Twin Tanks

[mddolson]

There are a few back mount BCD's that adapt to Doubles (OMS & Diverite for example).
I tried the DR transpack, but ended up with a backplate set up. (more stable & rugged)
I am not familiar with the scubapro t-black.
An isloation manifold & redundant regulator is IMHO the way to go.

Mike D

 

[TSandM]

Craig, what are you hoping to get out of diving doubles? Are you gas limited for the dives you are doing? Or are you looking for greater redundancy?

Frequently, gas limitations are better served by simply getting a larger tank. HP130s (I don't know how that translates into metric, sorry) are very popular on the West Coast for this reason. You would obviously be able to mount a larger tank on the BC you have.

If you are interested in redundancy, you might consider slinging a pony bottle, before going to a full set of doubles.

If you are doing deep dives where you are gas limited AND need redundancy, then doubles are a good answer. But manifolded doubles only really offer you true redundancy once you have learned to do valve shutdowns. Until you can do them, the doubles are really one big tank (that weighs 100 pounds, and wants to put you on your nose ).

Doubles are heavy and have a LOT of mass, and I can't imagine diving them without the rigid support of a backplate, although I know people do it. But if the cost of upgrading your BC is an issue, consider the cost of the doubles with manifold and bands, and the cost of another set of regulators as well. Gear costs really start to mount up!

I do concur with everybody else, that at the very least, you need to get with some folks who are diving manifolded doubles, and get some mentoring. You might find some folks near you on DIR Diving . That is, of course, only one flavor of diving doubles or doing technical diving, but it's the resource I know and can refer you to.

 

[gbray]

I am pretty much a self taught doubles diver. I read all I could about it and watched all the you tube dir videos and dove with a few others who had doubles. there is quite a bit af difference between one tank and two on your back. I have a back plate and wing and would not recommend diving doubles without one. Make sure you have a reliable buddy with you. I borrowed a set of HP100 doubles from a friend to try and some how got the manifold caught on the buoy line to the training platform. While I had plenty of air and several options to get untangled my wife finally came to my rescue, how embarrassing it was.

Do your home work and prepare yourself mentally and with proper gear before diving and it will be a great experience (not to mention it looks really cool having a set of doubles on). good luck.