Tec Side Mount - Need help selecting gear

[tbone1004]

I will add Razor dual bladder more minimalist that the stealth tec and plenty of lift

but is VERY uncomfortable when it is fully inflated and it lifts off your back a substantial amount and has a horrible profile if you are diving it anywhere near it's maximum capacity. I can fit a fist with wiggle room between the wing and my back when diving it in a 5mm with PST120's and on top of that it is quite uncomfortable because the belly band acts like a noose. Not a well designed rig for the amount of lift it currently has. Brilliant for the original MSR bladder style wing, not so good for the massive one it has now

 

[DevonDiver]

For your gear options, here's a big bunch of information giving an idea of what's on the market currently:

A List of Modern Sidemount Diving Systems

Sidemount Regulator Sets

Top 5 Warm-Water Sidemount Fins

The Best Technical Diving Computers 2016

 

[DevonDiver]

A lot of the diving in south Florida is drift diving in strong currents. Negative giant stride entries are a real thing. When they say "dive dive dive" if you're slow getting your butt into the water you just missed the drop site.

Florida isn't the only place to have strong currents and negative entries.

It just seems to be the only place where people have a problem using sidemount in strong currents and negative entries...

I will add Razor dual bladder more minimalist that the stealth tec and plenty of lift

Minimalist until you put significant gas in the wing. The XDeep trims down better when in use at capacity.

 

[johnnywulff]

Ok, but is not that significant.

 

[johnnywulff]

but is VERY uncomfortable when it is fully inflated and it lifts off your back a substantial amount and has a horrible profile if you are diving it anywhere near it's maximum capacity. I can fit a fist with wiggle room between the wing and my back when diving it in a 5mm with PST120's and on top of that it is quite uncomfortable because the belly band acts like a noose. Not a well designed rig for the amount of lift it currently has. Brilliant for the original MSR bladder style wing, not so good for the massive one it has now

From your description looks like needs better wing adjustment, it's not adequate to dive with the wing at is full capacity, this should be only at surface

 

[toby43]

From your description looks like needs better wing adjustment, it's not adequate to dive with the wing at is full capacity, this should be only at surface

It seems to me that the 'Mexican/British' style rigs need a bit more work and tinkering with to get them properly dialled in. Worth persevering with though.

 

[johnnywulff]

Ok, one of the benefits of sidemount ring is you can adjust it or made changes to your preferences, is very rare to see a ring as came from the shelf

 

[DevonDiver]

It seems to me that the 'Mexican/British' style rigs need a bit more work and tinkering with to get them properly dialled in. Worth persevering with though.

Yes and no. It's design heritage is evolved from using aluminum cylinders (the ubiquitous AL80 in tropical areas). People start using them with heavier cylinders, especially steel, and they're pushed to capacity. That spurns further design evolution. Hey prestro...the XDeep Stealth Tec...

The same is true of Florida Cave/American rigs... evolved from lifting steel tanks.... now starting to evolve to also work with aluminum...and getting lighter/less bulky.... more minimalist. Hey presto... the Hollis Katana....

 

[tbone1004]

From your description looks like needs better wing adjustment, it's not adequate to dive with the wing at is full capacity, this should be only at surface

that is completely against what you said in the post that I was responding to where you said it had adequate lift. The wing is adjusted properly, I can promise you that, it is a function of that design which is very bad for that amount of lift. It is one thing if you are diving it with al80's where you don't need that much lift, it is completely inappropriate to dive it with steel tanks in an unbalanced rig *i.e. florida cave diving where we are diving with lots of gas, and not a lot of exposure protection*. We have this discussion at least once every 6 months with people that have drank the Razor Kool-Aid usually from the guys that say they dive it in cold water in Europe with big tanks and it's fine, but they are also diving with thick undergarments under drysuits where most of the lift requirements are in the suit, not the wing, and that isn't a valid argument. It is quite simply not the right tool for the job. MANY Florida cave divers I know have Razors and we use them for AL80 only diving, what it was designed to do, but it doesn't do Florida style diving well

 

[toby43]

that is completely against what you said in the post that I was responding to where you said it had adequate lift. The wing is adjusted properly, I can promise you that, it is a function of that design which is very bad for that amount of lift. It is one thing if you are diving it with al80's where you don't need that much lift, it is completely inappropriate to dive it with steel tanks in an unbalanced rig *i.e. florida cave diving where we are diving with lots of gas, and not a lot of exposure protection*. We have this discussion at least once every 6 months with people that have drank the Razor Kool-Aid usually from the guys that say they dive it in cold water in Europe with big tanks and it's fine, but they are also diving with thick undergarments under drysuits where most of the lift requirements are in the suit, not the wing, and that isn't a valid argument. It is quite simply not the right tool for the job. MANY Florida cave divers I know have Razors and we use them for AL80 only diving, what it was designed to do, but it doesn't do Florida style diving well

I drank the Stealth Tec Kool-Aid, is that OK?