Gear Personalization Tips

[zlyrack]

Ok, here's a newbie question... Does anyone have any tips they can give on how to personalize items like reels, bottles, arrows and such to make them more easily identifiable (especially in situations like silt-outs, light failures, etc...). I'm not really looking for anything specific someone has done to copy -- don't want 2 of the same reels down there -- I'm more interested in techniques that could be used to customize them.

Thanks!

This won't help in a low-vis situation, but I would like to bring something up.

I bought a Brother P-Touch label maker off eBay several years ago for about thirty bucks. I now have my name and cellular number on everything that I leave lying around. This includes stage bottles, deco bottles, and reels.

This is not about theft. Rather, it's for those times that you leave a deco bottle at the steps, or leave a reel on a picnic table, and just drive off. Most cave divers I know would see them, and I'd get a call before I was too far up the road.

If you're too cheap to get one, let me know if you bump into me. I keep mine in the truck, and I'd be happy to make a few labels for anybody.

In case you're wondering, after three years, no label has fallen off yet, including the stuff I use in salt water.

[zlyrack]

Hey, thanks for the tip! While that isn't exactly what I was "originally" looking for... it is a gem none-the-less! I have noticed in the short time that I have been cave diving that the majority of cave-crawlers that I meet are not only friendly and conservation-minded, but genuinely interested in looking out for their fellow divers (yes, even those sometimes pesky open-water divers ). I think that you are correct in assuming that if there is clearly visible contact information on the item, then chances are that you are more than likely to receive a call about it if a cave diver finds it. I guess cynicism has caused me to simply write-off any gear lost or left behind, but from the many post on this forum by divers trying to return found items, I'd have to agree that not to add such information would just be foolish.

Thanks again!

[Mike]

Get a hand held engraving tool, they're only about thirty bucks or so.
Great for reels or line arrows, just carve your initials or something you know you can read by feel with your fingers , & go over the etching with a water proof magic marker to see when you have vis to see it, but DO NOT! carve anything into your tanks with this, that would have to be another situation, which could be a couple of layers of duct tape or something, which you would need to take off & probably replace
every so often, just because the water will eat the glue & you shouldn't have anything on your tank that can hide moisture or salt that will eat through your tank.

Tanks should never be used for anything but to hold air, no stickers except VIP(Stickers are a place for corrosion to start & eat your tanks away & you won't know it because the sticker is covering it up).

My 2 Cents,
Mike M

[Webmaster]

For reels and such you could file some small notches in a specific pattern in the handle. On the tanks (I assume you mean stage and/or deco bottles) you could do the same thing with knots in the rigging. It's an idea anyway.

Marbry