Posted by tleemay on September 05, 2001 at 11:41:32:
In Reply to: Re: I was sifting thru the OMS catalog posted by Generator X on September 05, 2001 at 09:29:37:
I read your referenced post in the archive. We
have two different issues here, the wings Jane
and her buddy were wearing, and their instructor.
Both points are well taken. As I remember, when
the recovery guys had to pull her off the bottom,
the wings would not hold air. They had to lift bag
them from the depth.
From what I remember about their instructor, it was reported that he saw they were having a
problem maintaining bouyancy and left them to go
get help.
I know one of the persons who pulled up the
bodies, and he is adamant that the wings were so
compressed and further restricted by the bungied
wings, he just blew a separate bag and shot them
up. The wings would not hold enough air at depth
while being squeezed by pressure and bungies to
inflate to a point the body would even become
neutral.
As to the independent testing issue;
I have always been an advocate for REAL
independent testing and reports for dive gear. I
never had much faith in Scuba Lab, esp. when they
wrote at one time that a SA was perfect for heavy
kelp, high boat traffic dive sites, and dives up to something like '100. Dave Taylor took a bath on
that one publically on rec.scuba back in '97. I
believe at the most basic and entry level, SL did
serve a purpose at one time. But if someone is
ready to invest in something as expensive as a computer, a convoluded BC+reg system, or a
miniscule bailout bottle(s) like SA, they as
progresssing divers needs to seek out a second,
third, and even fourth opinion based on
first hand experience, and not from "someone who
has one and they like it".
Now, who wants to critique what I saw recently;
Diver 6'1 / 190 lbs
Steel 120 tank
OMS bungie wings
Wetsuit
No weight belt
No octo/second
On the bottom, this person was bouncing from rock
to rock, constantly adjusting the air in his
wings. At 80', he was sculling ike there was no
tomorrow. To talk to him you would think he's been
diving forever instead of since 05/98. He dives
that way because that's the way he was taught by
the others in one of the many clubs he belongs to.
He uses the classic "they haven't gotten hurt"
excuse "so I do the same" line.
What's wrong with this picture?