Help this poor old wreckie

[scubadude105]

Hi Ladies & Gents,
as a poor old wreckie instructor who has probably got the wrong gear, but is looking to get into (attempt training towards) caving, can you assist me with some basic questions & answers (rather than talking to a sales rep):

1) suggestions please for - what are a couple of good brands of fins for entry level, post-training?

2) what are a couple of good brands of regs for entry level, post-training?

3) what are the basic reels required for entry level?

4) is it compulsory to have a double bladder lift?

I know all this will be in a course, but as I am reviewing my gear list at the moment, it will save me double costs if i can plan ahead. thanks in consideration of your time...

thanks guys ... scube.

[Jay]

Jet Fins are pretty much the standard with some others becoming popular. For plastic fins I like the DiveRites also. Spring heels are highly recommended.

(as are 'slap straps' for your mask)

High end Apeks and Scuba pro are most common regs for primaries and stages. Any good dependable O2 clean reg for O2 bottles.

A 50' jump reel, a spool and a primary will cover basic reels.

Double bladders are not recommended unless you dive big (tall) caves in a wet suit.

I prefer the smallest wing you can by with, usually 45# but definitley not over 60#

Read up on Hogarthian and DIR. Lots of good info and background on equipment choice.

Of course, you will get 12 opinions for every 10 cave divers you ask!!!!

[DA Aquamaster]

Plus 1 on the Jet Fins. OMS slipstreams have near identical performance but are of lighter monoprene construction so they may work better for you depending on trim requirements and foot pocket size. In terms of plastic fins, Mares Plana fins of various iterations work well also.

I am not sure high end Scubapro and Apeks regs predominate - I also see a lot of moderately priced Dive Rite and similar clones in use. Poseiden regs also have a following.

Redundant lift is always nice and I would argue essential in many systems, but using a dry suit is much more common than a double bladder wing. If you suffer a wing failure with no redundant lift and have to "crawl" out, in most sytems you will screw the viz and seriously damage the cave floor. And there are some places in some systems that you will just not be abel to crawl out of. Personally, it makes no sense to me to change my configuration from one system to the next, so I stay with a drysuit.

As for wing size, going small has always been popular but in my experience a 45 pound wing is not quite enough to lift large steel tanks, a stage, a deco bottle, reels, lights, etc when all the tanks are full. A well designed 50-55 pound wing will probably get the job done without excessive drag and you won't outgrow it later.

A 400 ft primary reel is pretty much a must have. A spool or safety reel with 150' of line is an absolute must have and a spare safety spool is an extremely good idea.

Eventually you will probably want 2 or 3 jump and gap reels and perhaps a second primary for a few really long jumps that are around. Spools work well initially as jump and gap "reels", they are not expensive and they will come in handy later if you need extra jump and gap reels. Start with them and borrow/try various reels until you decide what you like.

There are two general approaches to reels 1) side handle reels like the very open and easy to clear Ralph Hood/Larry Green design as well as the very tight toleranced and hard to snarl (but impossible to clear if you ever do it) Halcyon/Salvo design and 2) traditional lantern handled reels made by Dive Rite, Reef Scuba, etc, some of which can be converted to sort of side handle operation.

In my opinion, the biggest adjustment from wreck to cave diving is the focus on perfect bouyancy and trim, far greater attention to silt prevention techniques and a major focus on cave conservation.

[OFG-1]

Always happy to help out a old trekkie.

OK, William Shatner was Capt Kirk, and Mr Spock was the guy with the pointy ears, and Sulu was the oriental gay helmsman, and tribbles were the little furry things that purred, and Capt Pike was the guy in the original pilot, but they replaced him with Shatner. Does that help?


Oh wait, you said Wreckie, not Trekkie. Nevermind.

[JDostal]

Good advice all around.

Jet Fins are great. Any good stiff bladed non split fin with spring straps will be fine though.

Regs. Don't be cheap DIN and a long hose. Poseidon, Apeks, Dive Rite, ScubaPro are all popular. Even OMS and Sherwood and other brands.

Reels. For basic Cavern/Intro you need a safety reel and a primary reel. I like having a backup safety spool too.

No double bladder wings.

If you find an instructor you like you will be able to talk to him a lot too and get specifics. Read up on Hogarthian configs.

[FW]

Hi Ladies & Gents,
as a poor old wreckie instructor who has probably got the wrong gear, but is looking to get into (attempt training towards) caving, can you assist me with some basic questions & answers (rather than talking to a sales rep):

1) suggestions please for - what are a couple of good brands of fins for entry level, post-training?

2) what are a couple of good brands of regs for entry level, post-training?

3) what are the basic reels required for entry level?

4) is it compulsory to have a double bladder lift?

I know all this will be in a course, but as I am reviewing my gear list at the moment, it will save me double costs if i can plan ahead. thanks in consideration of your time...

thanks guys ... scube.

Try this link mate, they are much closer to you than the USA
http://www.cavedivers.com.au/

[MORGAN]

No double bladder wings.

Many of us who cave dive steel tanks in wetsuits use double bladder wings.

The theoretical disadvantage of dual bladder wings is that the secondary bladder might have a slow undetected inflator leak - I just don't hitch up my secondary inflator. If I should have a primary wing failure, I can either orally inflate the secondary, or cross connect it to the primary side. I have never had to use it, but in a wetsuit and LP95's, I like knowing that I have redundant buoyancy.

Mike

[JDostal]

Many of us who cave dive steel tanks in wetsuits use double bladder wings.

Good point. Always forget about the wetsuit thing.

[huxley]

I don't see where the disadvantage of a double bladder is other than that it cost more. As mentioned you do not need to hook it up, so you can orally inflate or have a second inflator hose attached to it but not hooked up. No risk of accidentally inflating it. Worst case is you in a wetsuit, some heavy steel cylinders on your back, maybe stage as well and a buddy you might need to drag out.

[HeloDriver]

X2

Many of us who cave dive steel tanks in wetsuits use double bladder wings.

The theoretical disadvantage of dual bladder wings is that the secondary bladder might have a slow undetected inflator leak - I just don't hitch up my secondary inflator. If I should have a primary wing failure, I can either orally inflate the secondary, or cross connect it to the primary side. I have never had to use it, but in a wetsuit and LP95's, I like knowing that I have redundant buoyancy.

Mike