40 replies to this topic

[Dantheengineer]

Actually in Britain the "D" stands for "Delayed" - ie. you send it up from the bottom (on a line fed from a reel). A decent one has ample buoyancy for use as an ascent platform. Our convention is red for a normal ascent, and yellow if you have a problem and want help.

I don't think the OMS one quite reaches 16ft long!

I had to check the OMS website - and was amazed to find out they do in fact have one that's 16'

BCA - 268-16
SMB/Float
with SOLAS Reflective Tape and Oral inflator
16' (488 cm) L

I HAVE to have one. Talk about compensating for my equipment shortcomings.

Seriously tho! that's quite a lot of air to you'd be using to deploy submerged. And one hell of allot of lift to play with mid water! Mind you i have heard of BSAC divers using lift bags as DSMB's.

I like the CD idea! Do they play ok after?

[ScubaShafer]

The CDs don't play well when wet, that's why you need the underwater iPod to keep you entertained while being rescued (extra batteries not included).

Food for thought: Erect SMBs are great for boat rescues, but a 16' deflated SMB laying on the surface is much easier to spot from Search and Rescue aircraft if you are asleep or delirious and unable to use a signaling mirror. A surface dye marker makes it even easier for aircraft to locate you within a huge ink spot.

[Dantheengineer]

Hey Bruce!
Do my legs remain that day glo green for the next few weeks post rescue?
It'd save on the laudry bill if people thought i was already wearing cloths! (Sorry!)

Seriously, does any one do a dive ink in a depth rated water proof box type thing?
I got ink granuals from a boating flare kit, but i reckon with my luck (or just coz i got bored!) It might achieve release early.

Mmmmm......new idea for the "dive prank" thread. A pocket full of that'd cheer you buddy RIGHT up!

[SeaSeeker]

I, too, have nice big pockets in my BC. So, I have to watch not to overload them.
I do seem to be adding more and more "just in case" things as I go on more dive trips, and a couple of live aboards with specific lists of safety gear they require. So, I have:

a dive alert air horn on my inflator hose
a safety sausage
a good old-fashioned whistle
a dive light in my bc pocket
a strobe that lives in my bc pocket when I'm not on a night dive with attached to my tank
and my snorkel (I see lots of divers without a snorkel and I've actually been teased about having it, but it just might be important if I'm stuck on the surface for any length of time).

Thanks for the CD tip - I'll add a couple to the dive gear.

And, back on the topic of the snorkel....
I was on a dive the first week of January that was just stupid because the current was so strong.
I should have been forewarned when they made us roll off the zodiak holding a line, which we then used to pull ourselves to an anchor line.
The anchor line was pulled to a rather horizontal angle, and we had to go down the line hand over hand. I have no idea how strong the current really was, but we were all whipping on that line like flags and we could barely pull ourselves down the line. I got rope burn. And it was a short dive.
Anyway, I share this story (of the one bad dive on an otherwise amazing trip!) because my favorite Cuda dry snorkel got ripped off my mask in the current. I bet it is half-way to Fiji by now.
I noticed a couple of divers on this trip that had their snorkel strapped to their calf with a couple of tidy straps. This, I thought, was a good idea. It would keep the snorkel from being in the way of my inflator hose/purge and seems more secure. When I replace my snorkel, I'll be getting some calf straps for it.

And, great topic! Thanks D-Don for starting it.

[Cold_H2O]

Wouldn't it be best to find your way back to shore knowing what direction your headed using a compass? If you follow the compass heading out you will find land right? That's my guess.

If you are diving in The Flower Gardens (Gulf of Mexico) you are a lot of miles from shore. No way you could swim back even if you tried.
Coming from a place that had killer currents (Seattle WA) ~ its exhausting to try and swim against them and sometimes almost impossible.

[Jerrymxz]

Seriously, does any one do a dive ink in a depth rated water proof box type thing?
I got ink granuals from a boating flare kit, but i reckon with my luck (or just coz i got bored!) It might achieve release early.

OMS lists a dye marker in a 330 foot rated tube

[Dantheengineer]

Seriously tho! that's quite a lot of air to you'd be using to deploy submerged. And one hell of allot of lift to play with mid water! Mind you i have heard of BSAC divers using lift bags as DSMB's.

This is the sort of thing i was worrying about.

http://www.yorkshire...b-incident.html

I like the idea of the self inflating DSMB. Expensive but cheaper'n a funeral!
Lost at sea, bad enuff. Lost AND bent? Even I wouldn't find THAT funny!!!

http://shop.scuba.co...l-Cylinder.html

If you could stand the grief from the TSA for the suicide bottle.

Wasnt there some kind of brightly coloured ribbon like Bruce describes that was for surface deployment and would remain "rolled" out and floating?

And thanks jerry! http://www.scuba.com...Dye-Marker.html

I'm still not sure i trust myself. I bloody know my buddy wont.

[DiverBabs]

Wasnt there some kind of brightly coloured ribbon like Bruce describes that was for surface deployment and would remain "rolled" out and floating?

Yes, there is... I have one of these. I have actually tested it deployed on the surface and it will float nicely. More for visibility from the air, but the boat was able to spot it as well since we were in large rollers.

http://www.rescuestr...m/viewdemo.html

View the demo to see how it works.....

Edited by DiverBabs, 26 January 2010 - 08:24 PM.

[peterbj7]

I like the idea of the self inflating DSMB.

If you could stand the grief from the TSA for the suicide bottle.

These are ideal for use with a CCR, as you don't have a spare reg or much spare gas. But I tried to carry one in my checked luggage and TSA confiscated it.

[Dantheengineer]

Bummer Peter. Those things aren't cheap. I'm told you can remove the valve and "tape" over the hole for travel purposes. But frankly, if i'm nervous about my twist on/off flashlight O ring failing, i'd be really annoyed at a small 200 Bar "failure" at my left kidney half way thru a dive.
(I do, however, have a bottle on my BC that travels in the hold without incident so far. Shhhh!)

Thanks for the streamer link Ms Babs. That's exactly what i was wittering on about.

As far as Strobes go has any one had a play with a GloToob? I'm not sure they're too bright but they're rated to eleven and a half thousand feet so they should be hard wearing.

http://www.glo-toob.com/main.html

Also has any one heard of a SART (Search And Rescue Transponder) which looks a bit handy.

http://en.wikipedia....cue_Transponder

Or will a PLB do this anyway?

With all this gear and all these depth rated boxed you'd have thought we should be able to loose some lead.

[Jerrymxz]

As far as Strobes go has any one had a play with a GloToob?
http://www.glo-toob.com/main.html

I have a Glo Toob but it isn't bright enough to use as a rescue device. I use it as a tank marker on reduced vis dives. it is about the size of a chapstick.