Halcyon small plate size

[eelnoraa]

I am 5'6", about 145lb. I am currently using Dive Rite standard size plate, and thinking of switching to Halcyon small size. I wonder if small H plate will be too small for me. The reason to switch is 1) I want to be able to move the plate lower. 2) steeper band of the plate. Both are trying to avoid head hitting 1st stage. Now I have never seen or tried a small H plate, so I don't know if it will be too small. Can you guys comment on this?

 

[Scott L]

I would suspect it will come down to your torso length as height alone does not tell the whole story. Sounds like you are a tweener...

 

[g1138]

I'm 5'6" 110lbs. And I feel your pain. I just adjusted my harness to bring the plate lower so I'm not having my head blocked by my wing and first stage.

I've seen a DSS small plate which is roughly the size of a Halcyon Sm plate. I think it would be too small for me personally.
I've heard that your waist strap should be at or below your belly button. For me, I found out I had my plate too high.
You could try calling Any Water Sports in San Jose and see if they have the plates in stock. That way you can take a look anytime you're in the area.
They might even be willing to give you the dimensions.

 

[TSandM]

I'm 5'4" and 120 lbs, and the DSS small plate is actually a bit short for me (puts the waist band very high on my waist, or the top hole on the plate very low on my back).

Are you using a single tank or doubles? If you are using a single tank, you have a lot of freedom to move the tank in the cambands, without having to move the plate. Also, if you are using a single tank, you should be aware that the Halcyon small pattern plate has no camband slots, so you HAVE to use an STA.

 

[mahjong]

The DSS small plate is right at 13". I'm certain that the Halcyon small plate is longer than that, but I cannot remember exactly how long it is. At least close to 14".

 

[kathydee]

I'm 5'4" 117lbs and the Halcyon S plate fits quite well. Prior to purchasing the S plate, I dove a full sized Halcyon plate with custom holes drilled to drop the tanks. On the full sized plate, we had to tighten my crotch strap to hold the plate down low enough on my hips. The waist belt was too low across my hips. As a result I often experienced lower back pain from having to prop the tanks up with my lower half.

The Small Halcyon plate dropped the tanks a bit lower than the full sized plate. It no longer rests on my lower half thus I no longer experience the lower back tension and pain.

 

[g1138]

Well I feel lazy and stupid now. I got a Halcyon catalog with my Eclipse set up, it was sitting right at my desk.
The Halcyon small plate is 14in X 9.25in. Like TSandM said,no cam slots so it has to be used with an STA.
5lbs SS and 1.8lbs Al

For reference the regular plates are 15.52in X 10.25in
6lbs SS and 2lbs Al

 

[eelnoraa]

Thank you for all you input. Looks like I will just give a small plate a try.

 

[rlynch]

I'm 5'6" - 160lbs and the small plat was too small for me - the normal plate fits perfect. I thought i needed to move the tanks up but it turned out to be a training issue rather than gear. I adjusted myself. Ifyou do go with a small plate i have an MC storage pocket for it that i bought by mistake and marked with my initials that i'll sell cheap.

 

[eelnoraa]

thank you all.

I just found out one of my fundie team mate has a small AL H plate and a regular SS H plate. I will let you guys know how it goes.