shooting smb from depth

[gbray]

I have practiced using a smb with a finger reel and it is not difficult. I have recently tried using a small cave type reel in preparation for my ANDP class and find it to be a whole different situation. I am not sure how to hold it and almost got tangled trying to exhaust air into my smb ( as opposed to using my secondary reg). when it gets enough air in it it tries to take me with it before I can situate the reel which I am trying to hold away from me so I don't get in the way.
Can someone tell me the correct procedure for this or give me a you tube link to see how it is done?

Thanks
G

 

[MauiScubaSteve]

For me 50' is a good depth; the reel is clipped off to a chest d-ring and "locked" open, I am upright and negative enough to require gentle finning, holding fill valve in left hand. Quit finning, take good size breath, remove reg, blow in valve while "looking" up, as soon as bag starts to lift me; release bag, replace reg, exhale completely, deflate BC as needed, release reel "lock" and "reel" to desired depth.

After Red Hill Drift it is shallower and I am sometimes lighter, having given up more weights than the extras I started with, but for that one you can easily start off by "kneeling on the bottom" with a fully deflated BC.

 

[ThomasScherrer]

isolate the tasks, train them in details seperatly, when you get better, combine tasks,
this trick goes with anything astually

 

[DevonDiver]

I have practiced using a smb with a finger reel and it is not difficult. I have recently tried using a small cave type reel in preparation for my ANDP class and find it to be a whole different situation. I am not sure how to hold it and almost got tangled trying to exhaust air into my smb ( as opposed to using my secondary reg). when it gets enough air in it it tries to take me with it before I can situate the reel which I am trying to hold away from me so I don't get in the way.

Why do you need a wreck reel, to deploy a DSMB on your ANDP course?

Just get a bigger capacity finger spool....

 

[Deefstes]

For me 50' is a good depth; the reel is clipped off to a chest d-ring and "locked" open...

Would this be common practice? I'm not familiar with the type of reel you're referring to but I get chills down my spine thinking of clipping anything onto me that I'm about to fill with air. I might understand the reel completely wrong but to me the risk of it jamming in some way and yanking me topside just seems too much of a concern.

 

[DevonDiver]

Would this be common practice? I'm not familiar with the type of reel you're referring to but I get chills down my spine thinking of clipping anything onto me that I'm about to fill with air.

No...it damned idiotic.

Specifically warned against by most major agencies and any reputable instructor.


Terrible advice for a recreational diver, but as advice to a ANPD prepared technical diver (doing deco),..along with "kneeling on the bottom", it shows a complete lack of safety awareness and a major experience deficit in the demands/standards of advanced diving.

 

[miketsp]

Since I only occasionally use an SMB I looked for a method that has less risks.
So I fill the SMB in 2 stages.
First I transfer the air that's in my BC to the SMB using the hose dump - this has the advantage that you stay neutral while the smb becomes buoyant and you get the line and spool organized ready for its release.
Then top off the SMB, release it and then complete the BC.
If anything goes wrong during the release you have the advantage that you are negative and will not get dragged up very fast.

I found that if you start filling the SMB directly from a reg you need to be quite practiced because once you get some air into it you will start going up. By initially filling from the BC you can take as much time as you need to get organized.

 

[rongoodman]

In my AN/DP course I had good luck with the a Halcyon lift bag and reel. One hand to hold the reel, the other to press the drysuit hose fitting together with the valve on the bag--a blast of air lasting a second or so, and the bag is away. Easy enough to do flat in mid-water, no need for kneeling on the bottom or having my buddy hold me down!

 

[Levigarrett]

For me 50' is a good depth; the reel is clipped off to a chest d-ring and "locked" open, I am upright and negative enough to require gentle finning, holding fill valve in left hand. Quit finning, take good size breath, remove reg, blow in valve while "looking" up, as soon as bag starts to lift me; release bag, replace reg, exhale completely, deflate BC as needed, release reel "lock" and "reel" to desired depth.

After Red Hill Drift it is shallower and I am sometimes lighter, having given up more weights than the extras I started with, but for that one you can easily start off by "kneeling on the bottom" with a fully deflated BC.

I'm not terribly experienced and I'm not willing to say that you're wrong but I think this practice raises some significant warning flags. In attaching the SMB to your body, you're throwing the possibility of an uncontrolled ascent into the mix. While you may have been able to successfully deploy your SMB this way, I'd venture to guess that anyone attempting your procedure for the first time will not manage to pull it off so gracefully. I think most of us would find ourselves hurling toward the surface should something not go according to plan.

I think a finger spool is the way to go. It's easy to deploy and you can always just let it go if buoyancy becomes an issue.

 

[down4fun]

First off as has been said never clip the reel off to yourself when deploying an SMB. Start practicing in shallow water where the penalty for screwing up is less. In my AN/DP we shot bags in 15-20 feet of water to begin with and then worked our way deeper. Get yourself comfortable, you buoyancy stable, get you SMB and reel out, connect the two if they aren't already, pull out a few feet of line and put a small puff of air into the bag, this will cause the bag to stand without deploying yet an get it out of your way for the rest of the fill and gives you a second or two to open the reel once filled. At this point you have all the time in the world. check above you for obstructions, check with your buddy that you are both ready, then, when you are ready fill the bag/SMB open the reel (release the lock) and let her go. Keeping everything out in front of you and untangled is paramount. If the the reel tangles for some reason you are clear to just let go and lose the reel and not your life. Having an experienced buddy to watch you helps and provides safety. I also have a z knife on my wrist, god forbid i fudge up and become entangled its a quick pull and slice to set myself free.