Saving money on a weight harness

[rhwestfall]

A few years back we (SB community) lost a "rock star" of a diver who drown when she didn't remove her weight. Brown stuff happens, and you want to put yourself in the best opportunity to handle it in the easiest way.

Your reasons are parallel to saying that because you have never been in a car accident, you shouldn't need a seat belt...

Think it through, and be safe.

 

[Gary Shepard]

No problem here, it's your boat and your rules.

 

[rhwestfall]

unsubscribing...

 

[jale]

moved my post to 'non diving"

 

[dm9876]

Just a voice if encouragement here. Thanks for sharing your project don't mind the naysayers. As long as you are appropriately weighted to begin with and especially since you have some form of redundancy of buoyancy in the drysuit then I endorse it.

 

[Doctor Rig]

I started purchasing equipment to go to doubles. I'm using new and used to get there and save money. But when looking for a weight harness and pockets I thought the price was too high.

I go to eBay and purchase the Trident 5 pocket weight belt for 13 bucks and the WB80 Black weight suspenders for 20.

I received them both yesterday. The pockets are sewn to the belt. So I had to come up with a way to attach the back of the suspenders.

I'm happy with the way it came out. And I have about 35 bucks into it.

Nice job on your DIY belt and thanks for sharing your efforts!

I enjoy DIY projects like you, and recently have been tinkering with the idea of making a weight belt harness. Like others have mentioned, I added the criteria of quick release to my DIY build ideas. I‘m not settled on a final design concept yet, but I’m intrigued with the “Hydrotech Weight Harness” concept which could be incorporated into what you’ve done so far. The Hydrotech Harness utilizes a cable to attach the harness to the belt. To dump the belt weights the diver pulls the cable and then opens the belt buckle.

One of the DUI weight harnesses also uses a cable release but the Hydrotech cable system is much simpler. The DUI cable harness has been around for a while, so the design is proven, but the Hydrotech is not readily available today, so I’m wondering if there were any problems with the design. (Hydrotech has on limited distribution in England, if I remember correctly.)

If you try something like this with your belt, keep us informed, as I’d like to hear how it worked.



PS If anyone has experience with the Hydrotech quick release weight belt, I’d love to hear about it.

 

[Dark Wolf]

The Hydrotech is an interesting approach, thanks for sharing! The only issue I possibly see, is if you are using a BP/W.

DW

 

[JamesBon92007]

There could be a problem that I would need to dump. But going back to 1981 till now I have many dives and the only problem I have encountered with weights is when you snag something and accidently drop it.

I'm not a panic type person. It would be very simple to cut the pocket and drop. Yes it may take me 5 to 10 seconds more, maybe. If 5 to 10 seconds is my life span, then I waited far too long.

About the only reason I would need to drop is because my wing died and I'm sinking. But them I just air up my dry suit and to the top I go.

I dove for 50 years without ever getting into a situation where I might need to drop weight. Last year, while waiting for my buddy to equalize and start to descend, my BC failed to hold air and I was kicking very hard to stay up. I'm weighted to where I'm barely negative at the end of a dive at the safety stop with no air in my BC. My buddy finally descended but by then I was so tired that I signaled the boat captain and aborted. I considered dumping weights but either way I was going to miss the dive. I'm just saying, sometimes the unexpected can happen.

 

[johndiver999]

If you have been diving for almost 40 years and you see no benefit in being able to ditch lead quickly in an emergency, then I doubt anyone on the internet is going to change your mind.

Good luck, I hope your last dive is not a really, really long one.

 

[Gary Shepard]

If I'm going deep maybe, but I have a wing and a dry suit with each one on different regs. I look at it as riding into a state where there is no helmet law. There is no question its safer to keep the helmet on than not. But when I cross that state line, the helmet is coming off.

It's a guess at the moment but I believe I will only need 4 to 6 pounds. I know people that are close to that in trim pockets. How do they drop them?

I respect everyone on here and appreciate the responses.