Posted by Kendall Raine on September 09, 2002 at 20:41:48:
In Reply to: Re: Wet Steel issue response to Chuck posted by Chuck Tribolet on September 09, 2002 at 19:22:57:
The differential was what I was getting at because the issue was "why does AL afford better buoyancy characteristics when wet?" The question was not "how much negative buoyancy can I manage?" The answer to that can change from dive to dive. The point was to select the gear combination which gives the best chance of getting back up across all recreational scenarios.
I ignored the high positive and negative values, like +5 or 10+ because, with the right mix of ditchable and non-ditachable, you would avoid becoming 5+ or 10+ altogether. In other words, if by dropping an 8 lbs belt you became 5+, why drop the belt at all? If by dropping a 20 lbs belt you became 10+, you're proportion of ditchable/nonditchable was wrong to start with and you should have increased the nonditchable fraction to accomodate dropping the belt without becoming a Polaris missile. Another alternative is to use something like a DUI or Halcyon harness where you can drop weight in increments. A 1 lb differential is, as you pointed out, irrelevent. 30- post ditch is not a recreational scenario. It's a scenario involving lots of gas.
I'm sorry, Chuck, but I'm wearing out on this thread. It's not you, I just worked most of the weekend and I'm losing steam. If I'm still not being clear, give it a day or two and contact me privately.