Travel Friendly BCD (but not a "Travel BCD")

[jonhall]

I'm looking to buy my first BCD. Most of my diving so far has been in warm water The Aqualung Zuma seemed like a very light, unstructured "Travel BCD".

My partner bought a Zuma but found it was a little light weight, the straps are only 38mm and the d-rings are plastic. The straps tend to twist. I wouldn't trust the d-rings with a camera.

Not a sales pitch, just my experience. I purchased the Zuma in 2010 as I was looking for a lightweight travel BC. I am 6'4" and 220-225 lbs and got the large.

Can be packed a couple of different ways but I usually roll it up and put in in my carry on luggage (put it in checked bag on way home.) It has a padded back and shoulder straps. Haven't had any problems with D rings and occasionally attach my camera and flashlights to them. Has one big Velcro pocket.

Have used in temps of 70-84 degree water, but mostly the warmer. Have used with rash guard up to 7mm and have had no issues with adjusting straps/fit. Adjustments are quite easy to make. One of the features I like are the quick release integrated weights as I always remove them when I change over tanks to make the BC easier to lift.

Also like that in contributes only 4 lbs to the overall weight in my bags.

 

[Damselfish]

Can be hard to find the perfect travel BC, one that still has the features you want and drops the ones you don't care about.

For years I dove a Ladyhawk which I really liked but got damaged a few years ago. Out of what was out there I came down to a SP Litehawk or a Zeagle Express Tech. I actually bought both and returned one after some living room dives. I liked some things about the Litehawk a little better, but went with the Express Tech because I got an insanely great deal on it.

The Express Tech is somewhat customizable. I couldn't adjust the tank position to where I needed as designed (I tend to hit my head on the valve if I don't drop my tank pretty low.) But I eventually figured out a hack to accomplish it. And it's pretty much just a webbing harness so easy to add rings and stuff. I don't use the shoulder pads as there wasn't really room for them after I shortened the straps, plus they were too stiff and scratchy to add comfort for me, mostly jabbing me in the neck and generally getting in the way. One of these days I'll think to take off the back pad and see if I miss it. A little padding can be nice when not wearing much of a suit but I also like not having stuff to slow down drying. I did have a problem with the weight pockets which are attached with crappy plastic bolts, one of which fell out early on, so I keep an eye on those.

I was considering a Zuma until I discovered the tank height couldn't be adjusted at all, which is a deal killer for me.

 

[olphart]

I kinda like my Cressi Air Travel for tropical stuff. Very light, packs up small, even has a small rollup pocket that i seldom use but is nice to have.
With this bc I pack my dive rig complete with regs 2 computers, smb, 2 lights, 2 masks, 3 mil full suit, but minus fins, in a normal sized backpack for carry on. I could even get my fins in if I used my F2's

 

[tdallen]

Lots of great feedback, thanks!

What do you mean by "structure"?
I would advise you to get a BC with an absolute minimum of padding, fabric, and bells/whistles, especially in the area of your torso and chest.

By structure I mean, bottom line, is that it doesn't feel like you have a big metal tube strapped to your back . I.e., spreads the weight bearing/distribution around.

Many quality BC's come with neutrally buoyant padding no problem. Padding adds comfort to the rig.

Yes, I don't feel like I want or need a lot of padding but a little bit thoughtfully placed in the right areas (straps, spine, lumbar) feels like it would make a big difference comfort-wise.

There were several BCDs in there that I'm not familiar with, the Oceanic BioLite, the ScubaPro Equator, and the Cressi Air Travel as well as the DiveRite TravelPac - I'll take a look at them. Not sure where I can try on the Oceanic and Cressi... I like the idea of buying a BCD from and LDS so you can see what you are getting and try it on.

 

[tdallen]

My pick Scubapro Knighthawk http://www.scubapro.com/en-US/USA/bcs/products/knighthawk.aspx

It packs quite easily is solid with good sized stainless steel d-rings and doesn't have many frills, it have in-built trim weight pockets and integrated weights.

I prefer the back-inflate it gives a lot more freedom on the body. I also have a BPW set-up and they both feel much the same in the water.

The Knighthawk looks a little big, does it pack up well? Also, do you have any trouble with the air bubble shifting around with the Knighthawk? I have very limited experience with back inflate. I'm willing to go with one, but in the couple of dives that I did with one I had trouble with the air bubble shifting left/right/back on me so a bungied model looks appealing. I absolutely admit to being over-weighted and under-skilled and under-experienced on those dives, though.

 

[tdallen]

Not a sales pitch, just my experience. I purchased the Zuma...

Well you convinced me to take another look. I just poked at it in the shop, maybe I'll have them throw a tank on it and give it a try...

 

[tdallen]

Stiletto is a good compromise, Zeagle actually calls it a travel bc. Has all you want - the only limitation (which you didn't mention) is it's a single tank model only. It's got the Ripcord weight integration - nice because it uses hard/soft weights - even lead shot in the optional yellow weigjht pockets and if you have to use it, one pull drops both sides. It also has the 35lb. retracting (bungied) bladder which should be enough for single tank in your 7mil. I know a SoCal diver who uses one - sometimes with an extra wetsuit jacket and he has no problems.

I tried stuffing my XL into a airline-legal sized carry-on roller bag. I did get it in and zipped up but you wouldn't get much else in there with it - maybe some soft clothes. The last thing I like is the 1000 Denier fabric - some of the lighter ones (like the Zuma) are only 420 Denier.

It is heavy though - 7.5lbs.

I prefer a back-inflate over a jacket. When you're actually diving in horizontal trim having all the air on your back and most of the weight low and in front helps you maintain that position. Jackets are better at floating you vertical on the surface if you plan to dive there.

Single tank is fine, I'm only planning on rec diving. If it turns out I get much more technical I'll make a different set of choices.

On paper the Zeagle Stiletto looks great, if a little expensive. I briefly tried one on and it didn't fit correctly. I usually wear a medium BCD but the medium Stiletto was too small. I need to go back and talk with someone who is familiar with fitting them.

I've seen some cattle boat diving where the primary skill seemed to be bobbing along on the surface behind the boat - didn't seem too appealing. I had a bad experience with back inflate but they make a lot of sense so I'm open to giving back inflate another try.

 

[Uber Dave]

I have a scuba pro super hawk and just came back from a live aboard. It doesn't pack that well and takes up room where I could put cloths. With that said I am looking at the new scubapro Hydros Pro Men's BCD for traveling I believe it has everything you want.

 

[dmaziuk]

By structure I mean, bottom line, is that it doesn't feel like you have a big metal tube strapped to your back . I.e., spreads the weight bearing/distribution around.

Yes, I don't feel like I want or need a lot of padding but a little bit thoughtfully placed in the right areas (straps, spine, lumbar) feels like it would make a big difference comfort-wise.

How far do you plan to walk in it? Because once you're in the water, there is no weight distribution to right areas.

 

[BoltSnap]

Not sure where I can try on the Oceanic and Cressi...

I would NEVER buy anything scuba from Cressi at all, not anymore!!! Not their regulators, not computers and not their BC's!! Cressi may make good free and spearfishing gear, but not scuba!