Hog for Rec

[Indy Diver]

LOL. I suppose I should update my excel sheets with the latest numbers of everything I've purchased in the last month. It might make me cry... It might make my wife mad.

This is a VERY bad idea. NEVER, NEVER keep track of how much you spend on scuba gear. This is just the road to clinical depression and/or divorce.

 

[chrpai]

LOL. I'm in budget at the moment so it's ok to count. But when I start to go over is when I'll stop counting.

 

[chrpai]

Ok, all my gear came in last week and I finally had a chance to get it in the pool last night. I liked the BP/W a lot but I have a few things to work through.

First is I felt less then squared away setting the rig up and doning it. Looking at the long house and shoulder / waist straps just kind of look like a tangled mess. When I'd put it on I'd get the shoulder straps flipped over.

In the water it seemed like I was tangling my hoses or fighting the long house to stay where it needed to be. Also the swivel turret on my Hog D1 ( using STA and Din Yoke Adapter ) was kind of annoying. One of my reg hoses was coming off and bumping my head when I looked up. I think I just need to sit the tank in the straps better and route the hoses better to get it to turn to the right a little. Also I feel like I've lost a skill ( sweep regulator recovery ) and not yet relearned the skill for the long hose nor have I really learned and practiced s-drills yet.

I'm also still not sure about the whole clip the SPG off at your inseam. It seemed a pain in the ass to unclip, look at and reclip. Will it become muscle memory? Probably. Do you not need to look at it all the time? Probably. But at this point I'm just not convinced yet. I was never the type to be dragging my console through the reefs so I'm not sure I've really gained anything here.

Basically I need advice / wisdom and a good buddy to help inspect and guide me during some dives. Any thoughts to share?

 

[PfcAJ]

Come up with a little system for your hoses/ strap when you put your kit on. I keep my longhose coiled up and clipped off, and then I just keep the backup reg out of the way as I get into the harness. Your idea for figuring out the best hose routing is a good one. With a single tank, I angle the valve face a bit so the 1st stage is less apt to bonk me in the head. YMMV. Reg sweep recovery isn't a thing youll have to use with the longhose. If the reg pops out of your mouth, itll just hang there since the hose travels along the back of your neck.

The clip off the spg is a real thing, itll take some time to get used to it. But like all new things, in time it won't be new or difficult anymore.

 

[ianr33]

When I'd put it on I'd get the shoulder straps flipped over.

Also I feel like I've lost a skill ( sweep regulator recovery ) and not yet relearned the skill for the long hose

I'm also still not sure about the whole clip the SPG off at your inseam. It seemed a pain in the ass to unclip, look at and reclip. Will it become muscle memory?

My computers are wrist mounted. I always put them on AFTER getting in the harness. Putting them on before tends to catch the shoulder straps and roll them over.

Breathing a long hose with a bungeed backup means you will probably never have to search for the primary reg. If you do ever get your reg kicked out just go to the bungeed backup. The primary reg will probably be hanging down off your right shoulder.

The spg will feel weird for a while but eventually becomes second nature. As in interim measure you could try putting the HP hose under your left arm and clipping the spg to the left chest D ring. Just have to look down to see it. Not DIR, slightly "dangly" but it does work

 

[chrpai]

@pfc-

I'll try your coil approach. Part of my problem now is my long hose currently was to coil and it seemed to be fighting me while trying to route it down the wind and around my torso. I probably just need to work at it.

@ian-

Thanks, all good comments. I'll try taking my computer off and see if that helps. I did realize that my backup was right there and I did observe that I could clip the SPG to my chest d-ring but while I'm not trying to be "DIR" per say I am also trying to not do things clearly "wrong". Course I don't really have a definition for "wrong" due to my lack of experience diving this configuration.

 

[JamesK]

Your SPG is simply a back up to your brain. You should not have to check it much, so it being out of the way on your hip simply makes sense. If you start clipping it to a chest dring, then when you add your backup light, and possible stage and deco bottles, you end up with a mess of clips there. Then people start adding more drings and throwing equipment at it to fix issues that should not be issues in the first place. With your SPG clipped to your waist, you should be able to just look down at it to check it anyway without unclipping.

What type of 7' hose do you have? Is it rubber, braided, or MiFlex? Some types have more "memory" to them and like to stay coiled. That is why I stay away from long MiFlex hoses.

AJ and Ian already touched on the other issues, so I really don't have much else to add. Good luck, and I hope you enjoy your new purchase.

 

[cbrich]

I am right up the road from you, chrpai, in Leander. If you want I can help you out setting up your rig. I used to dive with a 7' hose on my recreational rig, but not anymore. I switched mainly because of personal preference.

 

[TSandM]

Where you put the left hip d-ring can really impact how easy it is to clip and unclip from it. If it's too far back toward the plate, it becomes quite difficult. But I think all of us had to practice for a while before clipping and unclipping became natural (look up Mo2vation's 7 part series on his Fundies class, and read about him sitting in front of the TV in his harness practicing -- it's hysterical).

How the long hose runs may have something to do with the routing off your first stage. If your first stage has a port in the end that aims downward, that's the best one to run the long hose off of. If the hose can go straight down and loop up from your waistband, it's usually pretty cooperative. If you have the kind of regulator where all the low pressure ports aim out horizontally, you may need to tilt the first stage to get the most cooperative behavior from the hose.

I put my harness on with my gauges on, and I often get it flipped, but if your gear is all put together, you can grab your primary first stage and pull on it, and it will "unflip" your right shoulder strap. The wing inflator should do the same for the left one.

 

[PfcAJ]

But putting the dring too far forward and the SPG will hang down. The middle of your hip (like where the seam of your pants is) is a good place for it.

fwiw, I leave my gauges clipped off to my harness with a double ender till I get in it and all buckled up. You'll figure out a system that works for you.