SCUBA diving from Yamaha 24 footer?

[atompoweur]

We are gonna sign the papers for an SX240 today. We are planning to using mostly for touring and skiing but thought it might be nice to dive from it once and a while.

Has anyone tried to build a scuba tank rack on the back swim platform? Or Inside the cockpit? I would like to be able to hold 4 or 6 tanks and working on some ideas.

Great forum!

 

[Betik]

is this a new boat you are getting? If so i would suggest holding on the tanks for a few years. It might put a few dings on the new gel-coat.
In my opinion the best way will be puting them flat in the cockpit. The same kind of removable rack will on the bed of truck.
Please note that this boats experience very high Gs in comparison to BAU scuba boat, so the tank could very well cost a damage.

Although, you might want to check with @DiverB ,I think he brought some tanks in Bimini.

 

[atompoweur]

is this a new boat you are getting? If so i would suggest holding on the tanks for a few years. It might put a few dings on the new gel-coat.
In my opinion the best way will be puting them flat in the cockpit. The same kind of removable rack will on the bed of truck.
Please note that this boats experience very high Gs in comparison to BAU scuba boat, so the tank could very well cost a damage.

Although, you might want to check with @DiverB ,I think he brought some tanks in Bimini.

Thanks for the reply.
Yes it is a new boat. I am also concerned with damagung the gelcoat . Maybe I will wait a bit to see how it handles . Eventually I would like to find a rack that would minimize any damage .

 

[Betik]

I would strongly suggest so and try to rent tanks at destination. I assume you will want tondive at salt water and that is where the boat will be be moving all over the place.
Are you diving al80 ? Of double steels with manifold ?

 

[Scuba_ref]

I have an older boat so may not translate, but two tanks would did nicely under the cockpit seats. Two on each side at least, maybe three. It would be easy hold them stable in there.

 

[atompoweur]

I will take a look and see how they fit under the seats .

It is just an idea right now but I would mostly be diving in the Lake Superior or Lake Michigan. Some day, I would love to tow it down to make a trip to Bimini (that idea was mostly put in my head by this forum and what ultimately pushed us into the decision to get this boat .

 

[Betik]

I bet you $20 that “some day “ = Bimini 2019

 

[atompoweur]

I bet you $20 that “some day “ = Bimini 2019

That's funny. Maybe I should just pay up now because it is seriously what I think about when I am sleeping. We are gonna cross Lake Michigan this summer first.

 

[Betik]

LOL that is what you will be thinking tonight. But do you want me to tell you what you will thinking tomorrow night?
should I say it not or wait until tomorrow ?

 

[swatski]

We are gonna cross Lake Michigan this summer first.

Would you be willing to share your trip plans? Very interested in that!


As far as he tanks, you may be surprised how much space there is under those cockpit seats. Unfortunately there is not that much space for a solid standup rack - unless you adapted the "head" compartment, and the swim platform will not work as it has wet storage compartments and the hatch for cleanout plugs (both very useful BTW).
On the positive side, the access from swim deck is fantastic.

Keep us posted!

--

 

[robert843]

I bet something like this would work if you didn't want something permanent. You could set the suction cups in the flat cooler storage area under the seat.

https://www.leisurepro.com/p-mhs3ush/the-ultimate-scuba-tank-holder-by-max-holding-systems-3-tanks?gclid=Cj0KCQiAoY7VBRDtARIsAHWoO-IT3RkuiMjTvn9iJEjwhIpWEgViUAjcYSt9aA0RFQdtsAD4enH9KgkaAkDZEALw_wcB&kwid=productads-adid^228662146455-device^c-plaid^346262997349-sku^MHS3USH@ADL4LP-adType^PLA

 

[atompoweur]

Would you be willing to share your trip plans? Very interested in that!


As far as he tanks, you may be surprised how much space there is under those cockpit seats. Unfortunately there is not that much space for a solid standup rack - unless you adapted the "head" compartment, and the swim platform will not work as it has wet storage compartments and the hatch for cleanout plugs (both very useful BTW).
On the positive side, the access from swim deck is fantastic.

Keep us posted!

--

I sure will, It is just an idea right now . I don't even have the boat yet but I did drop off my old boat at the dealer already. Oh yeah we need that hard crusty stuff that floats on the lake up here to melt first too.

 

[Cobra Jet Steering LLC]

can you construct a 4 tank rack 2 plus 2 and have it go into the table leg hole?? just a suggestion center of the boat so less movement and better balance

 

[PeterB]

I stow tanks in the center ski locker, padded with some old cushions and life jackets. I strap two tanks together so they don't roll. We use steel 95's and 130's. This was not ideal, but it worked.
Looking seriously at a rebreather to get away from heavy tanks though.

We dive cold water, so dry suits, and lots of weight.

We clip off our bcd's to a line when we re board- pull the tanks in once onboard to minimize risk of damage

Diving isn't our main use for this boat, so this is occasional use - and has not caused any damage so far.

I also keep a Mantus pony bottle harness on board for a simple way to make a quick dive with minimal fuss and equipment.

There was a thread on another site that talked about using the table bracket to mount a tank holder as @Cobra Jet Steering LLC suggested. I never saw the pictures or heard feedback about it though

Enjoy the new boat!

 

[bumpy]

On my old Four Winns, I took the port seat off of the pedestal and strapped 4 large diameter pipes around it. An aluminum 80 could fit into each pipe with additional straps/bungees to grab handles for more complete motion control . I'm not sure if that is an option for you, but the table leg may act as an anchor point in the same way.

 

[haknslash]

What about those newer Mantus Scuba Pack tanks/system https://jetboaters.net/threads/scuba-pack.16267/? Obviously your dive time would be less than a larger tank but they would also allow you to carry on several smaller tanks and stuff them in tighter areas than a large cylinder.

If you guys know the diameter and length of the cylinders we may offer a bracket that would work. Does this need to be USCG Approved? We have some that use a rubber bungee-style strap that may work. This is our Model 864 designed for a 7" diameter cylinder. Probably a bit overkill for your needs.

 

[atompoweur]

Thanks for all of the suggestions, this will help figure out what to do. When I pick up the boat I will see what I can figure out. I think we will start small and if necessary build a rack.

 

[Bruce]

That's funny. Maybe I should just pay up now because it is seriously what I think about when I am sleeping. We are gonna cross Lake Michigan this summer first.

Why put off until 2019 what you can do in 2018?

 

[JeffVans]

can you construct a 4 tank rack 2 plus 2 and have it go into the table leg hole?? just a suggestion center of the boat so less movement and better balance

Ooooo!!!!! I like that idea, but do you think the table mount will hold up to that much weight/momentum on rough seas or fast cursing speeds? Not sure that the backing behind the table holders are strong enough????

 

[PeterB]

I think I would be more trusting of mounts with multiple anchor points, but I would love to see the mount referenced for the table mount if anyone has pictures or a link. There was a link to the other site, but the pictures were not visible.

For now, I'll just lay tanks down in the center locker or under seats with some roll control. But keep in perspective I only dive this boat once in a while, and in easy conditions.

I'd like to set something better up though, so would love to see pics if anyone comes up with any ideas.