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On Thu, 29 Apr 1999, Simon L Hartley wrote: > I had mistakenly got the impression (probably because most things I've read > about DIR are orientated toward drysuit and cave diving) that using a > harness and wings you ditched the weight belt completely in favour of > concentrating the weight in the backplate (and perhaps tank). Right. There's no sense ditching weight in a cave, it won't get you anywhere but maybe stuck to the ceiling. Backplate and cylinders are chosen to minimize the need for supplimentary weight. Any that is required is in a V-weight. > Wearing 6 pounds on a weight belt seems a better option. However how > does this work with the harness and crotch strap. I don't often gear up in the water, but I do don my weights first and so end up with the weight belt under my crotch strap. If I do need to ditch it, it will end up caught on the crotch strap. But at least that's in a location I can see easily in this configuration, and finishing off the job is no big deal. The whole operation takes maybe 15 seconds. Don't forget, with a single cylinder it is probable that you'll be able to ascend fairly easily by swimming up. Once you get near enough the surface, your wetsuit will begin to regain some of its buoyancy, making the job even easier. These issues become much more critical with double cylinders, in which case the proper choice of cylinder must be made. > How about the issue of which way the buckles release (typically right > hand release for a weight belt, left for BC). If the buckles release > the same way (right hand release also for the DIR harness) then there > is the posibility of confusion (even though the buckles should be in > different places). I realise this may have been covered before on the > list or elsewhere (and that I can try some of this out myself, thought > there are always things that don't occur to you until someone mentions > them and it clicks), any resources I could look up? Hmmm. In this configuration, both my buckles are the same, and they face the same way. But I can easily tell by feel which is which, since the weight belt has weights on it and the backplate harness doesn't. And if I choose the wrong one, I'll know that right away, too, and I can easily correct myself. I can see needing some other "clues" if you're wearing a jacket style BC and can neither see or feel enough of the two belts to distinguish them otherwise. Been there, done that. Never again! Halcyon does sell weight pockets for the harness that have a built-in release mechanism. This would eliminate the separate weight belt and attendant issues. > Does anyone have opinions (what am I saying this is the techdiver > list) about the benefit of retaining weight in the tank for > establishing a stable face up position on the surface (for an > unconcious diver)? Something which seems to be stressed on the > Halcyon web site. I reasoned that a small steel single (leaving 6 > pounds on the belt) would be less complicated than a weight added to > the back of an aluminium tank. As it turns out, with the steel backplate and AL80, I had no trouble on the surface. The key in part is to *not* overinflate the wing. I have not personally tried this with a steel cylinder. -- Art Greenberg artg@ec*.ne* -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
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