BC doesn't float

I have a Zeagle Ranger BC, size small. I use a steel 72 3000 psi tank. I use 26 pounds of lead total, 12 pounds in each pocket and 2 pounds on the tank strap. I noticed that when I took my fully inflated vest/tank/weights/reg off at the surface at the end of a dive, and tied it to the boat, my rig sinks! I'm thinking this is not good...

The vest is working fine. I am petite and short waisted, at 120 lbs and 5 foot 4 inches, so a larger vest is not an option. An aluminum 80 hits the backs of my thighs when I kick (it reaches halfway to my knees), so I really prefer the smaller steel tank. I need to wear sufficient fleece to keep warm in our Pacific Northwest waters, so I find that I need 26 pounds of weight... When I take the weights out, then the rig floats.

My husband's Zeagle Ranger (size large) holds up his tank and 40 pounds of lead! (Why he dives with 40 pounds is a whole nuther story...) How serious is my gear problem? I would appreciate any comments, thoughts, advice, etc.

I think you need to go spend some time in the pool and get you boyance down + you can go to a super Al80 its about 3/4 the size of a normal 80. realy nice for the shorter diver. it will also give you more bottom time

The standard ranger bladder should have 44 lbs of lift. Does it look the same as your husbands? If you have a smaller bladder, you can swap it out to a larger one. Up to 85 lbs... http://scubatoys.com/store/Scuba_Zeagle_Accessories.asp The other thing you might do is toss some of that lead on a belt. If I'm diving over 20 lbs, I'll wear 10 on a belt and the rest in my BC to spread it around, and also make it so if something happens and lead is dumped, I'm not a Polaris missile heading to the surface.

I don't understand about the aluminum 80. I'm 5'4 and 120 lbs, and an Al80 sits quite nicely on my back. Are you putting the tank up high enough?

I'm diving 28 lbs of weight total, and I had a heck of a time with my BC (Libra). I could only get 20 lbs in the pockets, and then had to try to lash weight to the rig all over the place.

I've had much better luck with a SS BP/W, where six pounds is in the backplate. I wear 20 lbs on a weight belt, and 2 on the cambands. My weight is just about perfect (as witness the fact that a weight check with 300 psi could not take any weight off) and my rig is really well balanced.

I can't say anything about your Zeagle, but I understand the issues of having to carry a lot of weight to stay warm.

I'd put some on a weightbelt as well. If weight is an issue going to an aluminum is not going to reduce the weight that you carry so I'd stay with the steel 72's as long as that is enough air for you.

I have both a Zeagle Ranger as well as bp/w combos.

I use the Scubapro 72 shorty, which is just about the most negative tank for the volume you can buy. At 6'2" and 200 lbs it allowed me to drop 5 lbs of lead from my belt, so with a drysuit in our more temperate SoCal waters I use 17 lbs weight.
With an Atomic B1 reg the Zeagle and tank weight in at 52 lbs.

I initially tried a cheap DiveRite amuminum bp with a 45 lbs Oxycheq wing for stability.
Loved it, it has less inherent bouyancy than the Ranger and allowed me to drop 3 lbs.
So I bought a DiveRite ss plate to drop some more weight. The problem is that all the
neg bouyancy was on my back and gave me a hard time to keep my balance. Too bad, really, as the ss rig with the same Atomic reg and Scubapro tank weights in at 47 1/2 lbs and allowed me to drop 6 lbs over the Ranger.

I now use the aluminum plate with the steel tank, and the steel plate with alu rental tanks. Less weight and inherent bouyancy, less weight on the belt. More streamlined and much more stability. With a drysuit compfort isn't an issue, either.

Alternatively, you can add a larger bladder to your BCD. Nice to have the option. But it means that your rig will be bigger yet.

By the way, since I like Zeagle Ripcord system I went with the DUI weight harness for the bp/w. For me that's another advantage, as you don and doff them separately. Makes hauling your dive rig around a rolling boat easier and gives you a comfortable way to transport your lead to and from dive sites.

My wife has the same AL 80 problem. If she keeps it high enough to not intefere with her thighs, it wacks her in the head if she looks up underwater. Her solution initally was to go with generic steel 72's (about 25 inches tall) but when she started diving dry we moved her into 72 cu ft Fabers. They are very short (20.5 inches) but still hold 72 cu ft at their 3000 psi service pressure. They are also 11 pounds negative when full and 6 pounds negative when empty, so she can take off 4 pounds more lead than when diving a generic steel 72 and 10 pounds more lead than when diving an AL 80.

I have also noticed that many BC's, especially small size BC's, are not very user freindly for cold water dry suit divers and the weight they require. A BC with 28-30 lbs of lift works great for tropical divers but is not up to the task for cold water. A bigger bladder is the way to go if you can get one.

How serious is your lack of lift problem? That depends. Normally, most of your lift comes from your drysuit, and the lift of the BC is just extra bouyancy on the surface. But in the event your suit ever floods, you need the redundancy to get off the bottom. So if you vent all the air from your drysuit at depth (as much squeeze as you can tolerate), inflate your BC and cannot swim off the bottom without dumping weight, you have a serious problem. Dumping weight is alwyas an option but is a last resort as it can leave you popping all the way to the surface unabel to control your ascent or make a safety stop.

The other issue is that in the water by itself, your gear sinks. If your gear line ever breaks, you have a problem. (This comes from the personal experience of spending most of a day of deco diving running search patterns in 120 ft of murky water after my spouse put her less than fully inflated BP/wing over the side after also forgetting to clip it to a gear line.)

DA Aquamaster:

I have also noticed that many BC's, especially small size BC's, are not very user freindly for cold water dry suit divers and the weight they require. A BC with 28-30 lbs of lift works great for tropical divers but is not up to the task for cold water. A bigger bladder is the way to go if you can get one.

Click to expand...

DA:
My wife has surface flotation issues in winter gear as well. I am hoping making the switch to 45 lb Oxycheq wing will make her feel more secure at the surface.

On a sort of related topic, you might want to seriously reconsider the amount of lead you're using. 26 lbs seems awfully heavy for a 120 lbs woman. I am 5'7" and 150 lbs. and I wear 16 lbs. when diving wet, 18 lbs. when diving dry.

Granted, your BC should be able to handle the 26 lbs., but you might want to consider if all of that weight is really necessary.

Good luck!

With an empty BC, fully inflated lungs and a nearly empty tank, do you float at eye level when wearing 26 lbs?