Marker buoys to make or to buy

[maverixxx]

After a couple of rookie errors I have become acutely aware of safety when I am in the water. once getting carried away in every sense of the word when I was exploring and not watching the tide. Another when I was experimenting with how to carry a gun when the flapper slid into a rock crevice and wanted to stay. Ultimately I have realised that a board/buoy to use as a platform/marker/drinks cooler etc. would be a definite benefit

I know a few of you use them, and was trying to keep it cheap to make one using water bottles as bladders. However a fag packet budget seems to show its going to cost as much if not more once I've bought webbing, D rings, line etc. and that before the time I will need to put into it.

So I am seriously considering the Best Hunter double bladder as it comes with line and is good to go. Although I will be pimping the flag a little to make it more obvious.

Hoped that the DB collective might have some thoughts on this and how it compares to other markers.
Thanks in advance Mav.

 

[kookiebrew]

i got that very one last year and have no probs with it...your right about the flag.... i inserted a plastic clip that i can screw the flag into...had to glue a screw into the end of flag pole too...found the perfect thing off the childs toilet see hahaha... got a water bottle carrier from a sports shop and just wrapped the strap over the bungee, works a treat...you might want to put a small weight underneath to stop it capsizing (i use a .5kg drop weight)...i got 2m of bungee from ebay for about 2 quid which i criss crossed over the top so i can put my fins into while carrying to the water...only other thing is a basic stringer which i tie underneath.... hope that helps

 

[maverixxx]

Thanks, very much what I had been planning, was going to see if I could somehow attach a dry bag and otter box, so the idea of ballast had already crossed my mind.

Did you find there are enough attachment points?

And where did you get yours? scuba store keeps coming up but they don't get the best customer service reviews.

 

[kookiebrew]

reckon a dry bag might be a bit big.... i have an airtight box i got of ebay that i store car key and mobile phone...fits nicely in the main pocket...i have a nice size net i tie underneath to carry crabs...had 5 crabs in it few weeks back (brother left his behind) biggest weighing over 2.4kg so it can take a bit of weight... only other thing i did was changed the line... i got an omer bungee line stretches 3 times it size....less to get caught up in...you can hold 3 guns underneath and plenty d-rings to attach things to.. i got mine of scubastore too...hope that helps

 

[Panhandle]

I've got one of those too.
Heaps of attachment points and clips. Flag pole is just cheap plastic so stood on that quite early on and managed to snap it but can be easily replaced by anything roughly the same diameter.
I added a 45cm webbing loop attached to the handle to sling over my shoulder to make walking to the water easier but it has taken a year of solid abuse and still looks fine.
I bought from that company too and had no problems, just check it is listed as in stock as I think their back orders can be glacially slow

 

[maverixxx]

Very usefull to know. I was thinking of a 1litre exped dry bag for bits and bobs mainly Star bars and a can of Coke.
gives me hope in ordering from scubastore too.

 

[kookiebrew]

small dry bag would be fine...thought you meant a big one for your clothes hahahaha

 

[maverixxx]

small dry bag would be fine...thought you meant a big one for your clothes hahahaha

I was figuring on leaving all that on the beach I have the usual man habit of "Getting kit drunk." (taking more than I need .) so trying to optimise what I take with me.

 

[Derekn]

Have you had a look at the Banks Board? In my opinion this board is one of the best, despite what I like to think I'm probably not the easiest on my gear but this is a very tough dive platform which ticks all the boxes for me. I got mine last year and although its not the cheapest it will probably be the only one I'm ever going to have to buy. Have a look at the review on here:

BanksBoards – a new era in Diveboards : Medfish Magazine

Mine came with the flagpole (not in pics) but I had to buy the flag separately which was inexpensive from scubastore. You can customise your order to suit your needs but I would try and get all you need at the same time as shipping is from the US. If you're interested you can PM the maker here on DB, his user name is Ekinoderminator (John Banks) and he was very good at replying to my questions...he also paid my shipping as I was his first Irish order (it came to around 75 US Dollars) check out the facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/BanksBoard

 

[BarnacleBoy]

The BanksBoards look great. My only concern is it's another 5kg to carry...but it certainly looks like it'd do everything you need.

 

[Derekn]

The BanksBoards look great. My only concern is it's another 5kg to carry...but it certainly looks like it'd do everything you need.

With the backpack harness on its quiet easy to manage, but I suppose its down to what you carry on the board with you.

 

[BarnacleBoy]

Yeah, I guess it would make one neat backpack rather than all the bits that I cary down to the waterfront.

 

[Highlander]

Have you had a look at the Banks Board? In my opinion this board is one of the best, despite what I like to think I'm probably not the easiest on my gear but this is a very tough dive platform which ticks all the boxes for me. I got mine last year and although its not the cheapest it will probably be the only one I'm ever going to have to buy. Have a look at the review on here:

BanksBoards – a new era in Diveboards : Medfish Magazine

Mine came with the flagpole (not in pics) but I had to buy the flag separately which was inexpensive from scubastore. You can customise your order to suit your needs but I would try and get all you need at the same time as shipping is from the US. If you're interested you can PM the maker here on DB, his user name is Ekinoderminator (John Banks) and he was very good at replying to my questions...he also paid my shipping as I was his first Irish order (it came to around 75 US Dollars) check out the facebook page: http://www.facebook.com/BanksBoard

Hi Derek, I have now received my board in white.......... Hopefully I can get in soon & use in anger so to speak & I will try & post a few photos for you as requested in this thread. It took bloomin ages to get here & clear customs mind you. I'm sure it is going to be worth it, but I doubt it will improve my fishing, maybe I should add a fish finder to it, but maybe that is cheating....

Cheers

Scott

 

[Derekn]

I thought about doing that too , It would be handy for getting depth readings though and its probably as easy to just stick your head in the water as you fin out to your dive site. I've heard of some people attaching "flashers" to their float to draw in the fish as they hide in the kelp...might be a thought...good luck with the new board.

 

[Slicky]

I have used the basic cressi torpedo for 10 yrs now and don't know how it has survived this long. I really can’t recommend them enough.

I decided recently that I wanted to get more of my gear out of the water to reduce drag and have some space for a strobe, phone and some drink/food which I wanted well clear of the water. I was set on the Best Hunter surface board due to the design being what I was after but it was much cheaper than the other ones on the market. http://www.decathlon.co.uk/okipa-light-id_8174201.html

I soon realised that I really didn’t need to be buying & storing another float system so modified what I already had (luckily I’d bought another cressi float previously) and the attached picture is what I came up with, I don’t pretend it to be particularly pretty but it does the job well. The small bag is big enough to hold a small water bottle, torch, strobe, phone and a small amount of food. I also stitched SOLAS reflective tape down the sides of it to give me a chance at night and it's still got 9 attachment points free on the belly of each buoy. Winner!

Mind you those best hunter buoys are going for just £50 in decathlon at the moment and someone else has done all the hard work . . . . . tempting