tie-wraps are good to use for compression fittings like holding the inflator
to the corregated hose.  But I've found that they are no good when used
alone to attach loose equipment because they are easily broken when twisted.

A better way to attach something like a whistle is to use a tank o-ring (or
other heavy o-ring) in combination with the tie-wrap.  Your whistle is less
likely to come off if attached this way but you will still be able to break
it loose if it is really snagged on something.  Bend the o-ring in half and
slip one end through the loop on the whistle then run the tie-wrap through
the two loops of o-ring that poke out each side.  This way the o-ring
absorbs the twisting force.  If you don't have a tank o-ring you can find
big heavy o-rings for a few cents each at any hardware store.  You want one
about an inch in diameter.

As for the DIR way to attach a whistle?  Hell if I know.  Personally what I
do is slip a small signal mirror and whistle on a lanyard into my canister
light between the battery and canister wall. There's enough space there to
fit a small flat whistle.  You want the kind of whistle that the Coast Guard
guys keep attached to their jacket zippers. In the event that I would ever
be in a rescue situation in which the whistle is needed, I would pull it out
and put the mirror and whistle around my neck on the lanyard.  So far that's
never been needed.

If I was diving without a canister light in warm water and I thought that a
whistle was necessary, I'd probably just attach it to the corregated hose as
described above.

-Kent-

-----Original Message-----
From: SouthEast US Scuba Diving Travel list
[mailto:[log in to unmask]]On Behalf Of Michael Levy
Sent: Thursday, May 23, 2002 6:14 AM
To: [log in to unmask]
Subject: Re: [SCUBA-SE] DIR rig for whistle ?


 . On Thu, 23 May 2002 15:05:31 +0100 Andy M Johnson wrote:

> >I have it tie wrapped to my inflator hose, just the right length to
> >reach my mouth and easy to see during equipment checks.
> >I doubt the tie wrap meets DIR standards.  ;-)
> >Michael
>
> My thoughts entirely. But the last whistle I had was tie wrapped to the
> inflator & it is now somewhere off of Tobago (come to think of it, no-one

Did it get snagged on something... or was the visual inspection cycle
for the tie wrap spread a little too long?  ;-)

I always put a new wrap on just before I leave on a dive trip as I
will be too far away from my local Fox-40 (pealess) whistle store.


--
Michael