Pony bottle .. do i need one at this point ?

[Gabriel90512]

so why not have doubles then?
"two is better than 1"

At this time I don’t feel I'm ready for doubles.. I think with that much bottom time
And me being a new diver (this will be my 3rd year) .. that would just be asking for trouble. Yes I’m good about diving my plan and not getting into a deco dive .. but with
doubles I feel that a mistake could happen.

I dive with a 120 and I feel that it’s just about right at this time..

Sure some people will think that I’m going slow.. But I have given my self 5 years to make DM.

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

so what are some of the cons you have witnessed ?

I got no complaints at all with the redundancy issue. I installed a 100 cu ft pony beside my primary and banded them together. :14:

When I'm doing dives that can be accomplished with 80 cu ft of gas and are planned with the correct reserves I would just as soon utilize a single cylinder. It's like driving a ferarri through the water after pushing a bus.

I tried carrying an off-size pony bottle around but the balance didn't work for me, having to configure a stowage and deployment system was cluttered, and the risks introduced to my diving seemed greater than the risks this equipment mitigated, to me.

There's tons of ways to spend your SCUBA dollars, and I'll concede that pony's look kinda cool to the novice diver. But the value isn't there for me, some folks will be happy to chime in with what a lifesaver they are and I'm glad they work for some. I know of two instances locally where bodies were recovered with full pony bottles that weren't deployed for unknown reasons. I was a DMC with a pony-carrying stud that was going to save us all, he couldn't deploy the regulator when our student needed to share air (hey we were young DMCs, I learned a valuable lesson about monitoring everyone's gas consumption that day) and I had to make a shared-air ascent with her while he practiced how he would deploy it the next time he found an opportunity.

Plan your dives with the gas on your back, monitor your gas consumption throughout your dives, surface with your reserve gas intact and you have no need for a pony.

Then I hear the guys brag I've made 1000+ dives with my pony and never had to deploy it, arguing that they can successfully plan and monitor gas consumption. Then why do you need a pony? I'm super hesitant to invest $3-500 for kit I don't plan to use, well I might have near that wrapped up in the first aid/sav-a-div kit but I use that more than I'd like to.

FWIW, if you're going to try a pony go with a 40, big enough to be useful not only as a pony but for other applications as well (ie you wanna do deco someday), resale value will be much better if you decide it doesn't complement your diving too.

 

[jchaplain]

Go whatever speed you want Gabe.
I'm going a lot slower than you....like never....lol...

I'm into this sport recreationally only and I have no ambitions of diving the Andrea Dorea or becoming a DM. This sport/hobby/activity or whatever you want to call it can be just for fun....really! No need to feel that you need to become some sort of a superhero.

John

At this time I don’t feel I'm ready for doubles.. I think with that much bottom time
And me being a new diver (this will be my 3rd year) .. that would just be asking for trouble. Yes I’m good about diving my plan and not getting into a deco dive .. but with
doubles I feel that a mistake could happen.

I dive with a 120 and I feel that it’s just about right at this time..

Sure some people will think that I’m going slow.. But I have given my self 5 years to make DM.

 

[jchaplain]

"Plan your dives with the gas on your back, monitor your gas consumption throughout your dives, surface with your reserve gas intact and you have no need for a pony. "

I agree for the most part, but you are ruling out the possibility of first stage regulator failure.
And arguing that because some person once couldn't find their pony regulator that ponys are not good....well that doesn't even make sense.

John C.

 

[RIOceanographer]

so why not have doubles then?
"two is better than 1"

If you need all that gas, doubles are great, if not then why carry them? Because it is good exercise?

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

"Plan your dives with the gas on your back, monitor your gas consumption throughout your dives, surface with your reserve gas intact and you have no need for a pony. "

I agree for the most part, but you are ruling out the possibility of first stage regulator failure.

John C.

No I don't think so. First stage or tank valve failure would call for an immediate ascent and possibly sharing air with your buddy. First stage freeflow, maybe you'll have enough gas to huff off that on the way up, maybe you'll choose to shut it down and breathe off your buddy's tank. In a single you won't be anywhere you don't have direct access to the surface, right?

If you're diving solo without redundancy, well I wouldn't be there.

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

And arguing that because some person once couldn't find their pony regulator that ponys are not good....well that doesn't even make sense.

John C.

Go back and edit all you want, but that isn't my argument. That is my experience.

My "argument" (although I consider it an answer as the OP asked a question) is that there might not be a need for a pony.

 

[Mark Vlahos]

Well I think a pony is fine, if that is what you want. A 30 cu ft is fine, but a 40 cu ft is better, if for nothing other than resale or future use as a deco bottle. Sling it and carry it in front of you. Charge it and then close the valve, re-charge it at depth, and check it often.

Why would I use a pony? For my own personal use, no, I can manage my own gas just fine. I would carry it for that inattentive insta buddy I might get paired up with on a dive boat. If he or she runs out of gas, once things have calmed down I would turn on the pony and hook it to their BC and let them manage their own ascent with me nearby.

I have always seen the pony bottle as a tool to be used not for me but rather for the other diver. Sure, it is there and if I need it I would use it, but I would not rely on it as a way to extend my dive.

Mark Vlahos

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

If you need all that gas, doubles are great, if not then why carry them? Because it is good exercise?

For the redundancy, doubles come in a myriad of sizes...similar to single tank varieties, surprisingly. I could carry two 45s for balance and redundancy and carry less gas than some single tank divers.

Though the OP has indicated no interest in the doubles route. If you are looking for redundancy I'd consider an H-valve for that 120 and be done with it for now.

 

[Gabriel90512]

For the redundancy, doubles come in a myriad of sizes...similar to single tank varieties, surprisingly. I could carry two 45s for balance and redundancy and carry less gas than some single tank divers.

Though the OP has indicated no interest in the doubles route. If you are looking for redundancy I'd consider an H-valve for that 120 and be done with it for now.

im goint to have to do some research on the H-vale .... how would an H valve
help with redundancy.. if the first and 2nd stage dumps out ..