Which BC: Oceanic Excursion, Aeris Atmos or the Knight hawk?

[Contrast]

I am new to diving and I am trying to decide which BC to get. I have narrowed it down to 3 BC's; Oceanic Excursion, Aeris Atmos or the Scuba Pro Knight Hawk. I am looking to get a BC that will allow me to use it for the tropics as well as East Coast diving and tech diving. I will eventually be taking tech classes. I would also like a BC that can handle double tanks, yet is not too bulky for the tropics. I don't want to get a "beginner BC" and then dish out more cash down the line to upgrade. I would rather pay more now for the proper equipment. Any suggestions?

As far as Regs I am going to get the Oceanic Delta 4 and for a computer either the Oceanic Atom 2.o or VT3. If you have any suggestions for my reg and computer I would love to hear them.

Thanks so much,

 

[djanni]

I am new to diving and I am trying to decide which BC to get. I have narrowed it down to 3 BC's; Oceanic Excursion, Aeris Atmos or the Scuba Pro Knight Hawk. I am looking to get a BC that will allow me to use it for the tropics as well as East Coast diving and tech diving. I will eventually be taking tech classes. I would also like a BC that can handle double tanks, yet is not too bulky for the tropics. I don't want to get a "beginner BC" and then dish out more cash down the line to upgrade. I would rather pay more now for the proper equipment. Any suggestions?

As far as Regs I am going to get the Oceanic Delta 4 and for a computer either the Oceanic Atom 2.o or VT3. If you have any suggestions for my reg and computer I would love to hear them.

Thanks so much,

Since you added tech diving and double tanks as an eventuality I'll stay away from your BC question. Scubaboard has a large population of tech divers / twin tank divers and they'll let you know what you realy want.

Delta 4 - not that popular with the tech divers so they'll straighten you out on that one too.

Atom vs VT3 - The real question you need to answer on this one is do you want it to double as a watch? If not, get the VT3 for its larger display.

 

[Aquarianna]

If you want to go the tech route, you'll probably find a lot of good press about BP/W setups.

I have an Aeris Atmos, and love it! But based on the kind of diving you want to get into, it probably isn't what you're looking for. I'll let others chime in on what options might be better

 

[MBH]

The ScubaPro Knighthawk will mount doubles.

 

[Aquarianna]

My bad

 

[grantctobin]

The Knighthawk will mount doubles, but only small ones (72s, maybe 80s). Even with those tanks, the lift capacity is restricted. unfortunately, today's bands wont fit, you have to find a pair of the older thinner bands. (according to LDS)

The only thing that comes close to being able to handle both singles and doubles greatly, will be a plate/wing setup. e.g Dive Rite's Rec wing will supposedly hold both singles and doubles, but ive heard people say that its "not pretty" and the wing will taco around the tank. For the price of the Knighthawk, you can get a nice plate and a singles wing. when you do decide to go to the dark side, buy another wing for doubles and have both.

The Oceanic D4 is a solid reg, but from what ive seen, SP Apeks and Poseidon are the most popular. Why this over some of the others?

 

[Contrast]

Thanks for all of the feedback.

It seems that 2 BC's are the way to go, one for the tropics and one for tech diving. That is what I am going to do. I'll get my tropic BC this year and since I will not be doing any tech diving this year I'll get ny tech BC next year. Any recommendations for a back inflation BC for the tropics? I like the hybrid design of the Aeris Atmos.

As far as a Reg I want one that will be used for tech in the future. I liked some of the features on the Delta 4; 2nd stage swivel, dry valve tech, adjustable inhalation etc... I am now thinking that the Atomic B2 will be a much better choice? Is the B2 good enough for tech as well?

I am not planning to use my dive computer as a watch so I think the Oceanic VT3 might be a good choice.

 

[djanni]

Thanks for all of the feedback.

It seems that 2 BC's are the way to go, one for the tropics and one for tech diving. That is what I am going to do. I'll get my tropic BC this year and since I will not be doing any tech diving this year I'll get ny tech BC next year. Any recommendations for a back inflation BC for the tropics? I like the hybrid design of the Aeris Atmos.

As far as a Reg I want one that will be used for tech in the future. I liked some of the features on the Delta 4; 2nd stage swivel, dry valve tech, adjustable inhalation etc... I am now thinking that the Atomic B2 will be a much better choice? Is the B2 good enough for tech as well?

I am not planning to use my dive computer as a watch so I think the Oceanic VT3 might be a good choice.

There's a lot to like about Oceanic/Aeris' equipment and it's quality. I'm sure you would like it a lot. The Zeagle Stiletto and Brigrade are similar and priced about the same. Zeagle is a popular brand around here and I have a Stiletto. The Knighthawk was my toss-up BC back when I decided to go with the Stiletto. I also have a Dive Rite TranspacII. If you like the hybrid design you might check that one out. It would run about $100 more. The Transpac has a lot more to fiddle around with, tweak and adjust. That's it's negative but if you like the idea of that it's a nice feeling BC.

I do think it's best to buy from a local shop if you can. Especially items that need regular servicing such as regulators. BC's don't matter so much in my opinion.

I also have 2 B2's and 2 SS1's. I think they are terriffic regs. Atomic is known for having the easiest breathing reg there is.

 

[MBH]

Since I have one I'll give you the pros and cons regarding the Nighthawk.

Pros are; it's a back inflate, it has one bottom and two shoulder air dumps, easy to get to integrated weight pouches, it has two trim weight pouches, it's easy to adjust, it has a lot of lift (I forget the actual #), and it's comfortable for a BC.

Cons are; the zippered pockets are just about worthless, the stowaway pocket is WAY too big, the D-rings are bent out a little too much for my taste, and the inflator hose is too long.

Me personally... I'd rather use my BP/W than any jacket BC any day of the week.

 

[grantctobin]

For being streamlined, the bp/w is the best. It has no inherent buoyancy (actually, the buoyancy is 3-6lbs negative, so less weight in the pockets. Instead of having 2 completely independent BCs, just have 2 wings; it will also save money in the long run.

The Atomics are also good regs. If you compare them to the high end scubapro regs, you will notice an incredible amount of similarity. The founders of Atomic Aquatics were ex-scubapro engineers. Around the world, the Scubapro is more common and easier to get serviced. Definitely go to local shop for regs. idk if you live in cold water, but if you do, go with a diaphragm first stage. These are more suited for cold water. For the price of just the B2 1st/2nd stages, you could get a MK17/G250HP regulator or the new (supposed to come out very shortly) MK19/G250V. The difference is a swivel in the first stage and a metal air barrel in the G250V. When you get into doubles, the MK19, MK25 and atomic regs all have some of the best hose routing because of the bottom port. For any water over 50 degrees, go with MK25 with S600/G250HP/G250V

Between the 2 computers, I would go with the VT3 although there doesnt seem to be much difference between the 2

below is a pic of new SP reg from UK site: