Novice diver plunge for Backplate and Wing?

[rhwestfall]

but that is the sales pitch.... "It holds you, floats you head up, high in the water, and is comfy...

I don't care what folks buy, but educate them with truth, not your cash register drawer....

 

[Diver0001]

It holds your head up high and it's comfy. What's wrong with a BCD that has that?

R..

 

[rhwestfall]

It holds your head up high and it's comfy. What's wrong with a BCD that has that?

R..

refer to your own avatar......

 

[Diver0001]

Er..... Wut?

R..

 

[g1138]

Er..... Wut?

R..

It isn't conducive to horizontal trim is what he's getting at. Your avatar picture is a diver w/ horizontal trim.

 

[Diver0001]

It isn't conducive to horizontal trim is what he's getting at. Your avatar picture is a diver w/ horizontal trim.

So does my profile picture. I'm wearing a jacket in that one and it wasn't something that I just drew for a 3 year old that wanted a coloring picture but couldn't find one with a diver on it.

R..

 

[fnfalman]

It holds your head up high and it's comfy. What's wrong with a BCD that has that?

R..

Nothing wrong with it unless it was designed more for floating high on the surface than establishing good horizontal trim under the water. As far as comfortability goes, I've yet to have a jacket BC (poodle or back inflated) that is comfortable to wear in or out of the water.

There's a BC by some manufacturer that claimed it would hold the diver's head well out of the water. I don't remember exactly which one, but it's in recent various dive magazines. I'm sorry, but that claim is specious at best. If I were to look for a float to keep me afloat in an emergency, then by all means, I want something that holds me as high out of the water as possible. However, I'm a scuba diver and I want a BC whose design should be focused on aiding me in establishing horizontal trim and not floating me nice & vertical well out of the water.

 

[Lorenzoid]

Not trying to stir the pot--in fact I'm looking at replacing my BCD with a BPW in the future--but is horizontal trim really the holy grail? If I can cast my mind back to when I was first certified, I suppose I would have been more receptive to a sales pitch that told me a BC would help keep my head up when I'm on the surface than something that would give me good horizontal trim underwater. I don't think I could even appreciate the benefit of horizontal trim for a few years--I was too busy just getting used to being underwater, and anything that I thought might make diving less stressful, more comfortable, etc., was what I wanted, even if I knew in the scientific part of my brain that I was inefficiently wasting energy by flailing around in a non-horizontal position. A contraption with lots of adjustments that didn't hold my head up when I surfaced was probably the last thing I would have wanted. I have a different perspective now, but it took some years.

 

[Diver0001]

Nothing wrong with it unless it was designed more for floating high on the surface than establishing good horizontal trim under the water.

You're absolutely right about this. A BCD has a function under water and it has a function on the surface. However, I don't get the impression from the ones that I've used that they were designed more with one than with the other in mind. Moreover I don't see it as a bad thing that a BCD that functions on the surface by being comfortable and keeping the head out of the water is somehow inferior, as suggested by rhwestfall.

There may, in fact, be some crappy ones around but they are not inherently crappy by design, as some would argue. Frankly, if your skills are sorted it doesn't make a huge difference. It's nuances and *that's it*. I can dive equally well with a jacket, with a bp/w and probably even with empty milk jugs tied to my butt. Why? Because skills, and not gear, determine if you understand how to get trimmed out and maintain neutral buoyancy.

R..

---------- Post Merged at 06:29 PM ---------- Previous Post was at 06:26 PM ----------

is horizontal trim really the holy grail?

I would argue that it's highly desirable in many diving situations, yes.

R..

 

[fnfalman]

Not trying to stir the pot--in fact I'm looking at replacing my BCD with a BPW in the future--but is horizontal trim really the holy grail?

Yes, it's the holy grail of diving for most conditions:

1. You're more streamlined and cut through the water better thus equates to less effort and less gas usage.

2. You don't kick yourself up towards the surface or towards the bottom which requires constant inflation/deflation adjustments PLUS refer to No.1

3. You present a larger surface area in the water column and it's easier to flare your body in an emergency to keep your ascension rate down while you're taking remedial actions.

If I can cast my mind back to when I was first certified, I suppose I would have been more receptive to a sales pitch that told me a BC would help keep my head up when I'm on the surface than something that would give me good horizontal trim underwater. I don't think I could even appreciate the benefit of horizontal trim for a few years--I was too busy just getting used to being underwater, and anything that I thought might make diving less stressful, more comfortable, etc., was what I wanted, even if I knew in the scientific part of my brain that I was inefficiently wasting energy by flailing around in a non-horizontal position. A contraption with lots of adjustments that didn't hold my head up when I surfaced was probably the last thing I would have wanted. I have a different perspective now, but it took some years.

Very true. However, these issues are due to lack of education. Common sense isn't common. If a newbie diver (I was one of those that was uncomfortable in water and wanted to be well off the water on the surface) were to not have certain ideas reinforced by either the instructors or the experienced dive buddies then they will keep on thinking about things like head well out of water, vertical position, etc.