scubajoh44:
How much of a difference do you REALLY think a BC makes?
Exactly what differences do you notice?
Concerning style. BP/W, back inflate, stabalizing, etc...
Hate to say it... but do a search (although this could turn into one of those monster threads).
There was a guy a while back, a Instructor or DM type, that did not SWITCH to BP/W, but rather purchased a BP/Wing and dove both that for a while and continued to use a Back inflate also. He posted his views after about doing 100 dives on the BP/w in addition to his experience using his favorite BackInflate BC. He was diving both doubles, and singles if memory serves.
The jist of the results was that there was not all that huge amount of difference, and he sited a couple advantages and disadvantages using both systems.
Let's face it, while BP/Wing users are vocal here, unless diving doubles, you just don't see many people out there diving them, and a very large number of people who certainly COULD be diving the BP/Wing setup (Scott Zeagle, Chad, Larry from ScubaToys, etc.) don't.
Opinions vary, and some run as strong as a seven knott current, but I think if you view this with an open mind one discovers that tools are tools, and one BCD style is not going to revolutionize one's diving. Fit, and comfort along with the proper lift are likely a bigger factor vs. Back Inflate vs. BP/w. The only guy I know who did purchase a BP/Wing (got too good a deal to pass up) stuck it on EBay after a couple dives because while he said it dived nice, it was harder to get into, and out of, and was not very comfortable on land.
I think if doubles are in your future, well there are other choices, but the BP/W should be a consideration. Otherwise, I'm not sure why one would switch unless they were unhappy with their current BCD.