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Post by SeaRat on Aug 14, 2017 22:40:15 GMT -8
I dove my Dacor Nautilus CVS with a Dacor Pacer regulator today. The Pacer is really a nice regulator, very easy breathing. But it's still a single hose regulator, and I'll be going back to my double hose regs soon.
The dive itself was rather uneventful. The lifeguards at High Rocks told me there may be a GoPro below the High Rocks jump point, as someone had lost one. Well, I searched the area, and found...one golf ball and about three smallmouth bass. I got into the shallower area, and my float line got tangled with a fishing line, which I suspected was still attached to a fishing pole, attached to a fisherman on the shore, so I was carefully pulling it around and off my float line when it was pulled and one of te hooks got my finger just a bit. I freed my finger, then found a second hook which also caught my hand (but neither really sank in). I freed the guy's line, and surfaced. The fisherman was with a small kid, and I told him that he nearly caught me. I said that I thought it was still attached to a fishing pole, so I didn't cut the line (I cut one in a June dive though).
I used my GoPro to try for more Nautilus CVS video, but when I got home found that I had recorded only a single, still photo and not a video. Apparently, the new software for the GoPro has options I don't know about, so I'll have to look at that for my next dives. There were some blue, blinking lights I had not seen before. Well, back to the owner's manual.
John
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Post by SeaRat on Aug 15, 2017 8:39:39 GMT -8
I'd like to say about the Dacor Nautilus CVS (Constant Volume System) that I dove yesterday. I'm getting more used to it, and having another dive under my belt using it gives me more perspective on this unique unit. I have dedicated the Dacor Pacer regulator to it, as it seems to work best with this regulator, and it is a very good regulator.
The Nautilus CVS is a tangle hazard, and I had to untangle my line yesterday twice from the unit's bottom valve lever. But I was monitoring that line pretty closely, and made sure to keep the line away from the unit as much as possible in the current.
The Nautilus CVS looks bulky, but swimming against the current does not seem to be much of a problem, as the water has nothing to "catch" on and simply flows around the unit. I was diving a full wetsuit, and decided not to wear a weight belt (I lost one on the dive before this one). So rather than using a weight belt, I put three weights (8 pounds total) on the waist strap. This helped balance the weights as the 16 pounds on the unit sits right over my backbone. I figured that if there was an emergency, dumping 16 pounds would be enough to get me positive and onto the surface. If I needed to dump more, the unit itself is easy to get out of.
The interesting point is that while this is a constant volume system (the "CVS"), I did need to dump air near the surface as my wet suit gained buoyancy toward the end of the dive. So the constant volume really is best used at depth, say 25 feet, to not have to add air when going deeper. Toward the surface, air may still need to be dumped.
At the end of the dive, I "blew ballast" on the Nautilus CVS, and then swam on my back. It is interesting to have your head almost three feet off the water, supported by about forty pounds of buoyancy, as I swam to my takeout point.
It was an enjoyable dive.
John
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Post by SeaRat on Aug 16, 2017 17:05:13 GMT -8
I dove again today, sans my GoPro. I decided that every time I dive the GoPro, I have a lot more time and involvement after the dive than with the dive. I was again at High Rocks, and diving my twin 45s with my Trieste II regulator, complete with the new DSV mouthpiece. It was a great dive, and at one point I took the mouthpiece out, after shutting it off, and breathed off my MR-12 octopus second stage. It was a great dive.
I took a newly purchased goodie bag, and stopped in the upper eddie to fill it with two hats, a bunch of beer and other cans, two kayak paddles parts, and some other things, including a fishing lure. I threw these in the trash can for someone to find and turn in (10 cents/can/bottle).
John
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Post by SeaRat on Aug 17, 2017 7:51:26 GMT -8
I didn't finish this post, so I'll continue it here. This dive was a "fun" dive, with my doubles and Trieste II, which performed flawlessly. After I gathered the stuff from the bottom, I surfaced, and left the entire bag full of bottles, cans, paddle parts, etc. on the bank.
I then resumed the dive, and watched some of the small fish fry on the bottom with my SeawiscopeEY. I've talked about this device before, but it really is nice to look very close-up and observe the small fish, about as long as my thumbnail, swim around, sample the materials in the water, and eat little stuff. These small fish are really colorful, and rarely actually observed in the water. One little guy had an iridescent stripe down its side, and would swim along and mouth anything that came close. I went to the bottom and found what looked like salmon redds (where salmon spawn), which may also have been lamprey eel spawning sites. I would take my finger and move the sand and gravel to see whether I could find any of the larva of the lamprey; I did not. I remember seeing these finger-length eel larva as a kid fishing in the Siletz River, where when standing on the bank in the water, my feet would move the sand and these eel larva would wiggle down, out of the sand, then dive back into the sand. But I did not find any. Toward the end of the dive, I would look at the bottom and find small bottom fish, some of which were sculpin and some other fish that I have not identified yet.
I neared my exit, surfaced to see where I was, and noticed a small child in a lifejacket with a mask and snorkel on his face. So I submerged, swam toward him, and finally got to see him about the same time he saw me. I waved, but he kinda panicked and swam to the rock he had jumped off of. So I surfaced, took the mouthpiece out of my mouth, and said, "Hello." He looked at me, then said, "I thought you were a shark!" We both laughed, as well as his Dad, who was close by on the bank. It turned out that these two were from Cuba, and the father told me that the boy enjoyed the water a lot. I mentioned that Cuba had some really nice coral reefs, and the father mentioned that the boy enjoyed swimming in the coral reefs and watching the fish. As we got out of the water, I noticed that the boy was chilled (I was in a full wet suit), and the father took off the boy's lifejacket so that he could warm up in the sun. We talked a bit more, and I took off my fins. I was wearing my Fara-Fins, with the leg brace, and they had worked extremely well on the dive. The father showed me his gear, which was an Aqualung set of fins, mask and snorkel that was meant for tourists in coral areas, with short fins that fit into a net bag. He looked at my Fara-Fins and said, "Those are big!" I told him about how Farrallon had screwed up the design of the leg braces, but once I had modified the fins (and mended the broken blade), that they were quite good fins.
Well, it was time for my workout getting back to my car, and I climbed the hill to the car, got out of my gear, then went back down to the river. I had left some over-booties on the shore. My Fara-Fins don't fit into my normal booties (actually, my feet don't go into the fins with anything other than a thin bootie). So I wore the overbootie to protect my feet from the rocks, but I could not figure out how to carry them with me. So I left them on the beach. The booties were still there, and then I went to get my goodie bag. It was stuffed full of all that garbage, cans and bottles, and I had left it in the water. I tried to pick it up, but it was really heavy with the water in those cans and bottles. So I brought it up onto the rocks, face downhill, and let it drain, but several cans got out and back into the water. I scrambled back down to gather them, got a couple then slipped and fell onto the rocks (I was way down, so it was a short fall--no injury). But I got my shirt wet, and was concerned about the hip pack I had my wallet and cell phone it, but it didn't get wet. I was close, very close, to getting dunked, but managed not to get into deep water. After the water had drained, I could manage the goodie bag, picked it up, and took it up to the restroom area where there was a trash can, and emptied it there.
Well, that was my dive. I got up to the car, ate my snack and started drinking my bottle of drink, and headed home.
John
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Post by SeaRat on Sept 3, 2017 22:58:49 GMT -8
Starman (Marion) and I again dove High Rocks on the Clackamas River on Saturday. We had a great dive, using vintage gear. I took video of it, with Marion using his twin 72s and me with a single 72. We both dove double hose regulators, with Marion using his Phoenix Aquamaster and me diving my highly modified Trieste II with the MR-12 octopus. We saw some interesting fish, and Marion played around with a bass on the dive, which I captured on the video. It will take some time to edit our dive down to a playable video, but look for it to come sometime this fall. Marion found a bag with some sissors attached to it, an interesting fork, and I found a bottle and a kayak paddle blade. I think a golf ball was in there somewhere too. All in all, a very nice dive, except my shoulder strap came loose at the end of the dive, and I had to get out of my scuba to exiit the water. But that is par for the course with some ancient gear.
John
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Post by crabbyjim on Sept 5, 2017 5:28:04 GMT -8
Is the video available for viewing?
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Post by SeaRat on Sept 6, 2017 7:50:10 GMT -8
Is the video available for viewing? Not yet. Videos need editing, which will take time to develop. Patience, please. 😊 |
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Post by Aquala1 on Sept 7, 2017 19:24:17 GMT -8
I test dove one of our vintage, 1959 reproduction Aquala suits in the pool today. In two weeks I'm heading to Laguna Beach for a product photo shoot, and I wanted to have everything dialed in with weighting and harness adjustment, before getting on the boat (and underwater) with photographers on the clock.
The suit is the classic tunnel entry with the attached, 5-piece hood, and naturally...no valves. My dive rig consisted of a new/repro Squale style round mask, 1959 original hydro US Divers steel 72 w/ original blue painted steel bands, original blue anodized reserve pull rod, original blue webbing harness, and '59 dated J-valve. The regulator is a Voit Blue 50 Fathoms, restored with new gray silicone hoses and mouthpiece (thanks to JB for that one). The weight belt is an original 1" blue cotton webbing USD belt, with the small 1 lb weights (5 lbs total) and an original USD Vulcan dive knife on the belt. Fins are new Churchills in the vintage green color, so they have the right 1959 look (thanks for that info DRW)
It had been several years since I dove a tunnel suit and that wasn't with a round mask, and a steel 72. I found that with the weight of the tank, and 5 lbs on the belt, that weighting was slightly negative. I could however, easily buoyancy compensate by blowing air into the suit through the hood, via the skirt of the mask and be totally neutral. Venting the suit was done by positioning slightly head up, and once the rush of air filled the hood, rolling onto my back and venting it past the face seal.
It was a good dive and I spent approx. 20 minutes underwater. Everything worked great, and the suit sealed well at the tied off tunnel. There was a fair amount of leakage past the face seal, from venting the suit, but that just goes with the territory. I'll add pics tomorrow.
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Post by Aquala1 on Sept 9, 2017 15:19:48 GMT -8
Here's a pic from the day's dive.....  |
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Post by tomcatpc on Sept 20, 2017 18:12:39 GMT -8
Finally got back in the water today after almost a month's absence! The fish were glad to see me and welcomed me back home!!!
I did four short dives this evening.
First was a very short test dive with my ScubaPro Mk. V/R-109. It worked, but breathed very wet. If this is a case of just putting in a new exhaust valve then this fix will be no big deal. Really not sure what else it could be? Anyway I was hoping this one would be a winner and looks like a bit more work. No big deal really. It was a very short dive, maybe ten minutes if that?, just enough to see what was going on.
The second dive with my trusty Healthways SCUBA. What can I say? I spent 25-ish minutes underwater at around 30-ish feet. It worked, like it always does, not a "performance" reg., but it is just fun to dive. Also it had Vance/Phil's exhaust duckbill in this time and it did what it was made to do just fine.
The third dive was a group dive and was just under 45 minutes at around 30-40 feet. I dove my Healthways Scubair this time. Half way through the dive my reg. started to develop a "creep", not a full on free flow, but I had to blow into it to stop the air flow. This started at the half-way point and I had quite a bit of air left. I ended the dive with 1200 left.
What I liked, is how I did not "totally freak out"...I was able to keep my wits, assess the problem and stay calm. I did not rocket to the surface, I stayed put and "nursed" it for the remainder of the dive. I did start to go up and gain a bit of "altitude" to help save air, but in the end I stayed put and finished the dive. So even though I had a minor malfunction, I think of this as a positive thing in the end.
Here is the embarassing part... Getting back ashore, I found out I had the diaphragm in the second stage flipped the wrong way... It took me a while to get this sussed out, but that is what went wrong. It must have shifted just enough with a deep breath, etc. to bind the demand lever slightly? Anyway, I got it fixed. Also I think I had the demand lever adjusted too "slack" as I was able to "firm" it up a bit. Those two things...who knows?
The last dive was another test dive. I threw a tank on my back, grabbed my Voit Mk.IX Fins, Cressi mask and dove my repaired Scubair. With no wetsuit, it was a sense of freedom, did not need any weight. Loved it and was able to stand the cold for 20 minutes. The Scubair dove just fine, even better than before after I adjusted it better.
Mark
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Post by nikeajax on Sept 21, 2017 7:02:59 GMT -8
Ty, I'm very happy that that Voit found a loving home!  Mark, bravo on the cool, calm and collected routine! Hmmmm? Please check the soft-seat in the second stage: if it's not glued in, just flip it over, just to be sure   JB |
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Post by tomcatpc on Sept 21, 2017 16:31:58 GMT -8
If I recall correctly, I just ended up buying brand new LP Seats for the cache of Healthways single hose regs I got last Summer. So that is not a problem. I got the problem fixed in the parking lot with a knock-off Leatherman tool that is always in my dive kit. I tuned the demand lever at the same time I flipped the diaphragm the correct way and it breathed as good, if not better than before and did not free flow or creep.
Mark
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Post by tomcatpc on Sept 21, 2017 16:33:55 GMT -8
I need to grab a pair of the green Churchills someday. I had a couple pair of the blue/yellow fins back in my SoCal years, but they are long gone. Also need to find a Voit double hose someday, just to say I have one. But first I think another Healthways double hose is in the future?
Mark
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Post by tomcatpc on Sept 24, 2017 19:19:25 GMT -8
Today I did three short half-hour dives at the local quarry (I really need to get and go somewhere else soon!!!).
The first dive again, was me just wearing shorts. Mainly because 1. I loved the feeling of freedom and giving me something to look forward to if I ever get to do some shallow shore diving in the Keys before I leave this Earth, and 2. I love playing the rock star and freaking people out!!! Where I dive, people will dive in full on drysuits in water that is between 60-70 degrees in the hot late Summer. You should have seen the faces of the "macho men" in their drysuits when they saw me cruise by with just a tank, reg, J-Valve/rod and trunks. I love getting attention like this by freaking people out. The "Benthic Alice Cooper Show"!!! Also because I love diving like that too.
But back on point. This dive was test dive number two for my ScubaPro Mk.V/109. The first dive was cut short due to severe wet breathing, more like full on flooding and drinking water. Well, the exhaust valve has got stuck and could not flatten out. Easy fix.
It dove just fine today, actually good performer. Will try it out a few more times before I deem it "dependable" like my Healthways regs are. But it is on it's way.
The second dive was with my AMF/Voit MR-12. Once again I had a free flow that I had to shut the air off to stop. This one is finiky...it will work fine, then like today, I set the second stage down just a bit hard on a table and boom free flow! Once I got it stopped, it did fine in the water. Not sure what is up, but this one has so much potential, yet just keeps surprising me in bad ways.
The last dive was with my Healthways SCUBA Double Hose. What can I say? This reg. works, that is all I can say. I can depend on this one. I started with a full LP-72 and with a max depth of 40' and total dive time of 30 min., I had 1400 PSI left at the end when I put a gauge on. I could tell that it started to breath easier as the air pressure went down. I sort of feel guilty for "neglecting" my US Divers Mistral, but when I dive double hose, this is the one I feel like diving, at least for the Summer of '17.
Mark
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Post by Aquala1 on Sept 24, 2017 20:27:20 GMT -8
I need to grab a pair of the green Churchills someday. I had a couple pair of the blue/yellow fins back in my SoCal years, but they are long gone. Also need to find a Voit double hose someday, just to say I have one. But first I think another Healthways double hose is in the future? Mark I used to have a pair of yellow/blue Churchills back in the day too. I used them when surfing my Boogie board. The heel straps eventually dry rotted, and I never replaced them. These retro green ones are great, and the ones in the photo are XL for wearing with the Aquala. I liked them so much that I found a pair of Large so that I could wear them with bare feet. They're great in the water and are just as maneuverable as a pair of Scubapro Jets. I haven't put one of my Healthways back into to service yet, but I can't say enough good things about the Voit. It breathes great, and this one has a cool history/story behind it. |
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