What wings are you using with your Freedom Plate?

[Soloist]

I have the plates laser cut out of a 4' x 10' sheet of 10n GA. 316 s/s. I get 36 units out of a sheet evenly divided between large and small sizes. For every desing change, even with something as minor as a slot change I would have to submit another design template and have another full sheet of units cut with that design, otherwise they will charge me through the nose for a partial run. I have to pay for the whole sheet regardless if it's 316 because it's special order.

Do you provide drawings or actual CAD data to the machine shop? If you don’t already have your flat patterns defined in CAD I could do this for you in Pro Engineer and it wouldn’t cost you a dime. I am sure there are other people on SB that could do this as well on a more accessible and inexpensive CAD program. This would provide complete control over your designs allowing you to tweak and refine your plates without getting hammered for program changes. I assume these guys base their rates on run time, so if you were able to deliver your own nest data you could cut numerous customized plates or various other parts from the same 4x10 sheet.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Do you provide drawings or actual CAD data to the machine shop? If you don’t already have your flat patterns defined in CAD I could do this for you in Pro Engineer and it wouldn’t cost you a dime. I am sure there are other people on SB that could do this as well on a more accessible and inexpensive CAD program. This would provide complete control over your designs allowing you to tweak and refine your plates without getting hammered for program changes. I assume these guys base their rates on run time, so if you were able to deliver your own nest data you could cut numerous customized plates or various other parts from the same 4x10 sheet.

I provide them an actual full size plug or pattern made out of matt board.
They have a scanner/shape finder thing that they use to make exact copies of parts that people bring it that need to be duplicated. Believe it or not this is the easiest and fastest way for me to do it, and them too.
The thing is, each time I want to change something I have to make a new template for them and send it down. I could try and give them directions on what I want changed but they don't guarantee something willy nilly like "Shorten this by this much, etc" over the phone. It would be a shame to waste a couple thousand on a run that didn't come out quite right that I didn't physically see and approve first.
With a hand cut full size plug I can physically see it, touch it, hold it up to my back, hold it up to another persons back, make adjustments, shave this, widen that, etc. I know exactly what I'm going to get down to a gnats ass hair.
With every one of my plate designs they were a one off hand made item first that was tested a dove before any production was done. I simply duplicated the exact plate that I know worked.

I'm a very analog person.
I mean, I still hand letter signs if that's any clue.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Alright they are using something like an inspecvision and reverse engineering the template. It should still create a dxf or dwg file that most cad programs could open. Ask them if they'd be willing to email you that file. There is a free viewer from autodesk you can download to see it. That way you could.have someone makes notes on the file, send to you to approve, then send that back to them.

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[Soloist]

I provide them an actual full size plug or pattern made out of matt board.
They have a scanner/shape finder thing that they use to make exact copies of parts that people bring it that need to be duplicated.

Wow, I didn't see that one coming! Regardless, the results are no less than amazing, especially when you consider the up close and personal fit associated with your backplates. I can appreciate the old school approach, but Jim makes a very good point about the DXF files. You paid for the scans, so you really own the files. Unfortunately the data will be "dumb" and not allow you to actually manipulate the curves. However it can be imported in to a CAD program and provide an accurate overlay to create smooth and highly modifiable geometry. Now we have reached the point in the conversation where you tell me to shut the hell up and go away.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Wow, I didn't see that one coming! Regardless, the results are no less than amazing, especially when you consider the up close and personal fit associated with your backplates. I can appreciate the old school approach, but Jim makes a very good point about the DXF files. You paid for the scans, so you really own the files. Unfortunately the data will be "dumb" and not allow you to actually manipulate the curves. However it can be imported in to a CAD program and provide an accurate overlay to create smooth and highly modifiable geometry. Now we have reached the point in the conversation where you tell me to shut the hell up and go away.

As soon as the conversation goes to CAD files being imported from this file to that file to be manipulated etc. I could have had three patterns made and in the mail by the time I figured out the learning curve on all that computer stuff.
I let them do it, they can have it. I'm the pencil in hand type of guy.
Computer talk goes right over my head like an F18 going Mach 1.
But I'm getting better, ten years ago I could barely do an email.

 

[Soloist]

I was diving a Dive Rite Transpac with a Voyager wing prior to receiving the Freedom Plate and considered using this wing going forward. Unfortunately there are only 2 small strips, a horizontal and a vertical, used to support the inboard area of the bladder. This works fine for the Transpac harness, but I didn’t think this was the best scenario for a Contour plate with the rod stabilizers. As you can see in one of my earlier posts I decided on the Hog.

Computer talk goes right over my head like an F18 going Mach 1.

Funny you should say that. I was the lead designer for one of the F18 E/F engine components back in the 90’s.

 

[KevinG58]

I used (and still use in our cold waters here at home) a Dive Rite Transplate / Voyager wing, the Voyager transfers over to the Freedom plate for warm water / travel diving. So far just one trip to Coz with 12 dives, it works :cool2: the tank cinches down and holds it all together and stable. The boat captain was a bit "Que?" when switching tanks the first time, he really wanted to do it I suppose to help with the tip. Anyway it was rapidly worked out and when the wing was not in exactly the same spot every time, I seemed to be able to adapt pretty easily. Next time I may cable tie it or something, but it's certainly not a show stopper. I love the Freedom.

 

[Tug]

I use an older Halcyon Pioneer wing with my original Freedom Plate

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[herr2720]

I just picked up one of the oldest versions and am trying to decide what wing to pick up for it. I have a Oxy Mach V 40lb that I use with my Hollis BP, but sadly there is no way it's going to work on the FP without a lot of modification to the plate or wing and I really don't feel like cutting up either just to make it work. Anyone still using this old version have any real world advice besides the pre Mach V Oxy wings? Eric suggested the older Hogs so I'm guessing the newer ones won't fit (which is too bad because I like them). The Cam slot measurements are: Top 2" apart, Lower 4" apart, 9" vertical between them at center. The tank rest is 3-3/4" wide and sits 1-1/8" off the base.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I just picked up one of the oldest versions and am trying to decide what wing to pick up for it. I have a Oxy Mach V 40lb that I use with my Hollis BP, but sadly there is no way it's going to work on the FP without a lot of modification to the plate or wing and I really don't feel like cutting up either just to make it work. Anyone still using this old version have any real world advice besides the pre Mach V Oxy wings? Eric suggested the older Hogs so I'm guessing the newer ones won't fit (which is too bad because I like them). The Cam slot measurements are: Top 2" apart, Lower 4" apart, 9" vertical between them at center. The tank rest is 3-3/4" wide and sits 1-1/8" off the base.

The very first Freedom plate was actually designed around the original Oxycheq Razor series or Signature series wings. Those wings were developed to rival Halcyon Pioneer wings. It looked to me at the time that Oxycheq was poised to dominate the market so that's what I decided to fashion the plate to fit.
At that time there was no Hog, Hollis, or others of late.
Then Oxycheq got a bright idea to make the slimest wing out there, so they dumped the original version and went with the Mach V series.
That made me change designs, and since the original version there have been 6 design changes so far to try and keep up with ever changing slot patterns.

There may still be somebody making a wide long style slot pattern on their wings. All the ones I see now seem to be slimmer and the slots are pretty specific.
The only modern wing still in production that I know of that will fit an original FP are Dive Rite wings. They have a very big open style center panel with plenty of room.

Or, if you want to use the plate without a wing you could go old school and just dive it backpack style like they used to in the 50's and 60's. There are plenty of people who do.