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Hello,
Got a quick question about primary light placement. When I did my full cave training back in 1998 we carried our light in our right hand. If the cord was a bit long we made a wrap around our arm. Now I see the light on the left hand, at least for the most part. I understand this would be needed when scootering. But beyond that I'm at a lost as to why.
Can anyone enlighten (get it) me. Thanks, Al
For gosh sakes, it's a light. Use whichever hand you want.
When I am surveying or logging biological data I like the light hand in the left.
Thanks for taking the time to answer my question. Most helpful. AlQuote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
It's the correct answer. Whatever's convenient.Quote:
Originally Posted by Scuba Al
Okay, fair enough. Those that know me know I can be sarcastic, without necessarily being a jerk. But we've never met.Quote:
Originally Posted by Scuba Al
The point is, use whichever hand you like. When I scooter, it's in my left hand. When I swim, it's usually in my right, unless I need to be doing something else with that hand.
If anybody says you MUST hold the light in a given hand, my suggestion would be to politely walk away.
I second thatQuote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
I'm right-handed, but prefer my light on the left unless the situation dictates that I switch it to the right. For me, it seemed more natural on the left hand because I use my right hand to do things; eg, turn the handle on a reel. However, it is strictly user preference.
Thanks all for the replies. I realize that if I'm diving with my light on my right hand, nobody's going to come up to me and ask "What the He**" you doing. Just thought maybe I missed something along the way (wouldn't be the first time).
Thanks again, Al
Id just tell them what the hell Im doing then.I wear my light on my right hand mainly because I dump air from my bc with my left hand.After my initial decent I use my lower dump valve.If Im reeling up,I sometimes switch hands,sometimes I dont.
Yeah....poking yourself in the eye with the light beam while dumping can make for a spotty few minutes of your dive.....Quote:
Originally Posted by stairman
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
Rules are rules for a reason,. so we dont have to re-invent the wheel. If your not doing it right,. your doing it wrong.
Close your eyes :-DQuote:
Originally Posted by Me
Listen.................. That's the sound of me politely walking away.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Thoms
When scootering I have my scooter and light in the right hand. This permits me to adjust buoyancy (either hose or rear dump), check my SPG which is on my left side waist D ring. This provides me a free hand to adjust regs, check stage SPG, check line arrows, etc. without taking my hand off the throttle or shinning the light back in my own face or behind me. It has taken awhile to be able to rotate an "OK" signal while motoring but I have it down now.
Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
ROFLAO-
:D
I switch the light between both hands when swimming. I don't use a goodman handle because it makes this difficult.
When scootering I put my light in my left hand for two reasons: because I like to look around and check the corners as I go by, and because my cord is too short to reach the scooter comfortably (I tuck it into my belt, which probably eats up that last little bit).
How long is your cord? Standard length? I'd like the option to move the light to my right hand for the same reasons you put it there, but like it said - it feels too short.Quote:
Originally Posted by OutlawCaver
It's also the sound of you missing a joke, or maybe this post is the proof of me doing it instead.Quote:
Originally Posted by Slüdge
Either way, the right hand feels more natural to me for whatever reason, probably cause I am left handed so that leaves my dominant hand open to pull, inflate/deflate, etc. I switch when the need arises.
Whenever I'm just swimming, the light is in my right hand. I like having my left free to work my bc/drysuit inflators and my dump valve. Also, if I'm in a low passage, I can wrap the cord around my arm so it doesn't drag. If I'm pulling and gliding, the light is always on the hand that is further from the wall so I don't have alternating light and darkness in front of me every ten seconds. If I have to perform any other function, I usually switch the light to my left hand (messing with stages, placing/collecting spools, et cetera). Ultimately, do what's easiest.
I thought SLUDGE said this better in post #2!Quote:
Originally Posted by Strazz
WJH
DittoQuote:
Originally Posted by Moonfuzzy
Sludge B Right. For me, I find driving the SS easier left handed...that way I can keep the light on the right hand most of the time...and then not change when I'm having to actually swim, heavens forbid.
My light cord is long enough to switch to my left hand or steer the scooter and hold the light in my right. I am curious how a left handed light person dumps BC gas from the rear without taking away light from where they are going, shinning their light in the eyes of those behind them or unclipping/clipping a stage bottle without blinding yourself?
Quote:
Originally Posted by OutlawCaver
I have a pull dump, so I rarely use my rear dump on the BC.
Clipping on a stage I can switch the light to the right hand, and then use my left hand. This means that I can't mess with my stage without getting off the scooter, which I don't really like. I prefer to be ready to drop the stage when we hit the drop point, but se la vi (spelling?).
I have a finger loop on my light that I use to hold it, and it is easy to swap hands and still use all my fingers.
My favorite phrase!! C'est la vie!Quote:
Originally Posted by Moonfuzzy
Light = hand. Whatever.
Mount one on each side of your helmet...look ma, no hands!
Great, Now that's just crazy talk!!!!!:smt101Quote:
Originally Posted by sskasser
On which hand to hold a light The answer is what ever the situation at hand requires. I'll even throw this into the mix, Both hands folded across the chest lighty cradling the light sans Goodman handle.
Good Lord, 29 posts on how to hold a light...Okay, I'll play
When I am setting a spool/reel or writing in my wet notes I take the light off my hand and drape it around the back of my neck, over my left shoulder and let it hang straight down.
Maybe not so often with the reels but for writing in your wet notes...works really well.
i forgot about the craddling it under your chest,.. thats a good one
Wrapping it around your neck to write,.. and when your reeling.. so you wouldnt signal the whole cave. good one..
Hmm,...
can we say,. for the first one- something happens and you drop it,bulbs are not cheap, unless you have a @#*&^ the second one- if your not running through stages. Have not only the cord but your hose/hoses behind your neck too.
the helmet...... where would you place the cords to be streamlined, and but of course be tangle free?
But by placing things in the exact postion time and time again, you will not only be aware of where things are in an emergency,.. but your muscels will hold a memory for the locations.
,.. :smt036
Just some thoughts..
You guys use lights?
Oh , and you just use your SUNNY personnality to light up the Karst world , you betcha dere? :D :D :DQuote:
Originally Posted by SuPrBuGmAn
Darn Panhandlers , always coming up with a different way to do things.
(right hander here)
Da Bean
This is what I was taught, and works well, as it keeps the light from jerking around in different directions which could be construed as an attention signal.Quote:
Originally Posted by mmcauliffe
i use a goodman handle on my left hand, one because im left handed but mostly because when reeling back in at the end of a dive or when ever, i have a smooth beam to guide the way. as opposed to a beam going up and down every time to turn the reel with your right hand. my buddy and i differ on this, case in point, i turned around one dive to see if there was a problem because i thought i saw his light waving from behind, and he had no problem. then on a different dive he was behind and on the exit portion of the dive he wanted to show me something and i ASSummed he was just reeling up and that what was the cause of the jumping light and kinda missed/ignored it. 50' from the exit hole, maybe no big deal, maybe could have been a problem. there was no problem but now i never assume. just a slow day at work and i got time to respond. merry christmas and happy hannukha to all.
NAUI tec says the light goes on the left hand, cannister on right waist belt. the justification is that the right hand needs to be free cause in emergencies it's the one most of us will use to initiate if not solve the problem. lefty i guess should carry the light head on right hand. to do the majority of the work. naturally i discovered pretty quickly that it just gets in the way with clipping and unclipping stages/deco and must be switched to the right hand then.
I was taught, nacd, to put light on right hand with the cord wrapped around the right arm, but to also do whatever I wanted as long as it was thought through and made sense theoretically and experientially (a la sludge). be flexible, don't blindly follow rulzzzzz.
however, this does bring to mind another thing i've been switching up. the wrist compass is affected by the computer and the light/cord. so i've taken to putting it on the left wrist all by itself, with light/cord and computer on the right wrist. when i need a wrist slate it goes on left, next to computer (because I'm a right-handed writer, and the plastic does not affect compass).
anyone other methods to account for compass deviation due to electronics? or would that be hijacking this thread?
just curious,
-skip
What type of computer are you strapping to your forearm??
I dont recall any problems,. when i used a computer.
DR-HE
I strap on a nitek duo and a vr3. carry a backup bottom timer and depth gauge too, but it's in a pocket. the vr3 can spin the index card on the compass, but the nitek duo has no influence at all.Quote:
Originally Posted by Dan Thoms
-skip
Lots of metal in the VR3 case it sure would move a compass. Also there would be a mag field by the cord
I never heard of that,.. im sure that was amusing on the first dive. lol