I'm hoping (eventually) to free-dive sumps 2 and 3 in Swildons (and then all the other free-diveable-while-maintaining-a-pulse ones) and I was wondering what thickness of hood to get and what sort of mask to buy.

Should I get a 5mm hood if I'm thinking of doing these things in winter as well as the rest of the year? Or will 2.5mm usually suffice?

How much of my face am I aiming to cover with a mask, eyes and nostrils, just eyes etc?


I have no intention of moving on to cave diving so don't need any equipment that would also fit that purpose.
Ta,

(apologies is this has been answered elsewhere on the forum but I couldn't find a satisfactory answer)

5mm hood (warm = comfortable and composed = safe). Only drawback; not versatile for caving eg a little claustrophobic for passages such as Long Round, Watergate etc. Whichever thickness you buy, make sure that it fits well, i.e. covers forehead and tucks down neck at back of wetsuit (very important this latter if you're a sybarite).

Diving mask with glass lense and 'unbreakable' strap of some sort. Covers more of face than swimming goggles (see note above). Glass scratches less easily than plastic so you can make your mask last for years. Solid strap so you don't have to dive out with one hand holding mask to face! The neoprene and velcro ones are quite good in this respect but if you can only get silicone or rubber straps, take a spare.

Play safe out there; big boys games...**

** ...and girls, naturally. Deep play available to all is my motto.

Thanks, that's really, really useful.

All I need to do now is find somebody I know to hold my hand! (figuratively of course)

Anybody have any offers/ideas? (I'm UBSS)

...er, wait for the water to get warmer?.... and consider entering at Swildon's IV, thereby negating the need to bother with sumps 2 and 3.

cap 'n chris said:

and consider entering at Swildon's IV, thereby negating the need to bother with sumps 2 and 3.

Click to expand...

But where would the fun be in that?!

3mm - 5mm removable hood and a cheap mask.

Stu.