After watching divers play with sidemount bungees I starting looking at a solution for what I felt to be of concern. Many divers simply place the bungee over the tank and reg and then deal with the bottles slipping out since they haven’t taken the time to run the bungee under the reg and around the tank neck. It’s understandable since it is difficult to route the bungee and I’ve watched seasoned professionals take several minutes just to hook up one tank.
I also see divers with the choker system bungee not using a safety. The safety is important if you happen to carry the bottles attached to you when entering or exiting the water. Instead of hooking your bottle into the bungee, you clip into a metal D-ring to avoid stressing and potentially breaking the bungee. Bungees aren’t intended to be load-bearing on land.
Another issue is slack in the bungee when changing tank size. Divers who wear the bottles up close and tight need a different bungees for varying tank sizes. This is a hassle.
My solution to all this was to find a way that divers could more easily adjust the sizing of the bungee, while including a safety and making sure the bungee is easy to don. The Nomad Sidemount Ring Bungee keeps the bottle under the arm where the bottles need to rest for sidemount. By using Quick Links, sizing can be adjusted for varying bottles or for divers of different sizes (just add or remove a Quick Link…there is one on either end of the bungee). For the safety, I had an additional Quick Link, but our National Field Manager, Pete Nawrocky, who mainly dives in cold water screamed “gloves!” So I added a 2-inch stainless ring instead. This proved to be the best set up because the ring is easy to put your thumb in and stretch the bungee when connecting bottles. Since the ring sits under your arm we can use lighter bungee to make it easier to stretch. The 2-inch ring is attached to the snap via a Quick Link so you have a hard connection safety as well.
This new sidemount bungee system was unveiled at the Beneath the Sea Scuba Show in New Jersey and was well received. Our team has been diving with prototypes for a couple of months and even our minimalist junkies like them.
Lamar
Dive Rite Nomad Ring Bungees
The Nomad EXP is the benchmark for sidemount systems. Everything you read about a sidemount system is a comparison to the Nomad EXP. Its single piece construction and 60 pounds of lift make it the choice of cave divers for high volume steel cylinders and stage bottles. Since it is one piece divers can take it from box to water with just a few adjustments.
The Nomad XT is the sidemount expedition rig for guys like me who want to make sure they can adapt to anything regardless of where they travel. Since the SuperFabric wing, butt plate and harness are separate you can customize it anyway you want and even cannibalize it if needed and swap out parts.
Soon we’ll have a Nomad sidemount system with less lift for aluminum tanks. Ideal for warm water divers or those who travel. Stay tuned.
Lamar
We’ve just launched a weighting system for Nomad sidemount divers. The Nomad Weight Plate attaches to the back of the rig in the existing grommets. We’ve had some inquires about the spacing of the grommets on the plate not lining up with the Nomad. This is intentional. We added an extra 1/2-inch of spacing to the weight plate so that once it is filled with weight, it will align with the grommets on the rig. The extra 1/2-inch accounts for the thickness of the plate once loaded.
Scott and I have been diving prototypes since late fall. Neither of us can tell you’re wearing the plate – it’s that well conformed to the rig. Keep in mind it is to be used when sidemounting, not backmount.
Lamar
Nomad Weight Plate
I just finished teaching an IUCRR course. The course is a public safety course I do at least once a year to teach cave divers procedures for interaction with law enforcement and extraction techniques for victims of overhead environment fatalities. This one was interesting because for the first time there were more participants wearing their cylinders sidemount than back mount. Of the ten participants, five were in sidemount, one was in a rebreather with sidemount bailout and three wore conventional back mounted doubles.
The class allowed me to see how people are using equipment and I always learn from what other people are doing. With so much going on in sidemount these days, it’s easy for the new sidemount diver to get lost in contradictory information. We’re working on some new articles and videos that can help with that.
The IUCCR class was a good group of divers. Special thanks to Wendell Nope for assisting me with the class.
Lamar
*** The IUCRR – International Underwater Cave Recovery & Rescue group are a nonprofit organization of cave divers that make their training and services available to law enforcement around the globe for cave rescue and recovery efforts. Lamar Hires is the Training Chairman of the organization.
Sometimes the simple things are the best. Edd Sorenson of Cave Adventures, suggested we manufacture a stage strap for sidemounting a stage bottle when sidemounting primary cylinders. While we were diving Jackson Blue, Edd showed me his set up. James Clark came up with the idea. It looked too simple to work, but it did. Back at the office, we made some samples of this bungee stage strap and we’ve been using them on exploration dives ever since.
On the first sidemount, stage dive into a snarly area I used Edd’s system and didn’t even realize I had the extra bottle on even though I was moving through turns and squeezes. I even had Wes Skiles’ son Nate sidemounting four bottles, two on each side through passage divers with backmount can get stuck in.
The sidemount stage rig is designed to work with the Nomad. A couple of points to make the rig work, use it with aluminum 80’s or the new al 77 – don’t try it with steel cylinders. The bottom clip is 15” from the bottom of the cylinder. Both straps are made from 3/8 diameter bungee and just enough stretch so they clip in and stay out of the way behind the primary bottle. It’s not for everyone but if you want to stage with sidemount it’s the slickest thing I’ve seen. BC2720-STAGE is the model number if you’re interested.
Lamar
Sidemount Stage Bottle Set Up
I never thought I would see the day when sidemount diving became so popular that PADI would recognize it as a distinctive specialty. The Nomad has made this possible with a solution for any diver. There are many options with the Nomad because not one size fits all for this style of diving. We have packaged the Nomad for divers upgrading their TransPac to those needing to get a complete expedition system. The Basic Nomad is just the harness and wing and tank neck chokers, while the Expedition rig is complete with rigging for the tanks. Both systems are available in redundant, dual bladder models. We have more innovation coming in 2009.
Sidemount is the best way to carry bailout bottles for rebreather divers and for the tech diver traveling to remote locations where only single cylinders are available. If you have a question about sidemount ask it and I will answer it in this forum if possible.
In the meantime, you can also watch our sidemount videos found in our Solution Finder or Library.
Lamar
The Nomad sidemount system has been incredibly popular and is becoming a great hit not just with sidemount divers but also Rebreather divers who wish to sidemount their bailout bottles. The Nomad wing had 50 pounds of lift but we discovered that after streamlining the air cell some divers were not getting the full 50 pounds of lift. As always we listen and we have worked to improve the product. We have added a side panel to the Nomad wing, which has increased the lift to 60 pounds or 27 kilograms. The new 60 pound model is shipping today!
The Nomad has taken on a life of its own and many divers are trying out sidemounting. To help divers configure their Nomad we have launched a series of sidemount questions on our Solution Finder. The Solution Finder is complete with informative video footage and will give you ideas on how to rig your light, route hoses and regs and where to store accessories.
If you have any questions don’t hesitate to contact us, we’re always happy to help!
Lamar
The Nomad is working well for people who want to sidemount. Over the past few months I have taught a few classes; both sidemount and CCR. One of the common problems I began seeing is getting the bungee routed through the regulator, around the tank neck and then clipped to the harness. It can be a pain to hold up the tank, while stretching the bungee enough to get it attached. The easy way to use it is to leave it clipped to the harness and just pull it over the cylinder neck. This appears to work, but depending on your attitude in the water the cylinder may slip out of the bungee. As I thought about this while watching a few students struggle and I remembered my problems diving out of a Zodiac on the Black Sea in Russia this summer. Sometimes the neck connection can be a real pain. The bottle needs to float under the arm to find the sweet spot for sidemount position, but there should be a secure and easy connection to keep the bottle in place.
After a few test dives I introduced my students to a new way to secure the neck of the cylinder in the bungee with 100% satisfaction from the divers. It’s very simple, use a standard stage strap with XL bolt snaps on the bottle. You need the XL snap because you are going to clip into the bungee. We have added a choker to the neck of the cylinder. It holds the top clip up against the neck of the bottle. We make the chokers but you can make one out of line as well. The key is to have the gate of the snap against the cylinder neck. I like the chokers because they are adjustable so they can work with your sidemount setup and or be loosened if you use the cylinder as a stage bottle.
The point is now you clip into the bungee rather than wrapping the bungee around the cylinder neck. The bungee needs to be 4” shorter than what you would normally use. I used to use the 17” bungee and I had to shorten it to 13”. Now it is easy to clip in and keep bottles side mounted for CCR bailout or 95’s on a sidemount dive.
So to see if anybody is actually reading my blog, I will ask interested divers to call Dive Rite and tell the guys you want the latest sidemount modification for your Nomad, you want the chokers. Send back your straps and we will shorten them and give you the chokers free of charge. I want people to enjoy it as much as I do.
Lamar
During the Mermet Springs Tech Tour, I was asked about cold water diving with the Nomad sidemount configuration. Wearing gloves, the guys wanted the larger coldwater snaps. I personally didn’t have an issue with the standard clips, but understood the problem. We will now offer the straps with XL bolt snaps for cold water divers. Another point on the straps was length adjustment. We offer three standard sizes that fit most divers and cylinder sizes. If you need a little extra length just add another quick link to each strap. You may find this is a good way to fine tune the rig when transitioning from a drysuit with thick garments to a wetsuit. More to come on weighting in coldwater environments.
Lamar
The Nomad Buttplate is useful for more than sidemounting cylinders to squeeze into places a normal person wouldn’t go. If placing the bottles under the arm and along the body will let you get into tighter places, then you know it has to be streamlined. We all want to be as streamlined as possible when moving through the water in order to cut down on expended energy, which in turn means less gas consumption.
Incorporating sidemount-thinking to carrying stages for CCR bailout, decompression or extended range dives will help you dive with less drag. The buttplate is designed to let you attach the bottles approximately 6-inches lower than attaching the bottle at the waist; this pulls the neck of the bottle down so it will tuck under the arm. If you use the sidemount bungee straps around the neck of the bottle, then the bottles will float under the arm. The bungee straps attach to the backplate and clip to the chest D-ring where the bottle would normally be clipped. The bottle floats into position under the arm while the 4-inch rail on the buttplate lets the bottle find the “sweet spot”. In the water, you are only dealing with the negative buoyancy of the bottle, not its total weight.
The Nomad Buttplate is easy to attach to any harness. Two-inch webbing belt loops slide onto a standard waist belt and the stainless steel grommets line up with the bottom perimeter holes of a metal plate or the 1-inch D-ring of the TransPac.
Lamar
