'Pony' Bottle...

[paddler3d]

I first want to say that the folks on the 'solo' group have overwhelmingly been the most helpful and polite on ScubaBoard.

I've been doing more diving off of Ocean City, DE and NJ. Conditions are typically mediocre and the chances of loosing your buddy are way too high. For X-mass I asked Santa for a big *** pony bottle...one that down the road I wouldn't be looking at it and thinking I wish got something bigger.

So with that I got a big *** pony bottle, or a stage/deco bottle. It is an AL-40. I'm looking at it a hopping I didn't go too big. Anyway...

I have it rigged as a stage bottle with its own SPG, 1st and 2nd stage, SS clips that can be cut away, so on so forth.

Now here is my question...

What side does one typically carry this on?

I'm right handed and my knee jerk reaction is on my right, however there may be a very specific reason why one should carry it on your left.

I'm open to suggestions.

Thanks a million!

 

[divemaster_jim]

Let me be the first to say what a can o'worms you opened up here lol
Having said that I"d sling it on your left side free from your other regs, Personally I'd go with doubles. But a 40 can and does have it's uses.
Either way you go with it, get lots of practice with it.

 

[pir8]

I don't think you ever carry too much gas with you. Personally my pony 40 is attached with a bottle buddy to my steel 120. If I'm doing my doubles then I will sling a stage on my left side. You don't say what kind of buoyancy reg you are diving, I'll guess BP&W with a bunch of D rings.

 

[TomP]

40ft may seem big for a pony bottle but its very common as a deco bottle. its a good choice.

I wear mine on the left side and generally find that more common than the right. Be mindful that, with a few exceptions, most regulators are 'right handed' so if you put the bottle on the left you'd route the hose behind your head and then over your right shoulder. You may want to try that in a controlled environment to ensure proper rigging, hose length, etc...

 

[Cheekymonkey]

I wear mine on my right side attached to the tank rigidly. But from what I understnad ifyour in doubles you are much more likely to have a better time if you sling it rather then putting it on your back.

 

[Dive-aholic]

Pony on the left. I dive long hose and even though you can route the hose so that it easily pulls away, it's still easier with the pony on the left. In doubles with multiple stage and deco bottles, you may sling on the right, depending on how you're trained and what you prefer. I typically sling the tanks I drop off on the right (in caves) and the stage bottles on the left.

 

[dirtpoor]

I dive with a 30 cube attached to my main bottle using an x bracket. I have it mounted on my right shoulder and it is treated as a complete redundant system, 1st & 2nd stage with its own spg. The x bracket is not something I would recomend as it allows the pony to be a bit sloppy, and you have to undo the cam strap every day at the conclusion of dive operations to get it clear of your BCD. I jam the rubber strap on my cam strap to take away the slack and thus secure the pony tight to my shoulder where it doesn't "clang".

I do commercial sea urchin harvesting and need both hands free at all times to be able to work and cannot have a bottle slung at the side as it would get in the way, so thus the back mount (doubles like).

There is no better feeling than knowing that ya got at least 5 minutes of gas in reserve for those holy ***** things that can happen at the end of a dive.

Cheers

Sandy

 

[dirtpoor]

Just a ps to the last post.

When the weather permits I do between 4 - 6 dives on 80cube tanks a day, depends on depth and endurance. Every dive is a solo dive. So far in 2006 I have over 100 such dives logged. Some think we are crazy and they may be rite!!!

Sandy

 

[Cheekymonkey]

Just out of curiosity where do you do the harvesting?

 

[SwimJim]

As for the side, as your right handed your left side is going to make the most sense if you sling it. If it's a matter of losing a buddy in low viz conditions, why not use a buddy line? If your buddy diving and you lose your buddy you are supposed to surface anyway right? Better to have a line on him or her on a leash then have to surface. Just my 2 cents.

jim