Eric Sedletzky
Contributor
Instead of arguing endlessly about which method is best, maybe we should be discussing the best ways to prevent OOA emergencies in the first place??
I don’t see the big deal with switching from primary donate to a secondary in the triangle. All I would have to do is use my necklaces reg as my primary and the 40” would be stuffed under a piece of inner tube on my right shoulder strap in plain view. It could be deployed in an instant just like if it was a primary in my mouth. During a primary donate the donating diver should be the one in charge and the one administering the reg to the OOA diver, not the other way around. I was taught to grab the hose right next to the second stage forming a fist and hand it straight to the diver rotating it 180 degrees with exhaust down and arm extended out. You get it in their mouth until you see them clear it and breathe then you can let it go after they have a hand on it. You don’t want to fumble it so that’s why it’s important to grasp it firmly.
To me it doesn’t matter so much if the donated reg came from your mouth or from being stowed, the time frame and delivery/control is the more critical factor. I think another very important thing is for each diver to carefully pay attention to each other and know where your buddy is avoid a from-behind-reg-mugging. I say this because I know we’re mostly talking about basic OW divers who don’t have a lot of experience, but if you’re the primary lead diver leading around a new instabuddy then these rules need to be discussed before the dive and followed. If I saw an instabuddy making a beeline for my primary the first thing that would happen is I would reach out and grab them by something around their chest with a strong arm and hold them firmly to get control of them by the BC chest strap, shoulder strap, etc. I would establish control first and foremost then they would get my reg. I would make sure it operates properly before the dive. I don’t believe in using some cheap detuned secondary. All my regs are high quality and operate perfectly.
For this reason, I see rental regs to possibly be inferior or at least have the potential to be flawed. I think anyone who regularly dives deeper that just shallow reef dives once a year on vacation should really consider buying their own QUALITY equipment, keep it tuned and it good shape, and please get in the habit of checking your gas supply regularly please,
(an old solo diver trick).
Thank You
I don’t see the big deal with switching from primary donate to a secondary in the triangle. All I would have to do is use my necklaces reg as my primary and the 40” would be stuffed under a piece of inner tube on my right shoulder strap in plain view. It could be deployed in an instant just like if it was a primary in my mouth. During a primary donate the donating diver should be the one in charge and the one administering the reg to the OOA diver, not the other way around. I was taught to grab the hose right next to the second stage forming a fist and hand it straight to the diver rotating it 180 degrees with exhaust down and arm extended out. You get it in their mouth until you see them clear it and breathe then you can let it go after they have a hand on it. You don’t want to fumble it so that’s why it’s important to grasp it firmly.
To me it doesn’t matter so much if the donated reg came from your mouth or from being stowed, the time frame and delivery/control is the more critical factor. I think another very important thing is for each diver to carefully pay attention to each other and know where your buddy is avoid a from-behind-reg-mugging. I say this because I know we’re mostly talking about basic OW divers who don’t have a lot of experience, but if you’re the primary lead diver leading around a new instabuddy then these rules need to be discussed before the dive and followed. If I saw an instabuddy making a beeline for my primary the first thing that would happen is I would reach out and grab them by something around their chest with a strong arm and hold them firmly to get control of them by the BC chest strap, shoulder strap, etc. I would establish control first and foremost then they would get my reg. I would make sure it operates properly before the dive. I don’t believe in using some cheap detuned secondary. All my regs are high quality and operate perfectly.
For this reason, I see rental regs to possibly be inferior or at least have the potential to be flawed. I think anyone who regularly dives deeper that just shallow reef dives once a year on vacation should really consider buying their own QUALITY equipment, keep it tuned and it good shape, and please get in the habit of checking your gas supply regularly please,
(an old solo diver trick).
Thank You