard to find. How are people securing them to their BC? Is there a way to keep it out of the way, but free enough to raise up? I probably need shorter hoses...
Alternate air source: I was using a 'necklace' to secure my secondary regulator, and using the 'primary donate' method for OOA practice. I was getting tangled with my snorkel when doffing my rig in the water (because of the necklace) - what am I doing wrong?
Reg hoses: I have the plastic flex reg hoses, but still felt like I needed (wanted) a swivel connection at the reg/hose union. Some of the time it seemed the hose was out in front of me, sort of trying to pull the reg out of my mount (not really bad, but not ideal). Is this just a length issue? Are there standard lengths? My primary reg has a turret, fwiw.
I feel like there's more questions but I can't think of them at the moment. I have a lot of adjusting to do - shoulder straps, belt clips, D-rings, bolt clips, etc. so that probably made it seem like there was more 'going on' than there really was.
General gear questions:
Fins: I've used short, stiff snorkel fins and felt that the thrust was low for the amount of effort required (low efficiency). Now I have Mares Avanti Quattro - they are long and soft, and the thrust and efficiency are very good but I find that control is bad (ability to make small, precise adjustments - maybe due to 'delay' from fin flexing?). Do stiffness and control go hand-in-hand? Is a stiff 'vented' fin the solution to get control (from stiffness) with good thrust and less effort (from vents)?
Power inflator - we used the inflator (well, deflator) to adjust BC fill volume as opposed to using the 'dump'. With the inflator tied to my shoulder strap it was hard to raise high enough, and with it loose it was long and in the way, and yet hard to find. How are people securing them to their BC? Is there a way to keep it out of the way, but free enough to raise up? I probably need shorter hoses...
Alternate air source: I was using a 'necklace' to secure my secondary regulator, and using the 'primary donate' method for OOA practice. I was getting tangled with my snorkel when doffing my rig in the water (because of the necklace) - what am I doing wrong?
Reg hoses: I have the plastic flex reg hoses, but still felt like I needed (wanted) a swivel connection at the reg/hose union. Some of the time it seemed the hose was out in front of me, sort of trying to pull the reg out of my mount (not really bad, but not ideal). Is this just a length issue? Are there standard lengths? My primary reg has a turret, fwiw.
I feel like there's more questions but I can't think of them at the moment. I have a lot of adjusting to do - shoulder straps, belt clips, D-rings, bolt clips, etc. so that probably made it seem like there was more 'going on' than there really was.
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