Should I buy 2x steel HP120 tanks?

[Reku]

I dive singles and I get free air refills and $7 nitrox refills. Is it worth it for me to buy my own tanks in this case? I'm in pensacola FL so tons and TONS of diving everywhere at all times. I own the rest of my own gear - besides a canister - and I don't do caves.....yet. I figure at 6 dives a week I could even out pretty fast. Thoughts?

 

[CptTightPants21]

I assume you get the tank rentals for free or this wouldn't be a question because with that much diving why wouldn't you.

How is your air consumption?

I am a fan of HP100s for single and doubles. They have plenty of air, good size and dimensions, and aren't too heavy on land. I know of one guy that dives hp120s as singles, but he is 6'4 and over 300lbs.

If you have already settled on tank size and this is more of question of should I own or shouldn't I own my own tanks, I will always answer yes. Owning your own tank insures it is well taken care of and give you greater freedom to plan and execute dives away from your home base.

 

[bubble-head]

You'll probably get a ton of opinions on your question but I'll tell you what I did. I started with 2 HP 130 tanks. As I moved in technical diving, I found these ill-suited for the diving I was doing and moved into doubled LP 95's and LP 85's. I reallly, really, love the trim of the LP 85's. These are great tanks as singles and can be doubled up when you transition into caves. If you are thinking of any type of tech diving later on, I recommend getting tanks that you will be able to double up with. Some do this with HP 120's; just make sure you'd be comfortable climbing up with them on a pitching and rolling boat ladder.

 

[kwinter]

A true HP120 is about the size of an aluminum 80. Same diameter and only an inch or 2 taller. I used to dive them as doubles. You will have no problem diving them as singles. The guy that needs to be 6'4" and 300 pounds must be diving LP120s. They are huge. Larger diameter, much taller, and weigh a ton. HP120s would still be my tank of choice for OC singles diving.

But if you get rental tanks for free for all your local diving, you may not want to bother getting your own tanks and have to deal with hydro and visual inspections. The only benefit is the convenience factor.


iPhone. iTypo. iApologize.

 

[CptTightPants21]

A true HP120 is about the size of an aluminum 80. Same diameter and only an inch or 2 taller. I used to dive them as doubles. You will have no problem diving them as singles. The guy that needs to be 6'4" and 300 pounds must be diving LP120s. They are huge. Larger diameter, much taller, and weigh a ton. HP120s would still be my tank of choice for OC singles diving.

But if you get rental tanks for free for all your local diving, you may not want to bother getting your own tanks and have to deal with hydro and visual inspections. The only benefit is the convenience factor.


iPhone. iTypo. iApologize.

No. The standard 3442 faber. A 120 is 3.5 inches taller than an aluminum. A faber 120 weighs 39lbs vs 34 for the hp100 and 32 for al80. 5lb might not sound like a lot, but throw on all the other gear and potentialy double them up and it is a nice chunk of change.

If you are talking about PST or Worthington 120s then that is a little bit shorter, but are not longer made new, so you would have to find them used.

 

[Littlerayray]

You can never go wrong with having your own gear and you can never go wrong with having to much air I dive with a Faber 116 hp and a steel 108lp I like the 108 cuz it has a smaller diameter but it is longer got it off a friend cuz she is short and the tank was hitting the back of her legs the hp 116 feels a little sloppy it feels like it wants to roll on my back but I do get longer dives with it and I notice the lenght

 

[luscioman]

I had a HP Faber 120 and it was to tall for me to dive with. It would brush up against the back of my legs. It was also a hassle to get it to fit on certain dive boats.

 

[tbone1004]

the only true HP120's were made by Asahi and most commonly PST. They are quite tall, about 2" taller than a standard AL80. AL80's are too tall for most divers actually, and if you are in a standard jacket BCD, with normal tank positioning then you won't like them. They work fine with BP/W's where the valve is up behind your head if you're over 6' tall, ideally around 6'3" or taller.

The e7-120's by Worthington are the same height, by PST they are half an inch taller. The Faber FX120's are an inch taller than that and net about 3" taller than an AL80, not including any extra height added by the boot.

If you're over 6', and have a BP/W or your BCD will allow you to move the bottle up to behind your head where it belongs, then go for it. If not, then the E8-119's might be a better option in that size range.

 

[Bob DBF]

I dive singles and I get free air refills and $7 nitrox refills. Is it worth it for me to buy my own tanks in this case? I'm in pensacola FL so tons and TONS of diving everywhere at all times. I own the rest of my own gear - besides a canister - and I don't do caves.....yet. I figure at 6 dives a week I could even out pretty fast. Thoughts?

For me it would depend on what size tanks were provided and how much air I'm planning on using. I picked up a couple of Faber MP 120's ( 3180# with + 3498#), and use them as singles and mainly on deep dives because I will get too cold in my wetsuit on a shallow long dive where I live. Also it doesn't hurt to have "extra" air when you go deep.

It is not clear whether the tanks are available free because you are on a boat trip, or all the time. I do a lot of shore diving so an included tank on a boat trip really doesn't help me. Also the SoCal boats I go on require you bring your own tank or rent one.



Bob

 

[JohnN]

the only true HP120's were made by Asahi and most commonly PST.

Almost, I have a pair of Asahi(s) HP120's and a pair of Norris HP120's. Both with 300 bar valves and are nearly identical in height