Single versus dual bladder wings

[Webmaster]

It wasn't *that* long ago that everyone dove without flotation. I swear I done seen James Bond do it. Just don't stop swimming.

Of course then they graduated to Clorox bottles right?

[Walter Pickel]

For some reason I am laughing at the image produced by your description...

I was afraid of that!

Eric and I are meeting you guys Saturday...Have fun Friday night. Have you dove that sytem? IT IS A BLAST!

[Walter Pickel]

An intersting tid-bit. Larry Green hauled [Jim] McIntyre out of the Lockwood Tunnel (Eagle's Nest) after his BC took a crap. Actually, Larry found him "IN" the silt. [Jim] couldn't move because he had no inflation (diving wet) and the BC was done.

This story was on OLN last year -- #17 Deadliest Place on Earth -- Eagle's Nest.

Next time you are diving Lockwood, look at the cave floor right about when the line goes up in the ceiling; you will see a trench. Of course, you can always ask Larry about it and he will gladly recount that story.

So, with respect to crawling out, in some systems, the silt is too deep to get any firm footing. You can get stuck in the silt!

[OneBrightGator]

IMO, if I felt I needed redundant buoyancy then I would use two completely seperate wings, if something tears through my outer bladder and rips the inner bladder it will probably rip both inner bladders. I do like the idea of using a smaller second wing.

I haven't encountered this yet in my diving, so it's not completely thought through.

[ARY]

...Take a car tire innertube and cut it like a horseshoe collar. Place it around the bladder inside the zipper of the wing. This will give extra protection against sharp edges, tears, and cuts.

It might be an extra protection for sidemount wing but hardly to imagine with classic rig. I think that punctures will not be an issue when backmounting. Even with a small puncture and air leak the wing will have enough volume to lift you up. Large punctures is hard to imagine because polyurethane bladder is protected by the wing shell- cordura or nylon. However you can loose your lift if you pulled your corrugated hose off the wing or if the hose was pulled and raptured after rubbing it against ceiling (happened to me once). I put 3" bike innertube over the corrugated hose.

How about carrying doubled wallmart plastic bags: you can pick up trash and have a secondary lift power of 25lb Scubapro makes nice 3 mm neoprene snorkeling vest with oral inflation. It gives 20-30 lb of lift. Just a thought.

[MikeH]

For some reason I am laughing at the image produced by your description...

The lift bag inflated and clipped to your crotch strap d-ring and you hugging the line with the lift bag above your head... hahaha

Laughing? Yea, right.....you weren't laughing....it really just turned you on...admit it!

Mike

[MikeH]

Scubapro makes nice 3 mm neoprene snorkeling vest with oral inflation. It gives 20-30 lb of lift. Just a thought.

Good idea! Similar to a horse collar...and would serve the purpose in a pinch. Plus the bladder is on your chest....so if your backmount wing gets punctured by something, this type of vest located on your chest would be safe. Put it under your harness, and you should still get 10-15lbs of lift out of it.

http://www.scubapro.com/products/bcs...ents_vests.asp

Of course....the chicks modeling it make it look all that much more appealing...

Mike

[mwenner]

I say plastic jug, and hair like Lloyd Bridges. Ya! Or, a second bladder....and hair like Lloyd Bridges.

[curtschu]

There is a video on another board of Polish guys diving in France they are side mounting and basicaly the bottles are clipped like stages on a BP/Harness NO wing at all. They must be using the drysuit and they are totally under control.

www.stajniakleina.pl on WYJAZDY-Video tab

[tomhauburn]

I like ARY's idea. Unless I am mistaken I think the swim hard method, then the bottles and then belly bags with oral inflation came along. Folks dove them in places we consider hard today. I am linking a photo of Mary Ellen's Bag that she dove at Horror hole.

http://static.flickr.com/59/154540409_a250746db8_b.jpg

I've not been in it but from Cindy's description it not a nice place. Having a second backup sound like a practical idea. Walter brought a good point about some places you might not be able to crawl out of. Not having graduated to a dry suit yet, I think that a dry suit is probably the best idea in that it achieves several purposes especially on long dives in addition to redundancy. but then again I just a rookie cave diver.