Advice plz on a Wing BP Halcyon vs OMS

[Mandy3206]

I got a OMS setup, and after 250+ dives, it's still pretty much like new, the OMS embroided patches started unraveling after 10 dives, but everything else is like new.

This is rock solid gear as well as Dive Rite (www.diveriteexpress.com is my favorite source for DR gear).

I heard that Halcyon is waaay more expensive than any other brand, but OMS is very expensive too.

Beware of the Halcyon inflator since I've read horror stories about them, including warranty replacement being very dificult. Some say the problems have been corrected, but some say they haven't

One thing that I love about the OMS BP is it has sooo many holes for attachements that the posibilities are endless. Holes can be drilled where you need them in any BP too.

You can also mix and match from diferent manufacturers, for example, I got OMS BP & Wing, DR second generation 32# weight pockets as rig pockets, and XS Scuba weight pockets for extra storage, since I only need 2# the weight pockets are used to store safety gadgets and meshbag, all cliped inside the pockets.

Tobin at DSS has very cool gear and so has Patrick at Oxycheq that I plan on getting some time down the road.
As long as you stick to one of the proven manufacturers, you should be Ok.

Make sure the BP and wing have 11" spacing so it would be easier to mix systems.

If you travel a lot, then an ABS or Aluminum BP would be better and compensate with lead in pockets or weight belt. If local diving only, then the SS BP is the way to go, since you need lots of weight with a 7mm.

Just do your research very carefully and decide what's best for your style of diving.

 

[Mandy3206]

Sorry, I miss some things,
I prefer the buckle in my left shoulder for ease of donning and doffing, that's why I got the OMS Deluxe Harness & shoulder pads.

I'm the first to admit that it would be better to have a wing for singles and another for doubles, but even thou I got a travel wing (32#) and only dive single aluminum tanks, I prefer my bungied 45# OMS wing, it's more rugged than anything I've ever seen (including Halcyon wings) and the 45# wing can be used for small doubles if I ever switch to them.

My Travel Wing and Transpack II are used only while traveling via air due to weight and packing considerations, but I'm looking to get in the future an Aluminum OMS BP for travel duty only.

 

[Chris Brown Tech]

I heard that Halcyon is waaay more expensive than any other brand, but OMS is very expensive too.

Beware of the Halcyon inflator since I've read horror stories about them, including warranty replacement being very dificult. Some say the problems have been corrected, but some say they haven't

Sorry Mandy, you have been misinformed. Halcyon is priced competetively, a BP is around $180 and an MC system is $650. You get what you pay for and the quality exceeds that of other brands.

The inflator mechanism is excellent and I can honestly say I have not had one back with any problems. I doubt WKPP would have taken them on a 23 hour dive at an average depth of over 200ft last weekend if they were not 100% reliable!

Beware of Halcyon bashing on the internet forums from people who are either jealous of the individulas involved in GUE / Halcyon or are just trying to justify their own purchase of inferior cheaper gear.

 

[evil_xander]

Wow Chris, I must say even though I work in sales, it's been a while since I saw such a biased opinion/statement without any proof whatsoever to back up the claims. Should I say, good work?

I believe H products are as good as any other major brand out there, but that they exceed quality of other brands? I doubt it. Sure, you get what you pay for, but sometimes you pay the premium just for the sake of a name.

You know what Shakespear wrote... "What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet."

Cheers

 

[espenskogen]

Sorry Mandy, you have been misinformed. Halcyon is priced competetively, a BP is around $180 and an MC system is $650. You get what you pay for and the quality exceeds that of other brands.

The inflator mechanism is excellent and I can honestly say I have not had one back with any problems. I doubt WKPP would have taken them on a 23 hour dive at an average depth of over 200ft last weekend if they were not 100% reliable!

Beware of Halcyon bashing on the internet forums from people who are either jealous of the individulas involved in GUE / Halcyon or are just trying to justify their own purchase of inferior cheaper gear.

Sorry to have to disagree with you here - I actually dive a Halcyon Explorer myself, and I love it to bits, but the inflator mechanism leaves something to be desired. Off the shelf, it is nowhere near lubricated enough, and I found it sticking on a couple of dives. Not that it's a big problem - I took it apart, cleaned it and lubed it up with lots of silicon grease, and it's never given me trouble since. But the SS inflator isn't entirely maintenance free, and to say otherwise would be irresponsible, me thinks.

I think the Halcyon and the OMS is pretty much as good as eachother - It comes down to personal preference, I think. I would suggest the OP try and get a dive in each, and see which he prefer.

E

 

[McKee Boykin]

DR has a sale on transplate with wing right now for $499.00. http://www.diveriteexpress.com/bcs/transplatesale.shtml

 

[Jasonmh]

I am looking at buying either a Halcyon Explorer (40lbs), Halcyon Evolve (40lbs) or an OMS single bladder (35 or 45 lbs)

Also I don't know yet whether to go for an one-piece harness (DIR style) or one with shoulder buckles.

- What do people believe is the best buy out of these three and why?

- Anybody any experience with the Evolve?

- Can an OMS backplate be used with a Halcyon wing and the other way around?

- How easy is it to get in and out of an one-piece harness whilst floating along side a boat. (Eg. In case I need to hand the gear to somebody before climbing into the boat.)

Hi IceMike,
Both companies seem to make solid gear. I have several Halcyon setups, one if which is the Evolve 40, and I love it. Both OMS and Halcyon make quality gear, but I wasn't interested in alot of the OMS products, I have local support for Halcyon, and (atleast around here) the Halcyon was cheaper, so that made my decision pretty easy.
The best buy part is hard to say, so many factors to consider. I don't know what the prices are there where you are, how easy it is to get support, etc. There are other great brands such as Oxychecq, DSS, Golem Gear, etc. too, but they might not be such a good buy for you once you add the shipping from the US.
I find the one-piece harness very easy to get in and out of. It is alittle strange at first, but after doing it 8-10 times it was very easy. If you think about it, it is not much different than taking off or putting on a jacket.
I don't own any OMS stuff, so I don't have anything good or bad to say about them, other than they seem to have a good reputation. I can say though that the support and service that I have recieved from Halcyon has been better than any other company I have dealt with, and I am sure you wouldn't be disappointed with the Evolve.
Good luck!

 

[Jasonmh]

Sorry to have to disagree with you here - I actually dive a Halcyon Explorer myself, and I love it to bits, but the inflator mechanism leaves something to be desired. Off the shelf, it is nowhere near lubricated enough, and I found it sticking on a couple of dives. Not that it's a big problem - I took it apart, cleaned it and lubed it up with lots of silicon grease, and it's never given me trouble since. But the SS inflator isn't entirely maintenance free, and to say otherwise would be irresponsible, me thinks.

I think the Halcyon and the OMS is pretty much as good as eachother - It comes down to personal preference, I think. I would suggest the OP try and get a dive in each, and see which he prefer.

E

I also just wanted to point out that the H wings have not been shipping with the SS inflator for a while now, so that will probably not come in to play for the original poster. I have had one of the SS inflators for 2+ years, and I have had no trouble with rust or sticking, but I know that others have.

 

[Mandy3206]

Sorry Mandy, you have been misinformed. Halcyon is priced competetively, a BP is around $180 and an MC system is $650. You get what you pay for and the quality exceeds that of other brands.

The inflator mechanism is excellent and I can honestly say I have not had one back with any problems. I doubt WKPP would have taken them on a 23 hour dive at an average depth of over 200ft last weekend if they were not 100% reliable!

Beware of Halcyon bashing on the internet forums from people who are either jealous of the individulas involved in GUE / Halcyon or are just trying to justify their own purchase of inferior cheaper gear.

Well I'm not that much missinformed, When I bought my BP, my supplier in Miami carried OMS, DR, and H, H was the most expensive gear quoted and DR was the cheapest, OMS was a halfway between them but a bit on the high side of the chart.
This was my personal experience, maybe in some other parts it would be diferent, but in Miami it was like that in 2004, also I've heard numerous times here in SB from people that prefer and use H that it's way more expensive. I guess that the best bet for the original poster is to quote gear and then see for himself.

The inflator issue is real, I've read about it many times here at SB and many H users complaint about it as the only failure point in thier gear which they love and use regularly, also I've read about some H dealers refusing to replace the inflator when problems had arrised, this is bad policy for a known problem. Later I heard that they abandoned the SS inflator due to the many claims about it and replaced with a plastic one, I even saw once a recall for it.

I'm not a H fan, never has since I got the oportunity to see these 3 brands (OMS, DR, H) side by side in the dealer at Miami, and IMO OMS used the toughest materials in the bladder, but corrugated hose was crap, DR & OMS inflator are +/- the same and webbing and plates are tha same no matter where you get them, only diferent plate is DSS that incorporates elastomerics in the plate to save the webbing.

I can understand that you're a H dealer and would like to sell lots of it and make some profit out of it, no problem with that, but don't try to mask it and be honest about it.

Me, I'm just a user that will never be involved in the dive industry other than a sport diver, I just dive for fun. My opinion is based on personal experience and research only, not on internet bashing.

If it was for bashing, I would never had bought my OMS bungied wing that has been bashed to death here and many other places as well.:14: :14: :14:

Also I own 3 cressi BCs (loaners), 1 DR TPII, my OMS DR hybrid BP, 5 regulators sets and gear too much to mention, if it doesn't work for my style of diving, I just toss it in the cementery and get something else, I haven't sold any used gear ever and money is no object for the hobby I love, after carefull research, if I want it, I save for it and get it when I can (it's very fun to buy new gear). Sometimes I've been screwed like everybody else, most of the time has been when I skipped research but it's very rare for it to happen to me when the proper research has been done.
Point is I don't care about GUE, DIR, ect. it's the individual choice of everyone to follow or not that route or any other route.
I choose what works for me and my dive style.

 

[halocline]

Beware of Halcyon bashing on the internet forums from people who are either jealous of the individulas involved in GUE / Halcyon or are just trying to justify their own purchase of inferior cheaper gear.

Beware of Halcyon dealers bashing other products and using open internet forums for their own sales pitch.

It's always nice to have dealers and equipment manufacturers chime in on these discussions, but your comments (at least the posts I've read) are really nothing more than advertising your own products.