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my topic is about transition period trying a new bcd.
i became open water year 2000 and advanced year 2004. took the advance course and got the dacor rig 2 with a 64 pound wing the same year. i am not a technical nor a hardcore diver but ive been diving for quite some time with the same bcd and gear.
my dilemma rig2 is too much to bring for a travel dive. ill be in coron philippines in a week and i am just about to receive my dive rite bcd with the small compact trave wing and comfort harness by wednesday. ive heard coron is a bit of wreck diving without the technical specifications. so im worried trying the gear once and traveling straight to coron.
what are the suggestions you can give?
its impossible to pack the rig 2. and renting bcds in the coron shops might be worse. so if trying the dive rite. what can i expect with this bc? is it comfortabe, easy to install, adjust straps, learn to balance adjust weight?
Are you having to assemble your own bcd from a kit of different pieces or is the bcd already assembled ? If the unit is already assembled (meaning the wing and bc are already bolted together) then it's no big deal to adjust the waist/sholder straps on dry land before your trip, and it would be nice if you had a scuba tank now too, as your final adjustments will be more accurate if you are able to have the weight of a tank on the unit while you are making final adjustments to fit and tightness.
If your bcd is in 'pieces', meaning you need to assemble it yourself, then I'm a little more worried about you, as there are divers out there who are mechanically clueless and it might be dangerous for you to assemble it yourself.....it would be bad news if you incorrectly attached the wing to the bcd and the wing detached in the middle of a dive!
Only you can judge if you feel competent to perform any required assembly.......going straight to a blue-water dive trip with completely new/untested gear isn't the greatest idea, especially if the dive conditions on your trip are 'advanced' (deep bottom/currents/night dives).
If you assemble the bcd correctly, try it on for fit (with a tank on your back would be best) and everything seems fine while on dry-land, then I wouldn't worry too much about how the new bcd will perform in the water, just make sure your first dives on your trip are 'easy' dives with gentle conditions so if there are problems you can get out of trouble easily. Once you have established that the bcd is 'safe', you can spend the rest of your dives tuning the bcd for best fit/balance.
Are you having to assemble your own bcd from a kit of different pieces or is the bcd already assembled ? If the unit is already assembled (meaning the wing and bc are already bolted together) then it's no big deal to adjust the waist/sholder straps on dry land before your trip, and it would be nice if you had a scuba tank now too, as your final adjustments will be more accurate if you are able to have the weight of a tank on the unit while you are making final adjustments to fit and tightness.
If your bcd is in 'pieces', meaning you need to assemble it yourself, then I'm a little more worried about you, as there are divers out there who are mechanically clueless and it might be dangerous for you to assemble it yourself.....it would be bad news if you incorrectly attached the wing to the bcd and the wing detached in the middle of a dive!
Only you can judge if you feel competent to perform any required assembly.......going straight to a blue-water dive trip with completely new/untested gear isn't the greatest idea, especially if the dive conditions on your trip are 'advanced' (deep bottom/currents/night dives).
If you assemble the bcd correctly, try it on for fit (with a tank on your back would be best) and everything seems fine while on dry-land, then I wouldn't worry too much about how the new bcd will perform in the water, just make sure your first dives on your trip are 'easy' dives with gentle conditions so if there are problems you can get out of trouble easily. Once you have established that the bcd is 'safe', you can spend the rest of your dives tuning the bcd for best fit/balance.
good day.
the dive rite travel wing bcd with comfort straps will arrive on a wednesday. It is slightly used and my instructor ordered it for me in the scubaboard marketplace. it is already bolted together. im a bit excited and sceptic to try it
thank you for the advice. i will immediately try to dive on a saturday. my instructor (and close friend) will help me fix it up , straps, weights etc. i just hope one diving day can fix adjustments.
what im worried about is the trip a few days after that, well i hope the dive shops can help with some minor adjustments after the flight. ill be a newbie to a backplate and wing type bcd.
upgrading to a totally new setup of bcs system makes diving exciting exspecially when ive been using a bulky bcd for 7 years. i hope you can mention what other things to expect.
Are you asking about options for a travel BC? I don't know if you understand that the dive rite travel wing is just a wing; no harness or plate. If you want compact, travel-easy dive rite gear, get the dive rite aluminum plate, a standard 1 piece harness w/crotch strap, 2 cam bands, and the travel wing. As an alternative you could get the transpac harness and the travel wing.
I have a feeling you're going to notice a huge improvement over a bulky (64 lb!) jacket BC, if that's what your dacor is.
Are you asking about options for a travel BC? I don't know if you understand that the dive rite travel wing is just a wing; no harness or plate. If you want compact, travel-easy dive rite gear, get the dive rite aluminum plate, a standard 1 piece harness w/crotch strap, 2 cam bands, and the travel wing. As an alternative you could get the transpac harness and the travel wing.
I have a feeling you're going to notice a huge improvement over a bulky (64 lb!) jacket BC, if that's what your dacor is.
I'm assuming '64 lbs' refers to the wing's rated lift and not the actual dry weight of the actual BCD.
good day to all. yes my apologies for the terms. my dacor rig 2 uses a 64 pound lift. so trying the diverite 30 pound something lift would be better.
the diverite i ordered has is almost like the transpac harness but i guess its an older version. its called comfort harness as mentioned. but for now there is no aluminum plate yet. fully foldable travel bc. the bc will arrive in a few days and hoping to try it asap.
the trip in coron philippines features wrecks from world war 2 u.s and japanese war ships. though its not a common dive place yet compared to tubbataha reef, i guess trying the new diverite would be nice.
to all halcyon eclipse, diverite transpac, and other backplate and wing divers; is it easy to learn and more comfortable?
You have been diving for quite a long time already so it should be fairly easy to learn how to use a bp/w.
I started diving with a back plate and it was a little more difficult than using a regular jacket but it didn't take long to learn the basics and I would never dive with a jacket again.
Btw, I'm curious why you got a harness and wing without getting a plate at the same time?
actually the package hasnt arrived yet. but it is a dive rite trans pac harness with a travel wing. my instructor helped me find the gear. the backplate is a foladable but removable foam fully foldable for dive trips. but i also checked dacor website, you can buy the backplate aluminum or steel with other straps depending on need.
the package wiil arrive i think weekend. then ill be in coron palawan in the philippines after a few days. so no time to upgrade with a backplate yet. have to try it as is. the trip is what im worried about. because i think coron features many wrecks and il will only try the bc only once before leaving.
ill update when i get the gear. to be honest i havent seen a dive rite gear in our place.
As for plates, you can order from him as well. Back plates
Finally, I wouldn't buy anything from Decor, every since Mares too it over, getting parts, new gear etc have all been nearly impossible and it looks like Mares is trying to phase out Decor for their own stuff.