KITTED-UP
45m Stainless Steel Finger Spool
There ’ s little – if indeed anything – that can go wrong with a spool and Beaver ’ s 45 metre stainless steel finger spool is a case in point . At eight centimetres in diameter the 304-grade stainless device
The impressively-named Innovative Scuba Concepts ( ISC ) Finger Spool is available in small , medium and large sizes , containing 19m , 30m and 45m of high-visibility neon line respectively . The spool itself is manufactured from a ‘ high impact ’ plastic material with a diameter of just over 8cm . Also supplied with a brass bolt-snap , I tried out the inexpensive 45-metre version for linewas supplied complete with high-visibility orange nylon line and a double-ended bolt snap ( it ’ s also available in 15m and 30m versions ). The 3cm-wide centre void made easy work of controlling both the amount of line and the speed at which I laid it . A combined finger and thumb method seemed to work well for stop / start areas between pieces of wreckage , while a single-finger allowed rapid deployment when covering greater distances across open spaces . Used in conjunction with a DSMB , the finger spool also did the business without drama .
MGE Finger Reel
While reels and spools each have their pros and cons , the main advantages of a spool are its compact size and lightweight nature . MGE ’ s rigid plastic finger reel / spool measures 7cm across by 4cm deep and contains 30 metres of 2mmthick white nylon line . Even including its double-ended bolt snap , the whole kit and caboodle weighs just 145g . This easily-stowed package provides a simple and straightforward means to navigate a wreck , or doubles-up as a vehicle to send up a DSMB to mark the completion of a dive . As an underwater photographer it ’ s often a lot easier ( for selfish me anyway ) to let my buddy take care of matters with a conventional reel . However , in the event of separation , a spool such as this that can be deployed quickly and effectively , so your surface cover knows exactly where you are . While I ’ d be loath to deploy and subsequently rewind the line from any great depth , I found that a midwater deployment , as shallow as six metres , was perfectly feasible .
ISC Finger Spool
COMPANY : CPS PARTNERSHIP PRICE : £ 14.95 TEL : 01424 442663
WEB : WWW . CPSPARTNERSHIP . CO . UK laying during a navigational exercise . While the bright yellow line soon lost its colour at depth , under torchlight its hue returned as I retraced my steps , gathering in the line as I went . While the 2.5cm ( 1-inch ) centre hole wasn ’ t large enough to fully insert a gloved finger , my thumb and middle digit conspired well for deployment . Holding the rim of the spool and using the snap bolt to rewind the line worked a treat . The same method worked equally as well when using a DSMB and simply clipping onto the spool ’ s outer holes at my safety stop depth kept the line securely in place .
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