How to deploy SMB w/ spool at depth?

[Grin]

I shoot 6 ft sausages all the time, but I use a reel to accomplish it. If your going to routinly be shooting the bouy a reel is well worth the extra junk carried during your dive. The main things to realize are:
1. make sure it's in freespool and make absolutly sure it's not tangled or going to get tangled. These could both really screw you up bad.
2. realize that it could get tangled or the reel could jam and you would have no choice but to let go. Don't attach it to you during the shoot.
3. The entire reason for shooting bouys here in my area is the current we have. This allows the boat some extra time to see where your drift may have taken you and hopefully be there when you finally surface. But, if you shoot the bouy and somehow it gets away from you, or you have to let go, the current could take the boat with the bouy far from you by the time you surface. They might have no clue they are following a drifting bouy and your not there.
That has not happened to me, but it is a fear I often think about. Probably should have another signal bouy in case you surface to see a speck on the horizon following your bouy off into the sunset.
I carry a finger spool as a just in case, I might need to shoot a bouy. If I think I will probbaly highly unlikely be needign to shoot a bouy the finger spool is so much smaller to carry. It's alot easier to retrieve line with the reel as you accend and well worht it if you know your going to shoot bouys on virtually every dive of the day to carry the reel. With the finger spool you probably are going to not retrieve any line as you surface then have to wind it on the spool once on the boat( A PIA ).

[Puffer Fish]

Originally Posted by Grin

I shoot 6 ft sausages all the time, but I use a reel to accomplish it. If your going to routinly be shooting the bouy a reel is well worth the extra junk carried during your dive. The main things to realize are:
1. make sure it's in freespool and make absolutly sure it's not tangled or going to get tangled. These could both really screw you up bad.
2. realize that it could get tangled or the reel could jam and you would have no choice but to let go. Don't attach it to you during the shoot.
3. The entire reason for shooting bouys here in my area is the current we have. This allows the boat some extra time to see where your drift may have taken you and hopefully be there when you finally surface. But, if you shoot the bouy and somehow it gets away from you, or you have to let go, the current could take the boat with the bouy far from you by the time you surface. They might have no clue they are following a drifting bouy and your not there.
That has not happened to me, but it is a fear I often think about. Probably should have another signal bouy in case you surface to see a speck on the horizon following your bouy off into the sunset.
I carry a finger spool as a just in case, I might need to shoot a bouy. If I think I will probbaly highly unlikely be needign to shoot a bouy the finger spool is so much smaller to carry. It's alot easier to retrieve line with the reel as you accend and well worht it if you know your going to shoot bouys on virtually every dive of the day to carry the reel. With the finger spool you probably are going to not retrieve any line as you surface then have to wind it on the spool once on the boat( A PIA ).

I use a reel when diving in florida, but take a couple of spools when travelling via air.

Had that very thing happen with the float on a drift dive out of Jupiter, thankfully we got a smb up before they got too far away.

We address the issue of potentially loosing hold of one, by everyone who dives carries one, but if we are away from a float, only one in a group will send one up. That means we have others that can send one up as needed.

Other than dropping one, I always wind them up...the potential for a tangle with that line worries me.

Jim

[b1draper]

Here's a good clear video I found on YouTube

YouTube - How to deploy your safety sausage safely

[in_cavediver]

Here's a different technique that I was taught:

Pretty much standard stuff hooking up the bag to the reel/spool and making sure its not hooked to you, getting neutral etc.

To inflate, use your exhaust gas rather than BC or Octo. This is especially useful in cold water as a octo/inflator could freeze in the open position. My wife and I carry 75 and 100lb bags as well as 6ft sausages when we need them.

For a video, you can usually see me on America's Funniest Home Videos for the first time I shoot a bag each season. It takes practice to get it right and is not something I would want to do for the first time when I needed it to work.

[mm_dm]

Originally Posted by in_cavediver

To inflate, use your exhaust gas rather than BC or Octo.

I was taught this way as well and for the same reasons.

[Puffer Fish]

Originally Posted by mm_dm

I was taught this way as well and for the same reasons.

That works fine if you are at depth (where your exhaust gas will expand to fill the bag), but sucks big time if you are at 15 ft. Holding onto the bag and blowing a bunch of exhales into the bag is a great way to be dragged to the surface. However, the cold water issue would seem to be a valid point. I guess using a smaller smb would be in order.

As being low of gas is not normally an issue, and my bag takes around 1 cubic ft of gas, I use my inflator.

Cavediver - how do you fill a 100 lb bag with exhales and stay down? Tie off to the bottom?? (assuming there is a bottom to tie to)

[wheelman]

I was wondering kinda the same thing... If it takes multiple breaths for the exhaust to inflate the bag how is that accomplished.

[Gombessa]

I imagine there aren't too many situations where you'd need to shoot a 100# bag from 15'.

From depth, I imagine you don't need to more than a couple of breaths to get it started, and by the time it hits the surface it'll be quite inflated.

[mm_dm]

Originally Posted by Puffer Fish

That works fine if you are at depth (where your exhaust gas will expand to fill the bag), but sucks big time if you are at 15 ft. Holding onto the bag and blowing a bunch of exhales into the bag is a great way to be dragged to the surface. However, the cold water issue would seem to be a valid point. I guess using a smaller smb would be in order.

As being low of gas is not normally an issue, and my bag takes around 1 cubic ft of gas, I use my inflator.

Cavediver - how do you fill a 100 lb bag with exhales and stay down? Tie off to the bottom?? (assuming there is a bottom to tie to)

I shoot the bag from a deeper point and use a 50lb bag. I use my exhaust because my 2nd is bungied around my neck and it's awkward to handle the bag, my reg and whatever reel all that close to my face (and mask). I tilt my head to the side hold the bag open and just above where the exhaust is headed.

[Puffer Fish]

Originally Posted by Gombessa

I imagine there aren't too many situations where you'd need to shoot a 100# bag from 15'.

From depth, I imagine you don't need to more than a couple of breaths to get it started, and by the time it hits the surface it'll be quite inflated.

My normal SMB is a 65 lb one, and while not 100lbs (was using their numbers), there is no way I would want to be holding onto one and put more than a breath in it.

There are a lot of places where you have to shoot one on every dive....and sometimes you don't have any depth to do that. PG comes to mind, as does the Dry Tortugas, but I am sure there are other places.

Roughly, from 15 ft, that would be putting over 30 lbs of air, which you would have to somehow how yourself down while doing it.

90 ft is obviously a different story... but a typical PG dive is deep at the start, and shallow at the end...