Is the TransPac a full-on tech BCD?

[Papa_Bear]

Yes it is! Bill Rennaker used it for the first side mounts as well, good for doubles, side mount, and easily adaptable! So it doesn't matter what 5 0f 6 or 3 of 5 say if you consider cave and side mount tech it is!

 

[digimidi]

I was looking at going down this path as well from the comfort aspect of the TransPac. I then tried a standard BP/W setup (Halcyon in my case, but I would imagine most any would be the same) and found it to be very comfortable. As quite a few have said before, it just "disappears" in the water. I would go with a standard hog set up and be done with it. You can get one from Dive Rite if you want to stay with that brand.

Gil

 

[Iain Thysse]

Keep you Black Dimond for teaching and get a SS BP/W for tech. It will make you tech diving so much easier as you progress

 

[PhilEllis]

While I am not the tech diver that many here are, I can tell you that the Transpac is extremely comfortable for doubles diving. I have made a lot of deep dives on a Transpac with double HP120's and found it to be very stable and comfortable.

Phil Ellis

 

[astrofunk]

If you know what instructor or what agency you'll be training with, his/her/their opinion is certainly worth more than all of ours.

That said, a minimalist hog-style BP/W will almost always pass muster. A transpac may or may not.

 

[RJP]

Is the TransPac an ideal tech BCD

No.

It's a bit of an odd bird really.

It has very few of the benefits of a BP/W, while retaining most of the drawbacks of a traditional BCD.

 

[A Chanster]

Just took an IANTD Adv Rec Trimix course. I brought my Transpac and Halcyon with SS plate. After doing the course with the Halcyon and hanging out with a bunch of GUE guys I will stick with the Halcyon for doubles/Tec diving and use the Transpac for single Rec diving.

cheers

 

[djanni]

No.

It's a bit of an odd bird really.

It has very few of the benefits of a BP/W, while retaining most of the drawbacks of a traditional BCD.

Oh really??!? Is this the voice of experience talking here? Nothing odd about it either. Someone took a Transpac and switched out the soft backpac with a hard backplate and started calling it a bp/w.

How many dives do you have with a Transpac or is this just another gut impression based on seeing one?

With a single tank there's nothing you can do in your pb/w I can't do in my Transpac.

 

[CompuDude]

With a single tank there's nothing you can do in your pb/w I can't do in my Transpac.

How about carry 5-6 lbs centered perfectly over your lungs, and placed as close to your center of gravity as possible?

 

[MSilvia]

With a single tank there's nothing you can do in your pb/w I can't do in my Transpac.

That's nice and all, but the original poster was wondering if it would be a good choice for tech diving in steel doubles with multiple stages. Personally, after making several dives in a TransPacII with AL80 doubles, I switched to a backplate with a hog harness and never looked back. I definately wouldn't want to try mounting my twin HP100s on one.

So what do you think? Is the TransPac an ideal tech BCD or should I rather look at the TransPlate?

I consider the TransPac pretty comparable to the black diamond, so IMHO you'd be wasting money switching to it. I haven't used the transplate, but I don't see that it has any advantages over a plate rigged with a single piece of webbing. If I were in your position, I wouldn't be looking at either, although I've seen tech divers who use them both.

If you want to buy "an ideal tech BCD" so you won't want/need to upgrade later, get a backplate and wing.