traditional vs. bpw

[spectrum]

I have been diving for 2 years now and have a few specialties under my wieght belt(haha) I am currenlty diving a traditional bc (oceanic) but lately I feel I may be better off switching to a back plate and wing can anyone offer any advice on weather this is a good idea or if im skipping steps in my progresion with such a drastic change anything at all would be greatly appriciated.


Steve

safe diving!

What's your progression?

A BP/W has many attractive aspects and I'll say right her I have yet to dive one.

If your Oceanic fits you comfortably and securely, holds the tank on your back and has adequate lift to handle your dives the only reason I see to change is because you want to. Thats an OK reason. At the end of the day they ar all BCDs.

As far as skipping steps you are perfectly fine diving a PP/W without a Alternate second stage necklace, 7 foot primary hose and multiple stage bottles.

I started in a Sherwood Avid and with 72 dives can still find investments that further enhance my diving oportunities other than a BCD change.

I see this as entirely your call, Have you tried one yet? Not everyone I have met cared for them for whatever reason. There is an elegant simplicty to them that I find attractive.

Pete

 

[serambin]

Tell me about the price. I can't see anything near the price of a back-floatation BCD like a Tortuga.

Stan

 

[mnj1233]

Thankyou Rick Innman for actually answering the thread question!!! I know its your opinion but that is what was requested. Gets very old hearing same DIR rhetoric with no reason why its better that way. Just acknowledging a good response.

MNJ

 

[String]

Some people love wings, some hate them. Some love jacket BCs, some hate them. If possible try to rent/borrow a few of both and try them yourself before committing.

Theres a lot of hype and propaganda out there regarding wings etc and not a lot of it is true.

For example, you see some people saying perfect trim can only be done with a wing and then see people with perfect trim wearing a normal BC and so on.

Wings are good in that they're expandable and if you end up diving a twinset and/or stage you'll probably need the extra lift they tend to provide. Wings have the ability to move and put D-rings pretty much anyway on the harness but they lack pockets for storage. Its a trade-off between what the user wants.

Other issues are BCs come with nice quick releases and easily adjusted. Some wings have a 1 piece harness which takes time to adjust and requires effort to alter for every change in suit after that. some wings do have a nice quick release with buckles and so on. Again, trying a few to see which you like is a sensible idea.

Ive dived a BC for years and recently moved to a wing. At the moment im undecided which i prefer. I was lovely and comfortable under most conditions in it. The wing at the moment im finding OK, its harder to dump air from and im finding it very unstable with the pony but that could be due to only having 5-6 dives with it compared to a few hundred in the BC but maybe not. Im unsure if i'll still using the wing in 6 months and havent bought a new BC.

In short, theres no right or wrong. Attempt to borrow or rent a few of both types and see what you're happy with. There is no one size fits all solution.

 

[angryguy777]

I have a BP/W and it was the first BCD I've ever bought. My only experience with jacket BCs are ones I've rented so I don't know what its like to have a nice jacket BC that really 'fits'. I don't see any reason why one couldn't/shouldn't start out with a bp/w if they want to.

I love the backplate though, I'll never go to a jacket BC. The first time I dove it was on an 80' drift dive on a wreck... (i know I shoulda tried it in a pool first) and it worked great.

I like simple things and BP/Ws are about as simple as you can get. PLus, they look bad***** and its a good conversation piece if there are any swedish girls on your liveaboard.

-Zak

 

[radinator]

It didn't ride up on me, didn't shift around, didn't get in the way (like all the rental bcd's I had before did).

On my dive yesterday morning (I use BP/W), just before I entered the water I noticed my tank move on my back. It didn't move much, in fact it moved much less than it normally does with my Seaquest Balance, but the fact that it moved at all told me something was wrong. I reached back and grabbed the bottom of the tank, and got 2 inches movement out of it.

I knew immediately that I didn't close the cam straps, simple to fix. I missed that on my setup because I was talking with someone and got distacted (note for future). My buddy check hadn't happened yet, but the fact that it moved at all told me that something was amiss.

A BP/W system really holds things in place and gets rid of that wobbly feeling.

 

[djanni]

Steve: First, switching to a bp/w will not be a drastic change. If you are expecting "drastic" you'll be dissappointed. By-the-way, be on your guard because the bp/w zealots are plentiful around here. Notice it's always the same dozen or so people. In spit of what they may tell you experience doesn't take you to a bp/w and a bp/w will not make you a better diver.

Secondly, you mention your progression... unless you're immediately headed for twin tank, side mount, trimix technical diving you can progress just fine in a traditional BC. I don't mean to offend anyone who uses a BC for such tech diving. If you often wear a dry suit a bp/w might have an advantage or two.

Consider a back inflation BC if your Oceanic is older and gives you the old pinch when inflated. Generally speaking the so called "traditional" BC is just more convienient. Sort of all the pleasures of home kinda thing. You see all those accessaries they offer for the bp/w's... add-on pockets, add-on integrated weight systems and add-on this and that and etc. etc. Why bother will all the add-on stuff. You just end up with a far more complicated rig than you would if you'd simply bought that old "traditional" BC in the first place. Look a something like a Zeagle Stiletto whose dual tank strap system holds better than any.

Anyway... nothing wrong with a bp/w. They sure have a place in the world. If you must have one check out Deep Sea Supply. I've used that one and it's high quality.

Don
...and the pot has been stirred.

I have been diving for 2 years now and have a few specialties under my wieght belt(haha) I am currenlty diving a traditional bc (oceanic) but lately I feel I may be better off switching to a back plate and wing can anyone offer any advice on weather this is a good idea or if im skipping steps in my progresion with such a drastic change anything at all would be greatly appriciated.


Steve

safe diving!

 

[halocline]

If you normally dive with a single AL80, a steel backplate can offset the buoyancy of the tank pretty well, and to me it's a much more comfortable and stable set up than a vest BC with a big cummerbund. Plus, there really is something to losing the inherent buoyancy of most BCs; it makes buoyancy control easier at a variety of depths. With my vest BC, I would have to overweight a little to get down initially and stay at a safety stop. With the backplate, I found it was generally easier to get weighted pretty precisely so that it's easy to get down and stay neutral throughout the dive with much less adjustment for different depths. If you're diving with a steel tank, then maybe a SIMPLE back inflate BC will give you a similar thing; too bad zeagle discontinued the scout...as that has a belt instead of a cummerbund and very little excess fabric or padding.

 

[TSandM]

I just made the change from a back inflate BC to a BP/W.

What I like about it: I like separating the weight into parts, some on my shoulders, some on my waist. It's easier to do this than to try to put a weight belt on with my weight-integrated BC.

I like the stability. I am narrow across the shoulders, and even the small BCs I tried (and bought) allowed a lot more tank movement than the BP/W.

I like the idea that the harness is fairly quickly and easily adjustable to fit just about anybody. The rig I'm currently using was cut down from fitting a man several inches taller than I am and considerably larger in frame. BTW, I dove a 5 mil wetsuit today instead of my usual drysuit and undergarment, and the harness was maybe a tiny bit loose . . . but certainly not enough to let the tank move, and not enough to feel like I needed to adjust it.

What I don't like: I either have to buy some kind of pocket to attach to the harness, or put a pocket on my dry suit to contain such things as my safety sausage or SMB, my shears, etc. Actually a pretty minor and quickly solved problem.

I forgot -- I also like how easy it is to carry the thing around, and how flat and small it packs. I've dragged this one to Australia already.

 

[kidspot]

I spent 1/2 of my BOW in a jacket, then switched to a BP/Wing, my favorite reasons: It was much more stable, the free feeling it gave me, and I found it to be much more comfortable. All in all a win win situation in my case - experience "imo" doesn't matter on this one, some of us start in one, and others don't - it's just a piece of gear, won't in itself make you a better diver, but perhaps a more comfortable one

Try one and if you like it switch ... or if you can't try one and think it'll be a good move for you pick one up and if it's not what you want they have great resale value on Ebay.

Aloha, Tim