Cutting Tools -

Cutting Tools

Article by José Pablo Mir

We know the need to carry at least one cutting tool suited to the type of dive and environment we plan to visit. This has been told and emphasized in some of the institutional materials from the courses we’ve taken, likely since our early days as open-water divers.

But beyond those particular study texts, the idea of “appropriate for the type of dive and environment” seems to get diluted in the multitude of articles and posts across all the media divers use to stay informed and interact with each other.

Is any tool good enough?

When someone claims that practically any cutting tool will serve our purpose, they should clarify the specific application environment that the statement refers to. Generalizing and downplaying the need for tools with special features, depending on the situation, can lead some divers to increase the level of risk they may face in certain dives.

Moreover, the ones most affected by this lack of clarity are usually the least experienced, those who most need as many data points as possible to base their decisions on.

In other words, claiming or implying that divers only need a modest line cutter, a basic pair of scissors, or a small, blunt, and not-too-sharp knife, without further explanation, is simply a mistake, one that, if taken at face value by an inattentive diver, could end up costing them deeply.

My entanglements and other mishaps

Being precise and objective about our own experiences is not as easy as it seems — or as we think it should be. And I don’t say that due to a lack of self-criticism, but rather because of the tendency to minimize incidents that we develop as we gain experience. It’s not the same as overconfidence, but it can lead to it.

“I’ve never been entangled on any of my dives.” That’s the answer I’ve always given to those who asked. And it’s always been an honest answer, I really believed it, until I started preparing this article and began reflecting more deeply and reviewing old memories and logbooks. Now it’s clear to me that I should have seriously questioned that perfect record of zero entanglements over thousands of dives, many of them deep wreck penetrations in low visibility, wearing thick, restrictive thermal protection.

Being careful, staying alert, maintaining situational awareness, and maybe a bit of luck that’s not enough to guarantee 100% effectiveness in those environments and types of dives over 30 years. And during the first half of those 30 years, I dove only sporadically, without real chances of gaining meaningful experience in dealing with unforeseen events, and without any formal training.

Yes, I got lucky, but… that lucky that much?

The truth is that on several occasions, I had to cut fishing lines off my legs, arms, or parts of my gear. I even recall times when my wife — who was diving with me — helped me free myself. Why didn’t I register those events as real entanglements? Probably because their impact on those dives was minimal. In all those cases, the solution took mere seconds and didn’t lead to any notable delay or deviation.

Most of the time, I just used the simplest and smallest tool at hand. This is part of the strategy of solving any issue with the minimum tool in the safest way. No need to draw a knife when a small line cutter will do the job.

But there were times when I used one of my knives to cut through ropes I encountered during deep penetrations. A couple of times, even electrical cables that looked ready to snag on my gear. While these weren’t full entanglements, they could’ve become one. In hindsight, I should have considered them as potential entanglements when sharing stories or answering related questions.

A few years ago, while diving the Ayuruoca (sometimes called the Oil Wreck in New Jersey), I was maneuvering through a narrow vertical rectangular opening. A long, thin piece of metal caught the D-ring from which I had just detached one of my deco cylinders to move it forward and reduce my profile.

If you picture the scene, you’ll understand that in a tight passage, looking back (and up) is not always easy or possible. On top of that, thick neoprene gloves don’t help much when trying to feel what’s going on out of sight.Backing up didn’t help. But by feeling, I discovered that this flat metal rod extended forward, where I could see it. I could tell that even though it blended in with the structure, it was a separate piece, just resting or wedged in. Of course, at the moment, our thoughts aren’t as clear or eloquent as what we can later write. But that was the mental image I formed of the situation.

Using that mental model, I pulled on the D-ring, slid my knife in, and used it as a lever to slowly separate the rod while backing out. It all happened below me, out of sight, guided by touch, but it worked. I avoided having to cut the webbing of my harness, which would’ve been a more drastic, troublesome, and costly solution.

I didn’t log that incident as an entanglement; I recorded it as an “entrapment.” Now I think that wasn’t quite accurate. I’ve just renamed it.

Though I describe these events with words and detail that might make them sound significant, at the time, they didn’t feel like a big deal. And that’s where the problem, or danger, lies.

We often solve mishaps without giving them much thought, or without acknowledging that they could’ve been real problems. This creates a false sense that incidents are rare, and maybe not worth accounting for in planning. Worse yet, we might start believing that our type of diving is inherently safe and risk-free — and doesn’t require specialized tools.

The importance of being always prepared

Being prepared is key to keeping the risk level of our activity within generally accepted limits. Didn’t know you were accepting non-zero risk levels in every dive? Well, now you do, in every dive.

When it comes to entanglements and cutting tools, selection is crucial, but so is how you carry them. Try to keep at least some tools in the triangle formed by your shoulders and belt buckle. This way, you can reach them with either hand.

You’ve likely read or heard many times that knives worn low and on the outside of your legs are an added entanglement risk. Keep that in mind.

Don’t forget redundancy — not just in quantity, but in variety. Having to cut a thin fishing line with your line cutter feels very different if that’s your only tool versus knowing you’ve got others suited for tougher jobs.

When reading this, don’t imagine yourself in a shallow, warm, picture-perfect reef. Picture a wreck, in poor visibility, at the time you’re supposed to begin your return, and just then realize you’re tangled and your buddy is out of sight and out of reach. Don’t plan for the best case; do it for the worst.

Like all divers, I have my own opinions and impressions about cutting tools. I’ll briefly go over them.

Line Cutters

Line cutters are incredibly useful tools for any diver. I always try to carry one with me, and I’ve always recommended the same to my students—both recreational and technical. They’re practical, easy to carry, extremely sharp, and capable of cutting almost any type of fishing line or rope that fits through the opening exposing the blade—including the webbing straps that divers often use. At the same time, they’re quite safe—the blade is very well protected. And I’d venture to say that a line cutter will get the vast majority of divers out of the vast majority of entanglement problems, in the vast majority of cases. But not in all of them.

They are not the best tool for cutting thick ropes or nets, sizable electrical cables, or, in general, any kind of wire that’s thicker than the thinnest types you might come across.

And there’s more. Even in situations where this tool would theoretically be suitable, the position or location of the item that needs to be cut—as well as limited mobility or poor dexterity—can make the line cutter ineffective.

If you’re diving on a warm reef, or exploring a wreck “tourist-style”, stay on the outside, with minimal penetration, in warm, shallow waters, with great visibility and plenty of light, surrounded by a dozen other divers and shoulder-to-shoulder with your buddy, getting tangled in a fishing line or something similar might not seem very concerning. If it does happen, you’ll likely be able to free yourself—or be freed—with all the help around you, and you may not even need to reach for your cutting tools. However, if you do need to, a line cutter will most likely be enough.

But, as you surely already know, the best-case scenario should never set the upper limit for your tools and procedures.

Rescue Tools

There are some tools referred to as rescue or escape tools that can serve us well for these purposes. They seem to be quite capable of replacing line cutters and some knives in terms of their actual usability. Some of them have a handle that allows for greater leverage during use, and they often include different blades and cutting styles in the same tool.

I’ve never used one of these in a real entanglement situation, but I have experimented with lines, ropes, cables, and wires that are a bit thicker than what a typical line cutter can handle, and the results have been acceptable.

Shears

Mmmm… although some of them are good for cutting different types of lines and even cables of a certain thickness, using them with gloves, especially dry gloves, is often difficult. It’s true that many of them can cut a coin; however, let me point out that the actual likelihood of getting entangled with coins is much lower than some people seem to believe, given how obsessed they are with that particular stunt (yes, that’s a joke—but it’s also true).

Now, if you ever find yourself needing to cut through a thin metal sheet, scissors might be quite handy. That said, I don’t think this is a very common situation—at least it hasn’t been for me. Also, the vast majority of metal plates you’ll find on wrecks will be well beyond what any scissors can cut through. But I’m not going to be a denier and say outright that it couldn’t happen.

Most diving shears have handles that don’t allow for much force to be applied, especially in certain positions where you might need to use them. On your workbench, standing upright, with the scissors at waist height, and using your body mechanics to assist the motion, you can probably get great results. But underwater, it’s a different story. You often won’t be able to take advantage of those mechanical benefits you have while standing on land.

That said, if you get yourself a good pair of shears, with a solid handle, strong build, and sharp blades, they can be useful. In some cases, they can serve as a solid backup tool. After all, they don’t take up much space and are easy to carry in a pocket.

Diving knives

For many of us, knives are the default cutting tool. They come in many forms—pointed or blunt, serrated or smooth, double-edged, small, medium, large, lightweight, heavy, made of various materials, with a wide range of handles, sheaths, attachment systems, and across all sorts of quality and price levels.

In general, a good knife, with the right weight and a proper edge can cut through all kinds of lines and ropes, as well as decently thick electrical cables and wires of a larger diameter than what a typical line cutter can handle, and in some positions, more effectively than any pair of scissors.

If you’re diving wrecks, you should at least carry a medium or large knife. It should be heavy, have a solid handle, be sharp and durable. Something that can cut through almost anything you might get tangled in. It should also be able to serve as a prying tool against parts of the wreck that have “trapped” pieces of your gear. It can be used as an improvised hammer or a short extension of your arm to reach something your fingers can’t.

In low visibility, you can use it as an anchor point to tie off a reel and create a guideline back to a wreck you’ve been swept away from by the current. If you ever wonder whether your primary knife should be serrated or smooth, the correct answer is very likely: both!

Now, I can’t avoid mentioning the supposed “macho” attitudes that some people believe are revealed by the type of cutting tool a diver chooses to carry. This issue might warrant some therapy for those who exhibit such behavior, regardless of what tool they’re using, but also for those who generalize and judge everyone who doesn’t share their preferences, interests, or needs. Unfortunately, this issue is far too common in our community, and it goes well beyond cutting tools.

But focusing on knives specifically, those who claim that carrying anything bigger than the smallest, blunt-tip blade is a sign of immaturity and lack the knowledge or experience relevant to the kind of dive being done by the diver they’re criticizing for carrying a “Rambo knife.” Can it be overkill for some dives? Of course, it can. But keep in mind that divers often get used to carrying certain tools in certain ways. Changing those tools just because someone else might think it’s unnecessary for a particular dive isn’t something most of us are willing to do. If someone is surprised by your knife, maybe they need to dive more—and more varied— before offering an opinion on it.

Don’t let yourself be intimidated by people who mock the cutting tools you choose for the dive and environment you’re preparing for. Bring the right tool. That also means staying within the bounds of logic and reason. Don’t feed the trolls, don’t go diving on a reef with a sword.

Conclusion

Entanglement situations are real—they happen. Plan for how you’ll deal with them if they occur. Carry the tools that are appropriate for the places and environments you’ll be diving, and consider the worst-case scenarios you might face and the harshest conditions you could end up in. Don’t underestimate the importance of variety and redundancy.

Remember: cutting tools are not toys—especially when they’re sharp. You must have the maturity not to play around with them. Anyone who doesn’t should probably not be diving, or at least should stick to shallow, open, clear, warm-water reefs. For them, shears, a line cutter, or a blunt-tip knife may be the best choice, for their own good and that of their teammates.

This last point is a bit ironic since I once had a (minor) accident from using a knife in a way I shouldn’t have. I tried to open a dive computer to change the battery and … you can imagine how that turned out. Yes, I know, I deserve a disapproving emoji. But look at the bright side: I won’t ever do it again, and neither will the people there with me.

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