Pony Rigging

[NudeDiver]

OK - for those of you who have been following my pony bottle drama, you know that I got a 19cf bottle with quick draw bracket. Thanks

Now I am trying to figure out how I want to rig it - using this bracket (not gonna sling it this time around). As I see it, options include:

Bottle options

• Bottle right, valve up
• Bottle right, valve down
• Bottle left, valve up
• Bottle left, valve down

Primary Regulator options

• 5' hose
• standard hose
• short hose and necklace

Pony Regulator Options

• short hose and necklace
• standard hose, bungied to pony
• 5' hose, bungied to pony

I can see some pros and cons with all of these. I'll point out my preferred config, explain why, and then listen to what people have to say.

Bottle right - valve down
I know a lot of people put it on the left. However, my thinking is that one day, I may have an argon bottle over there, feeding my drysuit. So, it seems like I should put the pony on the left, if for no other reason than to balance out the argon bottle on the left (which is where I've seen people typically wearing argon bottles). Now - as for valve down - it's easier to reach the valve down there, so why not? The only advantage to valve up that I see is that it would let me have a shorter hose, I guess.

Primary Reg - short hose and necklace
I have an octo configured like this now - I like it. It's just right there. Only reason I can see NOT to do this is because it's not standard (but then, neither is a pony). If I need to provide air to someone, they get the pony reg - which runs counter to the DIR ideal of giving the OOA diver your primary, since it is known to work. I know I'm not running a DIR setup anyway - I'm just pointing that out.

Pony Reg - long hose, bungied to pony
I have a 5' hose that I can use. If I used this hose, I could bungie it to the pony, regulator down. If I needed to deploy, then I reach around, grab the reg, and pull it out - then use it or provide to an OOA diver. If I am using it myself, then I am good to go. Primary reg is already secured via the necklace, and off I go. If I need to pass it off, then once everyone calms down, then I release the quick bracket, and clip bottle to the OOA diver's BC, and then off we go.

I can see issues all the way around - but I'm sure I can benefit from everyone else's perspective. I'd like answers to take two parts.

a). Configuration if solo diving.
b). Configuration if buddy diving.

You may or may not have a difference recommendation for both parts, but if you have the same answer, please explain why. Otherwise, please explain the rationale behind your part a and b answers.

Thanks!
nd

 

[dave4868]

How much time do we have?

Will this be graded on a curve?

(Psst! :cool2: Move your arm so I can see your answers....)

Dave C

 

[DaleC]

ND,
I'm off diving right now but will post back in the evening. In the mean time; How do you release that bracket? It looks like you pull the pins and the ring comes out. If so, how do you hold the pony and pull the pins with one hand (so you can hand it off)and, if you hand it off and it gets handed back, how do you put it back on with one hand?

 

[hlsooner]

I have about 250 dives with one of the Quickdraw brackets. You need only pull one pin and the tank swings free. Both pins are connected by a stainless cable. It is not difficult to reach back and give a tug on the connecting cable and have the tank release free to hand it off. I have done it a number of times.

To your second question, it would be difficult to remount the tank underwater. If I take it back, I just hold it and hand it up to the boat.

 

[FritzCat66]

Then there's also the valve-on vs. valve-off debate.

Either way, and if you plan to open the valve and charge the line at depth, you might also want to invest in a LP relief valve for the first stage on your pony reg. (If you charge the line at depth and then don't breathe the reg, you could end up with an overpressure situation in the low pressure side of your first stage.)

I'm only concerned with the solo configuration - while there's an off chance I might need to remove it and hand it off to someone else, that's not my primary goal with my pony. I tried most of the various possible configurations myself before deciding on: tank-mounted via bag (XS Scuba), left, valve up, valve on, necklaced reg on short Miflex hose routed underarm.

As a photo guy, slinging it always seemed to get in the way or dragged - I work very close to the reef sometimes so generally I need to keep stuff behind me, not in front or to the sides.

If I had to, I could remove it from the bag underwater to hand off to someone by popping two velcro straps and sliding it out, but again it's mostly for me solo. If I handed it off, I could not re-insert it in the bag without great effort and would just have to hold it or drop it.

If I did happen to need to share air with a buddy, handing them the pony is not my plan A. My first plan is to use a long hose on my primary reg (not a cave-long 7', but OW-long 5') for my buddy, while I switch to my Air2 reg. If I had to, however, I could extract the pony and hand it off as mentioned.

Solo, I figure there might also be an entanglement scenario where I need to exit and drop my entire rig - tank, BC, and all - and ascend using the pony alone. As long as I can extract the pony, I should be able to do that, but I still need to practice and test out that hypothesis.

>*< Fritz

P.S. One other little tip: if you happen to get one of those integrated valve/first stage units for your pony (I use the Zeagle Razor), then mount the hose to your second stage in the port immediately above the valve knob. Protects the valve knob from rolling, and makes it easy to find the valve even if you can't see it by just following your hose back.

 

[micklock]

When I used a pony I had the super pony tamer, tank mounted on left side, valve up and always on with the reg bungied around my neck with a spg on a standerd lenght hose. I had an air source so I had three regs but you could take the octo off and just donate your primary and switch to your pony if you don't want three regs or just clip the octo on a dring. The air source did work nice for this set up.

 

[kidsdream]

I have used the quickdraw bracket for many years and hundreds of dives. It is an elegant if not over engineered solution to tank mounting a pony (let's ignore the debate about slinging vs. mounting).

In any case, I normally mount my on the right side valve down. I then route a std OW octo (not a 22" Hogarthian 2nd) hose up against the pony tank (with a band) over my shoulder and then clip it off to my right shoulder D ring - the mouthpiece holder is an elastic band so it can be pulled off by anybody in an emergency. I open the valve before I get in the water, but with the valve down configuration it is easy to reach and open if for some reason I had forgotten to open the valve.

Now if I am diving cold water with a single tanks (I usually dive doubles in the Great Lakes) and I have a canister light on my Right waist, then I mount the pony on the left side valve up. The valve up reason is that my LP hose is not long enough to route on the left side valve down and still reach my RH upper D ring. If I dove this way frequently I would add a longer hose. I move the Right side mount to balance out the weight of the canister and the pony as best I can.

In all cases, I dive with a long hose primary and my back-up (22") bungied around my neck. My first step in an air share would still to be to hand off my working reg, go to my bungied back-up and then go to my pony if requred do to a failure of my primary air system. If then I decide to donate my pony reg (and tank) I can do is smooth controlled manner.

I have about 250 dives with one of the Quickdraw brackets. You need only pull one pin and the tank swings free. Both pins are connected by a stainless cable. It is not difficult to reach back and give a tug on the connecting cable and have the tank release free to hand it off. I have done it a number of times.

To your second question, it would be difficult to remount the tank underwater. If I take it back, I just hold it and hand it up to the boat.

 

[Diveral]

My pony configurations. I've used 2 different ponies. I've got a 50 that I dive slung on the left side of my BC and a 19 that I dive mounted to the right side of my tank. I use the same regulator for both ponies (obviously I don't carry both of them on the same dive). It's a single hose(5') regulator with a button gage. I use 2 bands of sugical tubing to set the regulator up in a quickdraw configuration.

I've tried the 19 both valve up and valve down. I prefer it valve down. I charge the regulator prior to entering the water and then close the valve. It's easily accessible with my right hand to manipulate the valve and pull the reg.

AL