INFORMATION ABOUT PERSONAL DIVING EQUIPMENT USED AT DSDC

This is a very interesting subject with a huge number of opinions surrounding it. The comments are meant to be helpful for new members just arriving in the region or newly qualified divers in particular.

We strongly suggest to any new member that you hold off purchasing expensive diving equipment until you have dived with us a few times, have a look around at what people have got, heard the stories etc and then be able to make your own informed decisions

Equipment Consists of;

Computers, Regulators, Tanks, BCD/Wing/Clothing/Torch/Reel/Fins/Mask. At DSDC there are various trends appearing in equipment purchase and use and these are noted below as well.

Computers; A big subject in its own right with lots of talk on how or how not each model is profile conservative. Members have all sorts of different makes and variations and generally purchases are being made on the depths of any individuals pocket. My observations to date are that 99% of problems occur when users don't fully understand how their computer functions  and what various screen messages mean(and blaming the computer for being rubbish). A number of models have a habit of switching back to 21% after every dive and this is a pain when most of DSDC dives are Nitrox based. Air integration is a very nice feature to have on a computer but the normal diver in DSDC will quickly work out that it is a very expensive feature for the sort of diving we do here. Being able to change a battery yourself is very handy as some models have to be couriered to the UK/USA to have the battery changed and it costs a lot to do this. Multi gas functions are very useful if you think you are going to develop your diving with many advanced divers using a decompression mix to give that extra bit of deco safety given the cost of recompression in the region.

Regulators, Another big subject due to the choices that can be made. Nitrox compatibility is a must and you should watch out for the recent change in DIN fitting in the UK and Europe that we have not followed in the rest of the world. Serviceability in the region is a question you should ask yourself as some makes will have to be returned to UK/USA for repair. Reliability is more a question of you washing it rather than the choice of model itself. A feature at DSDC is the increasing use of 2 metre plus hoses for the octopus by the wreck divers who realise that it is very difficult to exit a wreck sharing air on a standard length hose. A-clamp users are known to suffer from blowing o-rings on the surface when the equipment gets very hot in the summer.

Tanks, At DSDC we are about 50/50 on the alloy - steel question. Views vary from the risk of steel corrosion to the pain of alloy tanks that float when empty. 12 / 15 ltr is the normal choice in terms of size with 10ltr being a tad too small for the normal dive profiles being done. Nitrox clean should be obvious and see regulators above for a comment on A-clamps. WP is either 207 or 232. Some people have 300 bar tanks but the club cannot fill to this. Decompression stages are 5 or 7 ltr alloy. Nobody uses the 3 ltr bail out ponys which are so popular in the UK.

BCD / WING . This is a really interesting question. Ill add my view on this subject that you get what you pay for - my BCD is 22 years old, still going strong and I am very fond of it in spite of all the abuse i get! Thereafter  there is the question of what you can afford and if you have a few quid should it be a BCD or a Wing. Look out for the difference between a single skin item and a double skin item, the wrecks in particular are VERY abrasive. It is known that moving from a BCD to a Wing and trying to get your buoyancy right can be tricky and made worse by the choices in back plate material i.e. heavy stainless or light alloy. Having had a few mixed comments don't assume a wing is the best thing to have even if you can afford it. Check out the pocket sizes of your choice to ensure you have places to put your dsmb and lift bags etc. Integrated weights is a choice only you can make, look at the various options. One word of caution for potential wreck divers, these lever inflator devices mounted on the side of some makes of bcd need a VERY careful assessment before being purchased.

Clothing, There are stingers and jelly fish in the region, mostly appearing in Spring and Autumn, and you can get very nasty burns across arms legs face etc if you get caught up. From this perspective clothing becomes a requirement plus the seasonal variations. Generallyl Summer = rash vest and shorts, Winter = wet suit. Other features to consider - a hood is very nice in the winter months, 3 mm or 5 mm thickness wetsuit in the winter. If you are climatised to the hot weather  here 5 mm wetsuit or maybe even a dry suit in the winter. Gloves are a personal choice, if wreck diving there are loads of sharp edges to watch out for. In summer some divers use whole body rash suits and some have swimming hats or similar to protect the head inside wrecks. Shorty wetsuits appear in the transition seasons.

Torches, Have you got all day? Well i have not so here goes. The LED variants of torches are slowly taking over but do you really like that harsh white light they give off? If you do there is a big advantage as LED does not chew through the batteries. If your buddy shines it in your eyes, however, it really hurts. On the bigger LED torches there seems to be an issue with heat from the LEDs and im not yet certain if this is properly solved. Thereafter - your first thing is to look at how many batteries a torch has and what size they are - this is a good clue as to how bright its going to be. Many models advertise their lumen out put and this is really interesting as for example my torch pushes out 1200 lumens and costs AED 1000 while if you go for these nice looking tecky torches you will find that while you get military grade materials AED 6000 wont get you much more than 900 lumens. Once you have worked out this issue of brightness then you have to make a choice based upon what your target use for the torch is. As a dive instructor you will find me telling people to take some sort of torch on every dive to ensure you get the underwater colours, after that the advice would be to get as big as you can afford. Wreck divers, a back up or even two back up torches is a must.

Reel / DSMB / Penetration Reel. There are different sorts of reels and DSMB each for a different purpose. This is one area where I recommend you borrow / ask before purchase. The pitfalls are high speed unwinds with DSMB - finger reels - you have to be very careful about using these with DSMB's pulling out of your hand and or tangling up is very easy and therefore can cause big problems. The same goes for some of these very nice technical reels which cannot cope with a high speed unwind. However, finger reels and technical reels, maybe with a gorman handle, are very nice inside wrecks when lining off and you don't need to be an octopus to use for such purposes. To give you an idea I always carry two sorts of reel. On the DSMB front the is a huge number of choices including a 10ft monster that you can get at Scuba Dubai. Note that a reel and DSMB for EACH diver is a requirement at DSDC. When making your choice consider, colour (important for surface visibility), size for both visibility and storage in your pockets, filling method - some you blow in, some have their own bottle, some you fill from your air sources. For penetration reels - come on the DSDC wreck workshop to find out why this is a subject in its own right.

Fins / Mask /. This is a very personal area and there are so many variations in design, colour and materials that it is difficult to comment. Heavy duty old style jet fins are very popular with the wreck divers and the technical guys due to the wear factors involved, otherwise its up to you and your pocket.

Knives / Shears. What can you afford and what risks do you face - two considerations for you - the sea is very salty here in the gulf so corrosion is a problem - consider a knife with a removable handle so it can be washed properly, plus fishermen use these nasty monofilament nets and having found and removed an enormous one that completely covered the Zainab i would advise that you have a BIG sharp knife or a little knife AND shears.

Surface Flags, these items are starting to appear among the more experienced divers who have noticed that in some sea conditions, especially the rougher, it is not easy to spot a DSMB as it is too low in the water. At the moment i would say this is a personal choice as long as when at DSDC you put up your DSMB BEFORE you leave a wreck site. If you are drift diving on Mussandam think again.

Surface Whistles, A sleepy Dhow trip support boat driver led to two DSDC divers being swept 5km and on the surface for 90 mins before being picked up. Would a whistle have brought better attention? Some of the inflator mounted ones are very loud. While we now put a diver in the support boats because of this instance it could possibly happen again if you are with a different group.

Lift Bags, at DSDC we are fed up with anchors getting stuck on wrecks so the last pair of divers sends the anchor up on a bag to avoid this hassle, thereafter bags are  very useful for picking up other boats abandoned anchors - you should see how many we have at our club house! Advanced Divers in BSAC can do lifting as part of their training and will need these things, thereafter its a personal choice noting that some of the heavy duty bags are very bulky and don't fit nicely into pockets. A 25kg bag seems to be the size of choice at the moment.

Reef Hooks, These are used for Mussandam Diving when you swim to the edge of an island fighting against the current and when you cant get any further you hook into the reef and float there watching the marine life wizz by. Watch out for them in the shops as they get snapped up very quickly.

Lobster Hooks and Spear Guns - NO NO NO NO NO - not with SCUBA in the UAE or OMAN