No one likes Jacket Inflates?

[John_B]

Jacket BCs are great for new divers and people who aren't 100% comfortable in the water.

Wouldn't it better if those people first took the time to get 100% comfortable in the water? :shrug:

Being able to float at waist-level out of the water can be very reassuring.

A jacket BC is not a PFD (they even come with labels that say exactly that).

But seriously, if you didn't dive and joined Scubaboard...

What logical reason would a non-diver have to join Scubaboard?

 

[String]

That's only on Scubaboard. And most of the posters here aren't from Earth. I have the only one here except for my friend Boy and my daughter who have the only other ones on Earth. I've never seen one used here in Belize except mine.

Id go with that. On internet forums in general (this one and a very big UK based one) the majority seem to use wings and plates.
However at real dive sites for every wing you see you will probably see 60-70 normal style BCs - wings really are the tiny minority. Even in the UK with cold water, bulky kit the vast majority of people use BCs. A lot twin up using BCs as well. I think there is only 1 school in the entire country that trains people in wings from day 1.

In dive centres i've worked and resorted ive NEVER come across someone with their own wing.

What it seems to be is more committed divers are more likely to move onto a plate and wing (and more advanced types of diving). Those committed divers tend to use forums to talk about diving and therefore skew the balance you see online.

In a summary, internet fora are a self-selecting sample and definitely NOT representative of the real world.

 

[micklock]

I have used a Black Diamond since 99, I just bought a Dive Rite aluminum backplate with the trec wing and really like it. I have about 20 dives on it and have only used my Black Diamond one time since, the best thing I like is with my 6.5 mm two piece wetsuit or my drysuit, hood and gloves I don't need any weights.

 

[Hank49]

What logical reason would a non-diver have to join Scubaboard?

Maybe to learn about diving before taking the plunge.