oms/dive rite..need advice

[seabass]

Scuba446, I dive with the 27# wing. You probably should have done the calculation or asked your LDS how much bouyancy you needed. I figured that for most of the time my BC is bascially completely empty. Remember that long ago people didn't dive with BC's at all, they weighted as neutral as possible.

To me weights are to compensate for the very slight positive buoyancy of my body (about 1-2 pounds) and the bouyancy of an almost empty tank (3-4 pounds) and any bouyancy of my 3mm wetsuit that is left at 15' after suit squeeze (seems like it is actually negatively bouyant but I am not sure). This shouldn't be much weight at all. In fresh water it should just be a few pounds (around 5 pounds). Therefore I chose a 27# wing because that should be suitable for everything I need right now up to a 7mm wetsuit in salt water and a little more in case for some reason I need to lift a buddy. In cold salt water I dive with a total of 18 pounds to compensate for the 7mm wetsuit.

I have an oceanic chute 2 with a 45# U shaped bladder. I sometimes have problems dumping it. I usually descend slightly heads down (or at least butt up) and dump air from the rear dump. However air sometimes gets trapped in the side of the U without the dump valve so I have to rotate my body to shift the air bubble.

Good luck!

 

[Starfish]

FYI on OMS:

You can order the OMS without the bungee, which is what I did.

I live in the Minneapolis area and OMS is available from LDS. There is a following amongst divers who dive wet or dry in the diverse areas of the chilly Lake Superior, cave dive in Florida, and all other uses.

The newly released version of the OMS wing I purchsed seems to have all the same features that the Halcyon has (1000 denier(sp?), laminated bladder, no need for an STA etc.). The only difference I could tell was that OMS ships the IQ soft pac [if you go that route rather then an BP] with a plastic buckle rather then metal (which is obviously replaceable).

--Starfish

 

[Scuba446]

SeaBass,
I mail ordered my Pioneer's. I based my size of 45# on the fact that my Mares BC was 41# and worked great.

 

[JimC]

Taken right of the halcyon site

The Pioneer 45 wing is specifically designed for extreme cold water use or where lift must be capable of offsetting unusual amounts of applied ballast. This system is not recommended for typical recreational diving.

 

[WreckWriter]

Originally posted by Scuba446
SeaBass,
I mail ordered my Pioneer's. I based my size of 45# on the fact that my Mares BC was 41# and worked great.

My wing is 40 lbs but it's an Explorer, for doubles..... it's plenty. i would think a 45 lb Pioneer would be massive and flapping in the breeze....

Tom