help me build my first BP/wings setup

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After reading many posts on this forum, I am beginning to understand how a BP/Wings setup works. I contacted Scott Koplin who was nice enough to give me some advice to help me on my way. I still have some questions, however, and would appreciate the community's input on these issues.

First I should give my background. I began diving in Monterey three years ago. Dive with 26 pounds of lead, 7mm suit and a Zeagle Ranger BC. I use an Air2 octo, rent aluminum 80s and only dive single tank, mostly shore dives, No penetration dives, no deep (>100ft) dives. Occasional night dives and hunting.

Koplin suggested I get a medium 1/4" and weighted STA (weighing in at 18lbs) and a 45lbs wing. I'd be left with ~8lbs ditchable weight.

1) How do people deal with their ditchable weights? I dislike weightbelts. I've seen the Halcyon ACB. Are there other options to consider?

2) How big a wing should I get? Koplin suggested a 45# wing bus this seems like overkill considering I carry 26# weight and am likely to drop a couple pounds switching to a BP system (so I've heard). Sub-topic: what brand Halcyon vs. Diverite vs. whomever?

3) So I've got a BP and STA and wing. What else do I need? It seems there is more than just the 2" webbing. Are there kits that have the D rings and buckles and such? Is there a product like a Diverite harness I should consider?

That's about it for now. Any help would be much appreciated. If you want to weigh in on only one of these topics, feel free.
 
Seemsa lot of fplks are asking the same questions these day, but I'll go ahead and give you my 2 cents here and you can do the search of the threads with similar, if not the same, quesitons on your own.

I'd maybe go with the 36# Halcyon pioneer single tank wing. The wing also comes in a 27# version. I do think the 45# wing would be a little much for a single Al80.

I personally wear a weighbelt.

As for the harness, I'm sure you can get all the hardware you need for the single piece 2" webbing harness. In my opinion, there is no need for a name brand harness with 10,000 d-rings and other stuff on it.

Some questions for you now:

Where are you located? Maybe someone in your area can help you set it up.

Are you planning on keeping your air2 or going to a bungeed backup?

And how bout a long primary hose? The 5' (or 6' if you are really tall) can be used for single tank diving. Or the 7' if you have a canister light.
 
Thank you Wendy for your help. I admit my post was similar to some recent posts but after looking them over I could not find the answers to those specific questions. Sorry.

I noticed that two of your comments (bungeed backup and long primary hose) mentioned ideas common in DIR principles (just heard about them and am studying up). Since I'm not doing deep or penetration dives, do you think my Air2 octo is really a liability?

Also I did some math and got this:

from Koplin
1/4" Backplate $175
Weighted STA $98

from 5th dimension
45# Pioneer wing $338
20# ACB Weight syste, $132
webbing kit $61

$804 total for a BP/wing. This seems expensive. How much do you figure I can reduce this to?
 
Probably a little room in the cost of the Halcyon wing. Rest of what you need shouldn't be more the $300.00. I'd forget the weight pockets. With the reduction in needed weight a pocket belt with soft weights makes good sense. Check on this board for FredT & PM him for a price list. Also take a look on Ebay. This is an example: http://cgi.ebay.com/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=3615239010&category=16053
The Classic wing is wrong for Al80 so you would want to keep looking. Halcyon wing are quality but they sure do love them.
 
I realize Koplin has been most helpful to you, but you may wish to compare his prices against FredT's.

You can shoot him an E-mail and he will send you a price list.

I like his 9# SS back plate.

TwoBit
 
One thing I've learned about Scott is he's pretty darned honest about diver's needs. Sure he makes the plates & STA's, but I doubt he'd ever mislead you just to get a sale. His biggest problem as a businessman is that he can't disassociate himself from the consumer point of view, which is good for you and me.

I've never met him, but he's sure been helpful to me when I've had problems, and that wasn't with problems I had with his stuff. He's a pretty smart dude gear-wise.

You can save some bucks by making your harness. Buy 3 d-rings, 12 or so feet of 2" weight belt webbing ( a couple of feet more if you want to make the crotch strap too, but you'll want another 1 or 2 d-rings and triglides in that case), 3 tri-glides, and a good buckle. It's easy, cheap & safe, and it's kinda fun to be able to say you did it yourself. Forget the weight pockets and use the tried and true weight belt. Make it out of the webbing left over from the backplate harness.

Did Scott mention that there was a new wing coming out very soon? It might save a bit of money as well.

Have fun.

JF
 
DiverAnderson once bubbled...

Koplin suggested I get a medium 1/4" and weighted STA (weighing in at 18lbs) and a 45lbs wing. I'd be left with ~8lbs ditchable weight.
Get a standard size BP, there is only one size. 18lbs? That sounds really heavy. I doubt that you need that much weight in the rig. 45lbs is too much lift for a single tank.
1) How do people deal with their ditchable weights? I dislike weightbelts. I've seen the Halcyon ACB. Are there other options to consider?
I can usually get away without having to wear any weight at all. However, the rig is still balanced and I am able to swim it up if necessary. I don't like the ACB system as I think it's too bulky. Stick with a weightbelt or try to integrate some of the weight into the BP/STA.
2) How big a wing should I get? Koplin suggested a 45# wing bus this seems like overkill considering I carry 26# weight and am likely to drop a couple pounds switching to a BP system (so I've heard). Sub-topic: what brand Halcyon vs. Diverite vs. whomever?
Most people drop a good amount of weight by simply switching over to a BP. I don's see how you would need more than 36lbs of lift for a single tank.
3) So I've got a BP and STA and wing. What else do I need? It seems there is more than just the 2" webbing. Are there kits that have the D rings and buckles and such? Is there a product like a Diverite harness I should consider?
A complete setup from Halcyon tends to be cheaper than if you piece everything together separately.
 
If you make it yourself, make sure to bend to two shoulder D-rings. This is hard if you get D-rings that are too beefy.

I concur with the advice against using the ACB. Weight belt is better and cheaper.

A lot of this stuff comes around used once in a while. A backplate is (pretty much) a backplate.
 
Probably your best bet would be to buy a Halcyon pioneer system and if you have the ability, pour yourself a channel weight which would add another 6-9 lbs to your bp. You could just wear the rest on a weight belt.A good steel tank will also help you rid your belt of some weight.

Probably the reason scott is suggesting the 45lb wing is so your rig will float on the surface without you in it. In reality with you suited up in your rig you should only be negative by the amount of the weight of the air in your tank which is a far cry from 45lbs. You will also experience some buoyancy loss as your wetsuit compresses.
 
...why would you purchase something you have not yet tried?


DiverAnderson once bubbled...
After reading many posts on this forum, I am beginning to understand how a BP/Wings setup works. I contacted Scott Koplin who was nice enough to give me some advice to help me on my way. I still have some questions, however, and would appreciate the community's input on these issues.

First I should give my background. I began diving in Monterey three years ago. Dive with 26 pounds of lead, 7mm suit and a Zeagle Ranger BC. I use an Air2 octo, rent aluminum 80s and only dive single tank, mostly shore dives, No penetration dives, no deep (>100ft) dives. Occasional night dives and hunting.

Koplin suggested I get a medium 1/4" and weighted STA (weighing in at 18lbs) and a 45lbs wing. I'd be left with ~8lbs ditchable weight.

1) How do people deal with their ditchable weights? I dislike weightbelts. I've seen the Halcyon ACB. Are there other options to consider?

2) How big a wing should I get? Koplin suggested a 45# wing bus this seems like overkill considering I carry 26# weight and am likely to drop a couple pounds switching to a BP system (so I've heard). Sub-topic: what brand Halcyon vs. Diverite vs. whomever?

3) So I've got a BP and STA and wing. What else do I need? It seems there is more than just the 2" webbing. Are there kits that have the D rings and buckles and such? Is there a product like a Diverite harness I should consider?

That's about it for now. Any help would be much appreciated. If you want to weigh in on only one of these topics, feel free.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

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