Vintage divers... no BC?

[MaxBottomtime]

There are still plenty of divers doing it the simpler way.
http://diver.net/backpack_divers/

 

[victor]

I forgot to mention that along with no BC we had no second, no SPG, no computers, no inflators or exhaust on the dry suits and did fine even with 1/4" Farmer Johns. But we did have the mega big snot blasters in some of the masks.

And guess what? We survived. It's a good relaxing way to dive. We didn't have a bunch of crap to worry about. You just dove and payed attention to the tables. When you got cold or it got hard to breathe you came up, simple as that.

Gary D.

When it got hard to breathe you reach behind you and puul the wire to your J-Valve, then started your controlled ascent following your bubles to the surface.

Single second stage, no preasure guage, manual inflator on a toilet ring. Last time I used one of those was in the Canaries in the early 90's. Very scray after I had been re-certified in Germany with BC, primary and secondary, depth guage, computer.

However I am tempted to slim down my system for recreational diving. Diveskin, hoseless air preasure guage, BP and tank, primary and secondary, inflatable dive float in a pocket. Very tempting for shallow reefs.

 

[Sharky1948]

Yep... First dive in 1964 (fearlessly and stupidly 16 years old.) No BC, no SPG, and no J-valve. Oh, and no c-card. My buddy and I read Skin Diver Mag and watched Sea Hunt. Just ascend slower than your smallest bubble. NDL? Who knew what that meant? No boat either...just a several hundred yard swim to the reef off of Lauderdale-By-The-Sea. Double hose Aqualung. How did I know proper weighting? The guy in the rental shop guessed. You knew it was time to come up because the reg started breathing hard.

But, we had lots of fun and survived. Why I'm not sure! But, I got hooked! 42 years later, still at it.

ps. Don't try this at home. :no We're what you call idiots!

 

[Gary D.]

When it got hard to breathe you reach behind you and puul the wire to your J-Valve, then started your controlled ascent following your bubles to the surface.

Single second stage, no preasure guage, manual inflator on a toilet ring. Last time I used one of those was in the Canaries in the early 90's. Very scray after I had been re-certified in Germany with BC, primary and secondary, depth guage, computer.

However I am tempted to slim down my system for recreational diving. Diveskin, hoseless air preasure guage, BP and tank, primary and secondary, inflatable dive float in a pocket. Very tempting for shallow reefs.

I started at 14 in 1962.

I still have my first four real SCUBA tanks that weren't stolen fire extingushers. :shakehead

My twin 72's (8-1968) have a solid manifold with a "J" valve but my 2 single 72's (3-1959 & 7-1958) have "K" valves. I even have my first DIY backpack that gets used once in a while.

I used that stuff at work right up to around 1990 when it all got retired to sport only. Then I started using a suit I could blow up and vent and one of those BC things that spends more time getting in the way than anything else. It is rarely used even today.

And don't forget hauling butt going down (I still do that) and 60 fpm assents without a safety stop. How did we survive that?

And panty hose were a divers best friend when they came onto the scene. Yes, real men wore panty hose. Just put them on in the car.

Did you ever blow some bubbles into the Farmer John for a bit better control?

Back then diving was not gear intensive like it is today and we were taught to be self-sufficient from day one. There was no guarantee the gear was going to work 100% of the time and it didn’t. Failures used to be somewhat common and today they are rare.

Gary D.

 

[Charlie99]

And don't forget hauling butt going down (I still do that) and 60 fpm assents without a safety stop. How did we survive that?

Let's see now. Thin, rubber, or non-existent wetsuit so you get chilled quickly. No buoyancy compensation so you are finnng all the time to maintain depth. Oh, and probably chasing fish around with a spear gun.

There are some reasons why dives were short and the old rule of "you can't get bent on a single 72" usually worked.

 

[Nemrod]

Picure above by David Haas, professional photographer and occasional vintage diver--lol. In the lead is Nemrod followed by friend.

Ouote:

"Nemrod uses a twin hose from his avatar, I would not recommend them although they do work.They are a pain to clear if flooded and because of the distance between the reg and your mouth can freeflow or be heavy to breathe depending on you position.
The modern second stage is a definite step forward.However I have never tried a re-breather."

Not true--mostly urban legend, the hoses do not flood because there are cage valves beside the mouthpiece that prevent this, in the early days they did not have this feature and thus the continuation of this "legend." Twin hose regulators are extremely reliable, simple, maintenacnce free and do not freeze, breath quietly and smoothly, no bubbles in face, the mouthpiece is weightless and are just plain fun. The second stage being sealed is partly the reason for the low required maintenance. They are mechanically simple, use only one or two O rings and are robustly built using METAL and not plastic which is why they can last for decades with little maintenance. They can breath different but all regulators are position sensitive, double hose are more so. Nontheless, not all double hose are born equall anymore so than modern regulators. A good Royal Aqua Master, for example, when tuned by an expert can perform on par with any modern plasticfantastic and with no noisy bubbles in your face. In Europe they are called "twin hose" but in the USA they are called "double hose."

Back to no BC diving. Reading several posts about "finning like crazy" etc---OK--if your finning like crazy you may be diving without a BC but your not doing with correct methods or you would not be "finning like crazy."--lol.

The plastic back plate works OK but the cloth harness I showed is the best as it becomes weightless and transparent underwater (with a steel 72). The idea is to develop the needed skills to maintain reasonable neutral bouyancy by breath control, equipment selection, weighting.

In the early days scuba divers were called "Lungers" and the tank was called a "Lung", in the 60s they came to be called "tanks" and now it is fashionable to refer to tanks as "cylinders"--whatever--lol.


I am always being told I cannot dive without a BC and maintain neutrality, those who have told me that in real life have had it demonstrated to them. The freedom, streamlining is great fun. You can swimfaster, manuver three dimensionally and it is just plain fun, traditional scuba diving is great.
N
NAVED Master Dive 111

 

[Rick Murchison]

My favorite kind of diving is still with a single 72, no wetsuit, no weights, no "octopus," no BC... I do carry a gas gauge now though
I'm surprised none of you west-coasters have mentioned drop weights...
Rick

 

[Nemrod]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YZES-rix6yM

LOL, check it out, notice the regulators and no BC divers. Of course, it is TV commercial so I don't think we should use it as a "How To" but I thought it funny.

Don't need no stink'n BC.

N

 

[cudachaser]

My first dive was in 1964...I was a jr lifeguard at a quarry lake in New Jersey. Head life guard had a scuba rig and I came across depth gage he really liked...Traded me lessons for the gage. First lessson was on his Healtthways single staged double hose with a dacor "D Pack" harness (Rememner how to do the quick release buckles?) He had his 2nd in command lifeguard row me out to the middle of the lake...for safety, Andy tied a rope around my waist...told me that he would pull me up he didn't see any bubbles!

Anyway, 42 years later I'm still just as excited diving...certfied 100's of new divers since that time!

 

[Stu S.]

BC? If you start to get a bit light down there, pick up a rock and swim with it. Worked for me.