Dive Rite Question

Big Jay · Jul 20, 2005

Ok. Right now i have a Zeagle Scout which is a great travel/single tank shallow BC (no deeper than 70-80 feet).

I dive primarily off NJ and am looking to hit some wrecks slightly deeper 90 feet where doubles are needed.

I stuck between two harness BP combos. TransPac or Deluxe HArness. A dive shop is running a special and i know the people very well.

The system i am leaning towards is a Dive Rite Deluxe HArness. It comes with a choice of backplate, padded harness straps, my choice of wing (i going with 51 lb. single/double) weight pockets and 2 steel cam bands.

Let me tell you the price is FAR less than what the Transpac would be with all that stuff.

I mean the deluxe system has everything the Transpac does with the exception of a soft back harness. Is the transpac worth the extra $$$$. What are everyone's thoughts?

gfisher4792 · Jul 20, 2005

The one thing that jumps out of me is your choice of wing. As many others will tell you, there really isn't a wing that can handle both single and double configs. It's much better to pick a wing for a single or double set up.

pants! · Jul 20, 2005

I use the standard 1-piece webbing harness, and so do all of my dive buddies. I highly recommend it for its robustness, simplicity, ease of replacement, stability, and comfort.

[edit: this is with both doubles and singles]

Big Jay · Jul 20, 2005

gfisher4792:
The one thing that jumps out of me is your choice of wing. As many others will tell you, there really isn't a wing that can handle both single and double configs. It's much better to pick a wing for a single or double set up.

Now that i think about it you are right. Perhaps i'll go for the bigger lift wing and use the harness strictly for doubles and then use the Zeagle Scout i already have for single.

I should also note the Deluxe harness comes with a chest strap. Both do not come with a crotch strap but can be added on of course.

pants! · Jul 20, 2005

Chest straps are worthless underwater.

They are good for some backpacking packs. When backpacking, the weight of the pack is squarely on the pelvic bone, with a rigid plate in the backpack transferring as much of the weight as possible to the rigid hip belt. The top of the pack tends to fall down and away from the shoulders, and the natural position when walking is to let the arms drop and the muscles loosen. The shoulder straps pulling down and back on the loose shoulder muscles tends to make the straps spread, taking the pressure of the shoulder straps away from the large muscles and rigid structure of the neck and shoulder and more towards the smaller muscles and flexible parts of the upper arms. A chest strap is used in this application strictly to help prevent shoulder strap separation when hiking.

A chest strap does *nothing* underwater on a properly fitted harness, and I've seen people that have a tendency to tighten them down simply because they think they should and they honestly have no idea what the chest strap's function really is, and this results in a needlessly constricted rib cage.

I have seen BC designs where a chest strap is necessary to simply keep the BC from falling off underwater, but this is a failure of the BC design in the first place. A decently fit harness will NOT benefit in any way from a chest strap.

oceancrest67 · Jul 20, 2005

pants!:
Chest straps are worthless underwater.

They are good for some backpacking packs. When backpacking, the weight of the pack is squarely on the pelvic bone, with a rigid plate in the backpack transferring as much of the weight as possible to the rigid hip belt. The top of the pack tends to fall down and away from the shoulders, and the natural position when walking is to let the arms drop and the muscles loosen. The shoulder straps pulling down and back on the loose shoulder muscles tends to make the straps spread, taking the pressure of the shoulder straps away from the large muscles and rigid structure of the neck and shoulder and more towards the smaller muscles and flexible parts of the upper arms. A chest strap is used in this application strictly to help prevent shoulder strap separation when hiking.

A chest strap does *nothing* underwater on a properly fitted harness, and I've seen people that have a tendency to tighten them down simply because they think they should and they honestly have no idea what the chest strap's function really is, and this results in a needlessly constricted rib cage.

I have seen BC designs where a chest strap is necessary to simply keep the BC from falling off underwater, but this is a failure of the BC design in the first place. A decently fit harness will NOT benefit in any way from a chest strap.

I have a Dive Rite Transpac and I happen to like the chest strap option. You may have a point in that it may not function like a backpack chest strap in redistributing the load but it does keep the BC glued to my back. With a crotch strap...the Transpac is so much better than a jacket style bc which tend to float up off the back and/or ride up...annoying to say the least.

Just my 02.

Big Jay · Jul 20, 2005

oceancrest67:
I have a Dive Rite Transpac and I happen to like the chest strap option. You may have a point in that it may not function like a backpack chest strap in redistributing the load but it does keep the BC glued to my back. With a crotch strap...the Transpac is so much better than a jacket style bc which tend to float up off the back and/or ride up...annoying to say the least.

Just my 02.

Well the crotch strap is going to be added regardless which model i get. I am just trying to figure out which one will give me more bang for my buck.

I was also told should i grow which i will (i bodybuild) the deluxe harness is better than the transpac since i can just change the webbing out if i grow. Is this true?

halocline · Jul 20, 2005

I have the deluxe harness, no padding on the shoulder. I got it over the single piece for one reason; ease of donning/doffing. Of course, the fire-breathing single piece harness crowd will have a field day with that one, but I have very square and forward shoulders, and so it is MUCH easier for me to get in and out of the deluxe harness than the single piece. And it's pretty cheap; I think I paid about $50 at dive-rite express. People often mention the potential failure of the plastic clip, and while I suppose that's true, every backpack in the world, many of which support loads in excess of 70lbs trudging up mountains for days on end, uses them and there is almost no instance of failure; under much more demanding conditions.

I like your idea of making your BP/wing a dedicated doubles rig, although if, after you dive with it for awhile, you love it so much you can't imagine diving without it, it's a simple matter to buy a singles wing like the venture. Some guy posted on another thread about putting grommets in his travel wing and using it on hs plate for singles; that's good news because the travel wing is much less expensive; jetharness makes a clone for $120.

pants! · Jul 20, 2005

Very few backpacks have quick release buckles on the shoulder straps, FWIW.

The consequences aren't very dire if you break a plastic buckle whether backpacking or diving. The thing that would upset me a great deal is if the plastic broke when donning my gear on a boat and I realize I just wasted a bunch of money

oceancrest67 · Jul 20, 2005

Big Jay:
Well the crotch strap is going to be added regardless which model i get. I am just trying to figure out which one will give me more bang for my buck.

I was also told should i grow which i will (i bodybuild) the deluxe harness is better than the transpac since i can just change the webbing out if i grow. Is this true?

I purchased the Dive Rite Transpac with integrated weight pockets plus crotch strap because I wanted a reliable, durable, back inflate bc that could be used in various environments...primarily for single tank diving...warm or cold. It can also be transformed into a doubles harness. I like it because of these features and the fact that it provides excellent trim and bouyancy characteristics that a jacket style bc does not have.

Now...I am also in the market for a BP / Wing set up for doubles...I checked OMS, Halcyon, Dive Rite...but, I think I may go custom given the fact that I am 6'4" tall and a standard plate may be too short.

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