expectations in a Backplate?

[SeanQ]

We don't offer a storage pack, I use two bungee loops on the bottom of my plate for SMB storage. I like this method as it is possible to restow the bag yourself.
Tobin

A little of topic here but I've been dying to ask.

When can we expect to see a Deep Sea Supply SMB?

 

[aquaoren]

I'd take the webbing off, grab a Dremel, refinish the plate, put the colour of webbing of your wifes choice back on, go diving and use the money to buy her flowers and spend the rest of the saved money on a weekend retreat or a charter.

 

[spectrum]

Raposarose, I have read the replies so far and there's nothing that I'd disagree with.

However if you are just a little bit of a DIY type of person you can proabably get this squared away while watching TV using a file, some emery cloth, scotch brite and a few$$ for fresh webbing in the color of her choice. This would also be a very good excuse to buy a Dremel tool if you don't have one.

Just a thought before getting out the credit card to buy another rig and going through the selling exercise. I've seen some plates advertised as not 100% finished and some in the plate crowd do have a strong DIY tendency so there may be place for this finishing (bonding) excecise. I also underestand that not everyone wants to or can get this intimate with their gear.

When I decide to go to a BP/W I will remember your experience.

Just a thought.
Pete

What type of expectations do you have in terms of quality and performance for a backplate?

Here is why I ask. My wife purchased an Oxycheq wing with a (Koplin?) BP from COVCI, I purchased one from another company.

Mine has performed without a hitch. Hers on the other hand chewed significantly through her webbing after just a few dives. It was not very well finished or polished. On hers I can see slight rust stains where the steel bends. It also weighs less than mine.

Now, I know that she (or I) could buy some sandpaper and smooth out the edges on hers (right now she just put some duct tape on it as a temporary fix). But, for the cost should she have to do that? It was a significant investment. Not all BP purchasers are DIY types. Perhaps some feel like it is no big deal to smooth it out a bit, but she is really disappointed in the quality of the BP and feels it should have come to her "dive ready." Though COVCI was helpful before her purchase, when she wrote back about this issue several times she never got a reply again.

So what do you expect from a backplate? Is this acceptable to you? What are your standards?

p.s. If she could have done it over she would have bought it from a local vendor.

 

[scubatexastony]

no one has mentioned after you get another plate, or de-burr the one she has... get a couple 3" lengths of innertube (2.00/2.125/2.35) and line the webbing where it goes through the slots, a little work and presto, an added measure of longivity (that spelt rite?)

Have a great dive!

tony

 

[cool_hardware52]

A little of topic here but I've been dying to ask.

When can we expect to see a Deep Sea Supply SMB?

It could happen pretty soon, we do have the technology...


Tobin

 

[raposarose]

Aquaoren, Spectrum

I am not much of a DIY type guy (I am not even looking forward to taking out the webbing and having to set her rig up again), but on the other hand I do like to know my gear and to be self-sufficient. So, I have never used a Dremel. What would I need to do to go this route? Can you explain what I would have to do? I was going to just go to the hardware store and get some type of sandpaper for steel going from rough to fine grain. I don't really have much experience working with metal (besides art school, and there precision and refinement aren't the highest values!)

Thanks so much everyone. I sort of expected everyone just to tell me to buy sandpaper, smooth it out, and dive, so it shows you what I know. I always learn a lot from this board.

Tobin, thanks for the reply, if I do decide to go the route of purchasing a new backplate, yours look very good.

So, where can I find good quality webbing in different colors for her (especially in the S.F. Bay area, but possibly elsewhere)?

 

[scubatexastony]

Get a couple small files, 6 in. or so, and a small roll of 1-1/2 to 2 inch wide emory cloth... 120 grit or so. You just want to 45 degree the corners so to speak, (and as dad says, files cut in only one direction, no pressure on the return stroke). After filing, cut yourself 10 inches or so of emory cloth, put it through a slot, and make like you're polishing your shoes. Buy a 2.0 /2.125 bicycle inner tube and make some collars to slide over the new webbing and posistion it through the slots when rethreading the harness. Be sure and round the top of the plate where the webbing crosses the top edge of the BP. Think of it as an adventure in DIY, and yes, emory cloth is almost sandpaper, sorta....

tony

file, emory, inner tube= 25 bucks, DIY= priceless

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

NWGratefulDiver, what color webbing are you using now? She might like a different color (maybe blue) when she replaces hers.

Silver ... I bought enough to replace all four of my harnesses for about $50 at Pacific Fabrics (in downtown Seattle) ...

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[FredT]

Aquaoren, Spectrum

What would I need to do to go this route? Can you explain what I would have to do? I was going to just go to the hardware store and get some type of sandpaper for steel going from rough to fine grain.

I have a "bargain" plate that is offered as "as cut" for DIY finishing with all the sharp edges intact. The cutting method I use causes essentially no burrs, but the edges can be rezor sharp. The discount for an unfinished plate es essentially my finishing cost, and I have a bit more time to go diving.

This is what I send out for finishing instructions:

I rough finish with a 6"mill file, generously rounding all "outside” bend areas of both the plate and STA to avoid accelerated wear on the wing and drysuit. (The side of a bend with a single press contact line is the punch side or inside, the side with 2 contact lines is the outside or anvil side.) The “corners" of the plate, or the large radius at the top and smaller radius at the bottom, should also be well rounded. I do a generous break of the "handhole" areas as well to provide a nearly smooth radius from inside to outside. All other "outside edge" surfaces get an approximate .03 x 45° bevel on both surfaces of the plate with a file. This is about 4 passes with the 6" mill file the way I do it. I then break the edges of the slots to the extent practical with the file. There is not much you can do here with a larger than 6" file on the heavier plates due to the plate edge on the other side getting in the way. For those a Dremel a flame grinding bob will help, but it’s not absolutely necessary. It's about a wash to use the Dremel time wise, but easier elbow grease wise. A countersink makes quick work of deburring the holes, or you can use the flame bob. Most of the edge holes don't need a significant deburr unless you intend to use them as lashing points to attach bolt snaps.

All edges and slot internals are then smoothed and blended with 80 or 100 grit cloth back abrasive strip used "shoeshine" fashion until the edges are blended. The strip should enter and exit the slot as close to inline with the plate surface as possible. I use the "worn out" strip to do the final polish, as it wears down to about 400 grit. All you need to do to the slots is to break the edge a bit. Remember the strap isn't supposed to be moving in the slot once the plate is set up, and a "semi-sharp" edge to the slot is self-locking. They should not "feel" sharper to the thumb than a butter knife blade though. Be sure to thoroughly blend the outside edges and plate corners.

A final wash with dish detergent and a Scotchbrite pad removes any surface oils and abrasive residue.

When holding the plate in a vise (I _DO_ suggest using a vise or other method to clamp the parts to a workbench while finishing!) use an old leather glove or piece of shoe leather to cushion the plate in the vise jaws. If C-clamping to a table for deburring use a towel or leather glove on both sides of the plate to avoid damage to the plate or table.

I do enough of them that I use both 2" wide and 1" wide Norton shop roll aluminum oxide abrasive strips, a Severance chatterless countersink, 4 different size files including 6" and 10" round and flat single cut mill files, a 3M Rolock craytex finishing "brush" in coarse grit, and the same coated kevlar Perfect Fit gloves I use when diving. It can be done with just a 6" flat file (you need one that small to get into the slots) and about 4 sheets of 100-grit emery cloth cut into strips lengthwise. If I remember correctly Harbor Freight usually has 1" wide imported shop rolls for under $10 each. They don't last anywhere near as well as the Norton or 3M stuff but you'll still have enough to finish a couple plates and STAs on a single roll with material left over, and they cost 1/3 as much as the Norton.


FT

 

[scubadobadoo]

Dremel was one of the best tools I ever bought. I am not a diy guy but once I figured out all I could do with it I just started going to town! Cut off straps on my Jets so I can add Spring Straps, shorten my spring straps, ruin a pair of spring straps, file down the post on my quattros to add, you guessed it, spring straps, the list goes on ...lol. I had never even used it until I started diving 3 years ago. Someone here said, "use a dremel," and I thought, "why the hell would I need that," and all the time it was in my tool kit!