Pony Bottle setup

[Jorgy]

You have a good point......

So on surfacing from the last dive of a trip or weekend I will do it on the pony.....

That will also give me a better sense of how far 19 CF will go......

Normally, I do it the practice at the safety stop....to help pass the time.....

Your incident makes another point, make sure your pony reg is completely different that you back gas reg......that way you can never mix them up......

M

 

[saudio]

I've been using a pony bottle for many years of solo, photography diving. I see a lot of discussion here about the best size to use, and I gave that a great deal of thought before settling on a 13 cu ft tank.

Obviously, more is better. But in my case, and your mileage may vary, a 13 cu ft was the largest size and weight that was easily manageable for traveling, rigging, and changing from tank to tank on multi-tank dive days. I take the 13 everywhere, and use it on every dive. If it was a 19, and most certainly if it was a 30, I would be tempted to forgo the tank in certain circumstances. It is absolutely useless if it isn't with you on the dive.

No, 13 cu ft is probably not going to get me to the surface, with a 3 minute stop, from 130 feet. But I don't spend too much time at that depth, and really, the tank doesn't have to get me to the surface with a safety stop to save my life. It's got to get me to a depth where I can continue to the surface without air, or it has to get me to the nearest other diver. A 13 will do that.

I back mount mine, with the 1" gauge on the first stage, and check the pressure before every dive. I bungee the second stage around my neck. I use an Atomic Z1 first and second stage.