Posts by Dan

Thanks

That was indeed nice to see. Thanks David. I met Martin a little while back and showed him the wetsuits and fins. Also I believe a few guys participating in his courses have showed up with Pursuit gear.

It's just something I want to do. Now can someone recommend a cheap and compact TIG machine for very small jobs like in the pics I posted. That is the extent to which I'll be using it. I watched the welder do those and I can see that it's within my capabilities. Driving there and back to someone's place to give them the pieces to weld, and coordinating a time will take way longer and more effort than doing it myself. It's literally a 5 minute job to pull out the machine, plug it into an outlet, and put one or two welding points on a piece that doesn't even need to be set up/aligned.

So which one of the lower cost welders in the link I posted would be adequate?

I can't see why they would. And you could use the shaft with a line if you wanted to.

Doesn't get much cheaper than this http://spearfishing.world/spea…rsuit-sa-euro-shafts.html If you mind the notches buy a slightly longer one and cut the back end off.

Thanks Bamz. I've been doing some reading and it looks like for precision work TIG is recommended over other types of welding? I'm not looking to do jobs any bigger than what you see in the pics I posted, and only from time to time. Will any of the lower priced units on this page do the job? http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result/?&category=Welding&CatPath=All+Products%2F%2F%2F%2FUserSearch%3Dwelder////Welding&ResultsPerPage=27&defsortcols=&q=welder&mode=grid&RequestData=CA_CategoryExpand

Are you looking for stainless steel or coated?

What is this type of welding called? If I want to put a pin on a stainless steel shaft for loading a band. I drill a hole for the pin, insert the pin in the hole, then I want to put a small weld there so the pin will never come out. The weld also needs to be stainless steel, and I need to be able to file it down/smooth it out.

What is the cheapest and most compact setup I can buy, to do occasional small jobs like this at home?

It's the same welding I had done with this

and this

Welcome Tony.

Hank, I'm sure you know that I enjoy your posts, and this thread is no exception, so let there be no misunderstanding. I just have a different opinion that I offer here, perhaps in a blunt manner but in no way directed at anyone personally or meant to offend.

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Most times, in any skill or profession, when someone thinks they know it all already, they're going to get their butt handed to them soon.

Agreed, but I don't feel I know it all when it comes to diving and spearfishing. I just feel that what I need to learn will be revealed to me at the right time in a non artificial diving environment.

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Have you ever blacked out? Have you seen someone black out? Do you know the rescue procedure for a blackout?

I've never blacked out but on a couple of occasions felt I might have been close. I've only seen guys black out in videos. My instinctive reaction would be to get the blackout victim to where they have access to air as fast as possible, that would include keeping their airways out of the water. Another instinctive reaction would be to slap them to get them breathing if they're not breathing. I've been told that blowing on the face will work, but guess what, if it doesn't work quick I'll be slapping them. I think at this point CPR knowledge that is specific to water rescues, such as what lifeguards learn, would be useful and it can be acquired for free.

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Do you know the recommended surface intervals for various depth dives in order to safely recover?

Yes, when I feel comfortable to dive again, and this largely depends on diving conditions and how I'm performing on a given day. There is no set time for this, anyone who says otherwise is full of shit.

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Where do blackouts actually happen. Under water? On the surface?

A blackout can happen anywhere, it can happen tying your shoe laces just not very likely. It happens when you don't get enough oxygen, and that's enough for me to know.

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What are the signs if your buddy is about to black out?

Any behavior that is different than than what a normal self aware diver would be exhibiting. If someone doesn't know what is normal diver behavior they really shouldn't be counting on a freediving course to teach them that. Knowing about small indications would not be worth much if you're not watching the diver closely. If you're watching closely you will always see when something is wrong. Anyone can recognize a passed out diver.

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we learned about breathing up, relaxing and steamlining for more efficient dives.

Breathing up is something we all do at our own pace and style. That and streamlining for diving are very basic concepts. Some guys need to be told to go straight down rather than angle.

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Don is correct. Someday on charters, a cert for free diving may be required.

I disagree, I just can't see commercial operators asking for certifications on snorkeling trips. It would be hard to draw the line between that and freediving on a serious level, although it can probably be done by a few select operators looking to reduce their risk/liability. But in the end spearfishing is always a risky activity so I don't know if it will do any good.

I think I said enough so I'll stay out of the rest of this discussion. One last thing, if there's a good realistic freediving course/geared towards spearfishing, I'll support and advocate it, even encourage it to advertise on the forum.

Quote from nyspear

Great post, Hank. I'm definitely a PFI advocate

Well you're an advocate and I'm not, at least until I see something coming out of it rather blackouts, or some of that safety knowledge outlined. You must be aware that this is open for discussion right? The thread is in the diving section not the "I had a wonderful experience that I want to share" section.

Why does no one ever want to post about those safety issues? Just that the course was great. I guess I'll never know what those safety issues are.

When I see posts about freediving courses the emphasis is usually on depth and static breathhold. Waste of time IMO as it's not applicable to real diving conditions. Going down a rope in ideal conditions when you know a professional is watching your every move is far removed from the conditions we face when spearfishing.

The other beneficial information often mentioned is safety. But how much instruction time is really necessary to understand some basic safety issues. Watch your buddy if that's what you agreed on doing, don't hyperventilate. Can someone for once list the safety points covered by the course?

You can make a solid speargun stock from teak as well.

oh that was not directed at you, I was just speaking out. And It's not the first time, most here know where I stand on this. But it's good to say it again so someone who doesn't know be aware of the other side of the coin, and I'm glad you get my idea. Nowadays a freediving course under one's belt is like bling for a beginning spearfisher. The best guys I know never took a course and I'd trust them to do the right thing. You don't acquire deep diving sense over a weekend, it happens over years of experience. What I see people acquiring consistently from these courses is the idea that they can go deeper than they really should. Fortunately self preservation kicks in when they're in real conditions.

Take the course, use their techniques which lead to black out and black out. And that's a good thing because now you know what you shouldn't do. Well, I haven't been doing it anyways so I'm fine. That's what I get out of every similar description of people having gone through this PFI or FII experience. I must be the dumbest ~`~`~`~` that's ever held a speargun because I don't see the point of giving my money to people who simply don't do what I like to do, in order to learn how I should do it better. But if that's what you need to get it through your head that if you stop breathing long enough you'll pass out, so be it. Just my :twocents:

Interesting pic.

Not any more than the original curved glass Gopro housing lens. That is more of a problem for cold water, and there are anti-fog inserts that fix it.

Nice video Javi.