Sorry for this Wayne... But you asked for it. A good torch is one that turns on and doesn't cost a friggin fortune in batteries.. LOL

Cheers, Vince

http://vinceholt.spaces.live.com/

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Work Smart - Fish Often

I used the mini Q when I lived down there.  Put it on your mask and you have two hands free for the crays.  Get a couple of dives out of the batteries and they aren't that dear.  I still have mine and it has done over a hundred and fifty dives.

Uses 3 x C size batteries,they usually last for 4-5 hours.They come with a belt clip that lasts about 10 minutes,thats the only thing wrong with them.Cannot help on where to buy them as we were supplied with them as a work torch at Tiwest.They are about 7 1/2ins long x 2 ins diameter.Guaranteed for 100metres

most  of the pistol grip torches are good and they usually have two globes in each incase one blows instead of having to carry a back up torch.I'll never go in a cave that i can't see light at the other end of without a back up torch, heard too many urban myths of the guy who was night diving in caves torch went out and couldn't tell wat was up and down and wat not and never came back. I personally have the sl6 which has always been sufficient but i always carry a crappy back up torch in my bcd pocket.

How was the dive i've wanted to check out eglington for a while now, were you near or did u see the wreck? if so is there much left of it?

Makes it hard to use the snare when you have to hold the torch but you are right it can be a bit scarey going into some caves if you cant see the back.  I wont dive at night, dont like it.

cheers vince - was more getting at the size/style/use of the torch.  I've heard of a few guys having different setups (eg, some even taping the torch to their cray loops) so wanted to see what everyone else is using and what setups they have.

cheers for the replys everyone:)  I'll look into the models you've mentioned.  Reefmonkey - the pistol grips torches sound good by having two globes.  What about LED torches, i assume they are better than the standard globes?

Yeah the dive was pretty good though not as successful as the one you posted earlier! (11m hillarys).  The alkimos wreck is a little further up.  I wouldn't mind diving that though to be honest for some reason that place has a weird feeling about it.  It might be to do with "stories" you hear about it though even from fishing around it some early misty mornings you start to wonder...

There's not much left of it now.  most of it has rusted and dropped into the ocean though with it only being 7-9m around that area it just under the surface.

So with the cray side of things - do you think we should be trying deeper water?  We actaully saw some of the commercial boats dropping their pots in close today which i guess is a good sign?  One other question - when they are migrating back in is it better to be diving the "ocean side" of these reefs?

cheers

wayne

Mate we only dive the ocean side of the reefs.  Much cleaner reef and found there are more crays.  You get crays at all depths but I wouldn't go much less than 10 mtrs and dont get stuck just diving the exposed reefs.  There are a lot that you cant see which dont get hammered as hard.  Exposed reef is like a magnet to every idiot with a tank or a snorkel.

good to know mick - i guess that's why the commericial boat were dropping their pots on the ocean side of the reefs today then.  Yeah i've seen a few good bommies on the sounder in open water so it's probably best to start checking those out.  can't wait until i have a gps full of good dive marks!:)

yea i pretty much stay away from exposed reefs too i look for drop offs, ledges and such in deeper water.

i usually mark most my new dives around now as its gettin time to try wing a metro mackie! you've got an excuse to troll all over the three mile and depths from 8-18m always keep one eye on your sounder one eye over the side and your ears out for that bzzzzzzzzzz :) but yea i find most of my dives trolling around contours and just were i know reef is if somethin looks cool on the sounder it gets marked on the gps and if were in the area next time we may jump on in, also i usually just look over the side of the boat if i see a patch of sand to throw the anchor at and 1 meter ledge on the sounder surrounding it thats pretty much wat i'll always want in a dive a nice sandy ledge :) jump on in swim around and u usually find some pretty cool dives. thats my favourite type of dive finding new ground

If i troll all day and don't catch squat(which is all to common) i'm always happy as i'm not at work and i've usually got another ten marks in the gps to try dive another day

We always use mini Q's when diving during the day BUT we tape them onto the snare so wherever you point it you have light and keep both hands free for the snare and cray. it also comes in LED version too but is expensive compared to the normal globe

To all the virgins..............Thanks for nothing!

I'm same as Fishy - Mini Q40 for day dives and I use a UK D8 at night (with Q40 in my BCD as backup)...

Wayne i dont agree with taping a mini Q on your noos as it sometimes spooks the crays but if you must tape it on the opposite side to the noose. i personaly use a      SL6 wichis about 10inches long by 2and a half wide and 1thick it is nicely weighted so it will sit nicely on the ledge or bottom and light up the area behind the cray where you want to see so you can see the tail to noose( it takes 6 c cell bateries but just use rechargable ones they last for ages) it has a lanyard wich strap on your hand and when you find a cray take it off and position it and your hands are free to try to catch them put them in your catch bag then pick up your torch ready for the next one 

If you want to dive at night that realy depends on your budget as they vary from a hundred to thousands let me know what you want and hopefully i can point you in the right direction

Like GrahamM said, i too like the bigger torch with pistol grip.  On the small pistol grips I would even tape on a sheet of lead to keep the beam down and more stable.  Resting the torch on a ledge is best.  The least amount of light in a crays face the better.

I tried a season with a miniQ on the end of the loop and found that too many crays shy away and it can also impede getting the loop behind a cray in a tight spot.

If you intend to dive often, then invest in a recharge battery pack.  Can't go wrong with UK.  I had a UK1200 for nearly 20 years (was $500 back then!) - went cu-put last year.   Now have a UK light canon - ~$400 with recharge pack and is fantastic for night dives.

Cheers Pete

I don't think strapping it to you snare is a good idea wayne.  I have always just had it on my mask.  If your not night diving just get an led mini Q for now and see how you go.  If you decide you need a bigger torch then you will always have the mini for getting your head in those hard to reach spots.  It wont just sit there not getting used, trust me.

I prefer the small LED nova torch which I always keep on a gear saver on my BC during day or night dives. Always comes in handy and packs a real punch for a small little thing! About $100 in local stores.

For night diving, I use the Princeton Tec Shockwave 2 LED. Sweet torch that's not too bad on batteries with a low and high setting. It's a pistol grip that runs off 8 x C batteries. I got mine on Dive Imports for $109 US but it's about $300 locally I think.

Don't forget to turn it off after day dives (like I always do) cause batteries cost a bloody fortune.

You can always catch a beer

Andy

cheers for the response fellas.  Good to get a few different opinions on this.  

At the moment our main goal is to focus on crays whilst doing a number of dives to get our experience up.  Later on we plan to do the "advanced" dive course which at that stage i'll probably look at night diving torches though for now i'l mainly be focusing on using the torch during the day.

From what you guys have said i think i'll start off with a mini Q then look at getting a pistol grip in a couple of months.  After spending ova $2k on gear already I need to tighten the belt abit:)

Graham, what you said about the light shinning in the crays face too much seems to be a valid point!  I think intially i'll just use the torch in my hand or may even get my buddy to hold it. That's assuming we find some crays - at the moment they seem hard to come across!

Is anyone else heading out this weekend? just looked at seabreeze - seems pretty awesome for both sat and sun! - hhhmmm, might have to have a sicky on monday aswell;)

Using the torch whilst craying should be a last resort.  Treat it like a visit to the nocturnal house at the zoo.  Stick ya head in and let your eyes adjust to the low like.  You will catch more crays.

Hate it when a buddy comes along flashing his torch around to see what I'm catching.

Will be out Sunday am for a couple of quickies.

Cheers Pete

Wayne im keen for a dive or 2 this weekend happy to come along and show you a few tricks and have a chat i am working some of the weekend but should be able to fit something in PM me with your contact details if you want to do this

I've been away a few days but a princeton tec minwave LED for a main torch for night diving, impact XL for a backup. They have a nice LED pack that throws in a few lanyards/retractors and a tank light.

I've spent a fair bit of time experimenting with torch lights over the last few years re cray diving. The use of no lights, some light & bright lights was tried. The verdict "for me" was when i use very little light or no light my catch went down and the crays often bolted when i tried to adjust my eyes or couldnt see them properly!

So, i use a Mini Q on my loop, i use a Underwater Kinetics Light Cannon 100 (pistol grip) and have found if you cant see them or whats in the cave then my catch is reduced. I've had them bolt with and without light and i've had my powerful light right in their face and they dont even flinch.....if anything it dazes them often!

Mini-Q lights are good on a snare, a cheap bright torch works well in the hand and you can get Tusa Halogen torches for $39.95 which does the job. Another torch that is bigger & has the pistol grip that works well is the "Ikelite" about $170. Rechargable batterys as mentioned is the go if you go this direction!

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