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On Mon, 20 Aug 2001 21:08:18 -0400, you wrote: >Around here we usually dive >with the boat attached to the wreck with varying amounts of current and >don't have the time to screw around on the surface. Around here we dive with usually nothing but a strong current and have less time to dick around than you do. You have time to fumble with stuff and then leisurely follow the anchor. >While the tow harness seen on cave expeditionary scooters are great for the >long haul they are a pain for this use. With the scooter clipped off at the >shroud you have instant access to the unit without having to position it >first. How often have you tried this? We did 4 drops to 250+ this weekend several last weekend, and dozens of others over the past few months. The scooters that we use are Gavins and the cord length is enough to have it at arms length. When exiting the boat, it is clipped in and being held by one hand. Hit the water and it is just as immediately available. >With a D/A it can actually pull you sideways from the waist if you >want. In this case the forward mounted handles of the Dacor are an asset. This leads to the question of ....why? Doing something like this is going to strain the motor and start killing the batteries. >But if you are doing a long cruise, like in a cave, the tow line is superior >for comfort, but this is usually not the case with wreckers. We use the >scooter in short bursts to hop around to different parts of the wreck. The tow cord is just as much an asset as anything else, if not more. When you don't need the scooter and want to be close to the bottom (i.e. looking for artifacts or lobster) then you do not want them damn thing under you continuously dragging. My scooter is just barely positive in saltwater and I will just move it to the side until it is needed. I want something that is not going to be in the way but provides the burn time and depth I need. When you start keeping it in close, you are going to start getting all kinds of crap caught in the props, even with the damn guard. Just ask JT. Keeping the tow cord too short also ads a hell of a lot more drag. >The single battery of A/D makes it lightweight enough to be an attached part >of your gear. It's no problem to change batteries between dives, in fact >that is preferable to carrying 2 or more batteries at once, having to hump >these batteries on and off the dive boat. As far as pulling power I have no >problem hauling all my stuff plus another tech diver behind me with an A/D, >and have done it several times. Single battery of the Gavin short tube provides me with more than an hours burn time. You're getting too short a burn time since you're drawing a hell of a lot more amps literally dragging yourself around. Don't short change yourself. The short cords and short battery life becomes too much of a liability for anything more serious than 60 foot reef dives. When doing that dive, I'll pull out a Torpedo or my old Mako. Anything else, then you need what works. -- Things I'd Do If I Ever Became An Evil Overlord: 222: I reserve the right to execute any henchmen who appear to be a little too intelligent, powerful, or devious. However if I do so, I will not at some subsequent point shout "Why am I surrounded by these incompetent fools?!" -- Send mail for the `techdiver' mailing list to `techdiver@aquanaut.com'. Send subscribe/unsubscribe requests to `techdiver-request@aquanaut.com'.
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