modustollens
Contributor
I just bought a BP/W. Aluminum back-plate. Did my first dive with it last week.
I immediately thought, after jumping in the water, that I would never use a jacket style again. The difference in comfort and mobility was instantly apparent. My arms and chest were unencumbered. It took a lot less effort to move. It was so nice not having a bulky set of pockets or being squished by the bladder when I inflated. It even packs smaller in the dive bag.
I still need more experience with it to test out a few trim solutions, though of the five dives I did with it I did not make any changes from the suggestions made to me by my wing-experienced buddy.
Setting the webbing up for my body size on the boat was pretty easy given that I had some help from a guy who has been using a wing for years. The learning curve in the water was pretty fast too. I found the wing did not dump air as easily as my jacket BC (which has many dump valves) - I had to adjust my angle in the water a bit to get the air to stream out when horizontal - but, the air seemed to go out faster than my jacket BC, especially on the surface when I was still vertical.
During the dive I noticed that I added or released air way less than I did with the Jacket BC. Much less fuddling. It did not ride up as much as the Jacket and felt a lot more stable. The wing has two tank bands too so the tank felt more secure and I did not feel it moving at all.
There are no plastic clips on the wing or giant, plastic integrated weight pockets and there is a lot less fabric. Hence I think the wing is a lot less buoyant than the jacket BC I have.
I bought my current jacket BC in the tropics. When I was back home in Canada diving in the lake with my thick wet-suit I noticed that the jacket BC was a little too tight. I will not suffer this problem now for the wing will adjust easily no mater if naked or dressed for ice.
I did notice that I hang differently when floating on the surface but I just leaned back a bit and felt comfortable.
This is my third BC. The first jacket style BC I grew out of. The second I bought only recently and now regret not trying a wing sooner. Had I made my first BC a wing I could still be using it, I would have saved a lot of money and likely enjoyed my diving even more.
Consequently I can't imagine using a jacket BC anymore.
MT
I immediately thought, after jumping in the water, that I would never use a jacket style again. The difference in comfort and mobility was instantly apparent. My arms and chest were unencumbered. It took a lot less effort to move. It was so nice not having a bulky set of pockets or being squished by the bladder when I inflated. It even packs smaller in the dive bag.
I still need more experience with it to test out a few trim solutions, though of the five dives I did with it I did not make any changes from the suggestions made to me by my wing-experienced buddy.
Setting the webbing up for my body size on the boat was pretty easy given that I had some help from a guy who has been using a wing for years. The learning curve in the water was pretty fast too. I found the wing did not dump air as easily as my jacket BC (which has many dump valves) - I had to adjust my angle in the water a bit to get the air to stream out when horizontal - but, the air seemed to go out faster than my jacket BC, especially on the surface when I was still vertical.
During the dive I noticed that I added or released air way less than I did with the Jacket BC. Much less fuddling. It did not ride up as much as the Jacket and felt a lot more stable. The wing has two tank bands too so the tank felt more secure and I did not feel it moving at all.
There are no plastic clips on the wing or giant, plastic integrated weight pockets and there is a lot less fabric. Hence I think the wing is a lot less buoyant than the jacket BC I have.
I bought my current jacket BC in the tropics. When I was back home in Canada diving in the lake with my thick wet-suit I noticed that the jacket BC was a little too tight. I will not suffer this problem now for the wing will adjust easily no mater if naked or dressed for ice.
I did notice that I hang differently when floating on the surface but I just leaned back a bit and felt comfortable.
This is my third BC. The first jacket style BC I grew out of. The second I bought only recently and now regret not trying a wing sooner. Had I made my first BC a wing I could still be using it, I would have saved a lot of money and likely enjoyed my diving even more.
Consequently I can't imagine using a jacket BC anymore.
MT