I’ve seen the question “how do I fit a bungee mount?” asked numerous times on forums and social media so when the time came to re-thread one of my mounts I thought it was time I wrote a blog about how it’s done.
Why use a mount?
For me, it’s not so much about the mount but rather it’s about using bungee straps. Traditional instrument straps, for me at least, can be awkward to use with (dry) gloves, and depending on the compression of your exposure suit, may rotate at depth therefore requires tightening underwater which again is awkward.
By replacing the traditional strap with bungee, tubing, or shock cord, putting on the instrument is easier as it simply slides over your wrist and compresses onto your arm. Because of this compression effect no further adjustment is required at depth (unless your loops are too big to start off with), and, certainly in my case, the straps can be used for a variety of thickness suits without further adjustment.
Additionally, a traditional strap is a single point of failure so if the strap breaks, you’ve lost your instrument unless you use a separate lanyard. By using 2 separate loops (the method that I use and will show you) you have built in redundancy if one loop were to fail.
Once you’ve decided that bungee is for you, you then need to decide on how you’re going to mount it onto your instrument. Fortunately housings, or mounts are available for a number of instruments from Deep Sea Supply (DSS) or similar retailers. However, they are not available for all instruments so you may need to modify the instruments original case and improvise, like I did with my Shearwater Petrel.
Fitting the mount – Compass
Caveat. The method I am about to describe works with a Suunto SK7. The actual method of mounting the compass may vary for other models. Furthermore, for the purpose of mounting the compass, there is already bungee attached to the mount. The threading is shown on the computer mount at the bottom of the blog.
My preference is to initially place the compass and mount into warm water to make the plastic more flexible.
Remove the bezel from the mount and then slide out the compass capsule.
Press the compass capsule into the mount. There should be a small notch inside the mount to assist with the orientation.
Press the bezel into the mount with the grove on the bezel sliding into the notch of the mount. Once positioned correctly it should snap in place.
Fitting the mount – Computer
Caveat. The method I am about to describe works with a Suunto Vytec. The actual method of mounting the computer may vary for other models.
My preference is to initially place the computer and mount into warm water to make the plastic more flexible.
Remove the existing strap rubber cover if applicable. Any plastic screen protector can remain on. If you are unsure how you should be able to find out how in the manual.
Line up the computer with the mount, ensuring that if (in this instance) there is a recess for the battery compartment they are lined up. Press the computer into the mount.
Threading the mount
You will need the following:
1. Approximately 50cm of 3-5mm bungee (depending on the mount and the size of the holes).
2. Lighter.
3. Scissors or a sharp blade.
Cut the bungee into half, and with the instrument facing away from you, thread both ends of the bungee through the outer holes (of one side). Flip over the instrument and thread them back through the inner holes. Size up the bungee based on your exposure suit (taking into account any dry cuffs that may impede donning and doffing if applicable) and then secure both ends using a reef knot (left over right, right over left).
Top tip. To estimate the length of bungee required, wrap the bungee around your arm (including exposure suit), plus a small amount for the knot.
Repeat on the other side. Pull out the loops so that the knots are hidden into the mount recess.
Voila.
Note. DSS have never had a "recommended" lacing path, it has always been their intent that each customer can pick what works best for them.
The boring bit!
All opinions expressed in my articles are my own and may differ to other instructor’s and agency guidelines; by no means are they wrong and I would not wish to disrepute any of them. This article is for information only and should not replace proper training.
Safe diving!
Timothy Gort
BSAC, PADI & SDI/TDI diver training
Always share with us good and valid information. Keep posting.
ReplyDeleteYour Compass related post not bad. But you should ad a video in your post.
Reliable and Professional Logo design Dubai company