The new Freedom Contour - The Rolex of backplates.

[Charles2]

I am anxiously awaiting the next run of Freedom Plates. Hopefully, I am high enough on the list to get one. It's hard not to go ahead and start collecting all the parts necessary to build a complete rig; but, I think that I will wait until the plate actually gets here. The comments already posted will certainly influence my purchasing decisions.

Although my kids and grandkids are welcome to help themselves to my gear whenever they need it, I am afraid that this new rig may be more popular that anything I own today and as such may be in such demand that I will need to replace the plates in the other rigs as well.

@Eric Sedletzky and I have been discussing whether a medium or a large plate would be best for me. I am 6'-0" tall with a 30" inseam - a medium plate seems right for me; however, all my kids and grandkids are 6'-3" to 6'-7" which would call for a large. Because all of my equipment will be passed down to them in the next few years anyway, I was thinking about just going ahead with the large plate. For those of you who already have your plates, can you comment on this decision?

 

[Satrekker]

I am anxiously awaiting the next run of Freedom Plates. Hopefully, I am high enough on the list to get one. It's hard not to go ahead and start collecting all the parts necessary to build a complete rig; but, I think that I will wait until the plate actually gets here. The comments already posted will certainly influence my purchasing decisions.

Although my kids and grandkids are welcome to help themselves to my gear whenever they need it, I am afraid that this new rig may be more popular that anything I own today and as such may be in such demand that I will need to replace the plates in the other rigs as well.

@Eric Sedletzky and I have been discussing whether a medium or a large plate would be best for me. I am 6'-0" tall with a 30" inseam - a medium plate seems right for me; however, all my kids and grandkids are 6'-3" to 6'-7" which would call for a large. Because all of my equipment will be passed down to them in the next few years anyway, I was thinking about just going ahead with the large plate. For those of you who already have your plates, can you comment on this decision?

Buy for yourself. The kids and grandkids can suck it up and "suffer" with a Freedom Plate that may be only slightly less perfect for them. ;-) It'll be a good life lesson for them. They shouldn't expect other people to make allowances in their decisions based upon their own potential future comfort. I don't mean to sound harsh, but that's just the way that I view things.

 

[Bubblesong]

I am anxiously awaiting the next run of Freedom Plates. Hopefully, I am high enough on the list to get one. It's hard not to go ahead and start collecting all the parts necessary to build a complete rig; but, I think that I will wait until the plate actually gets here. The comments already posted will certainly influence my purchasing decisions.

Although my kids and grandkids are welcome to help themselves to my gear whenever they need it, I am afraid that this new rig may be more popular that anything I own today and as such may be in such demand that I will need to replace the plates in the other rigs as well.

@Eric Sedletzky and I have been discussing whether a medium or a large plate would be best for me. I am 6'-0" tall with a 30" inseam - a medium plate seems right for me; however, all my kids and grandkids are 6'-3" to 6'-7" which would call for a large. Because all of my equipment will be passed down to them in the next few years anyway, I was thinking about just going ahead with the large plate. For those of you who already have your plates, can you comment on this decision?

I bought my 18 year old one, she is same height as me, just so she’d keep her sticky fingers off mine!

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Eric, this is an excellent idea. Besides my collection of regulators, I also have a collection of wings. While the bolt distance is standardized, the spacing of the cam band slots is not. So some wing and plate combinations do not line up properly, for example I remember a Hollis wing would not line up with Hog plate. Some wings such as the Dive Rite, Oxycheq, Deep Six, and Hog have longer slots and are able to be used with any plate. Other wings have shorter slots to lock you into using the manufacturer's plate.

I should probably start a new thread
somewhere discussing slot/ bolt hole/ placements and measurements of all the wings out there. If people would just be willing to lay a ruler down on their wings showing exact placements of the slots in relation to the holes, that in itself would remove a lot of the mystery and save me a lot of time and headache.
It would also help to show how far appart some slots are sideways from the centerline, and if there are any other obstructions such as sewn in roll control cushions or other stabilizing contrivances, and their respective widths and placements in relation to the centerline.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I am anxiously awaiting the next run of Freedom Plates. Hopefully, I am high enough on the list to get one. It's hard not to go ahead and start collecting all the parts necessary to build a complete rig; but, I think that I will wait until the plate actually gets here. The comments already posted will certainly influence my purchasing decisions.

Although my kids and grandkids are welcome to help themselves to my gear whenever they need it, I am afraid that this new rig may be more popular that anything I own today and as such may be in such demand that I will need to replace the plates in the other rigs as well.

@Eric Sedletzky and I have been discussing whether a medium or a large plate would be best for me. I am 6'-0" tall with a 30" inseam - a medium plate seems right for me; however, all my kids and grandkids are 6'-3" to 6'-7" which would call for a large. Because all of my equipment will be passed down to them in the next few years anyway, I was thinking about just going ahead with the large plate. For those of you who already have your plates, can you comment on this decision?

I think you could use a medium for sure, and maybe a large. A large would definitely fill up your back (maybe overfill it) but a medium (standard) would probably seat in better.
I'm 6'4" and the large is about perfect for me. I *could* use a medium but the waistband would be a little too high, and the top slots would be a little low in relation to my neck and where the V shape of the shoulder straps takes off out of the plate to set on your traps. What starts to happen with sizes that are too big with a plate that is highly form fitting like the FP, is that they aren't able to find the sweet spot, the top is to high and the bottom is too low. That's why I realized that a one size fits all isn't going to work with the FP.
So in your case, I could guarantee the fit of a medium but not necessarily a large.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

I have the same setup as Stuart - Freedom Plate + Hog 23 wing. My setup is almost identical, but I did swap out the corrugated hose on the wing for a shorter 13" one. I did mount the wing using the middle holes, and I removed the plastic tank stabilizer tubes on the wing via a small incision at the top using pliers and my utility knife with a new blade. It was very clean and easy. I'll keep the tubes in case I ever need them in the future.

I absolutely love the strap Stuart recommended. I ran it around the middle of the bracket crossbar like Stuart did and under the crossbar for the top screw to hold it in place. The small amount of additional material necessitated a longer stainless steel carriage bolt. I initially tried a 3/4" but that was too short. 7/8" would be perfect, but I could only find 1/4" increments, so I bought 2 x 1" and ground them down with a hand grinder using two nuts on each carriage bolt to mark the exposed length for grinding. 1" worked perfect for the bottom of the bracket, and I used stainless steel nylon locking nuts on both top and bottom carriage bolts. With the rubber tubing on the rails, my tank is clear of the nut on top and doesn't scrape. Also, I absolutely love the DGX scubapro-style cam bands to which I added some Halcyon weight pockets, and in conjunction with the tank strap, it's a piece of cake to set up and swap tanks.

It'll be Monday or Tuesday evening before I get a chance to get in the pool with my new rig. I'll be diving with my Faber HP 100 to check out the setup. As of now, I am planning on diving without a crotch strap. The way the backplate conforms to my upper back and sits above my hips, the belt is above my navel and below my ribs, so I think, as was mentioned in a previous thread by Akimbo, that it may not be necessary. I hope this is the case. I do have one though that I'll configure and take with me in case I need it.

Here are a couple of photos:

Excellent!

 

[Charles2]

Thanks for the responses. Looks like it's gonna be a medium for me. When the kids want their own, I'll just replace the old, existing backplates with large.

Ready when you are, Eric.

 

[Akimbo]

No, it's solely to loop around the neck of my tank for exact placement of scubapro-style cam bands....

That's the first time I've seen than, good idea. Maybe @Eric Sedletzky can incorporate into suggestions on rigging the Freedom Plate. I use Highland bands so just lay the tank down on the plate and wing.

 

[Satrekker]

That's the first time I've seen than, good idea. Maybe @Eric Sedletzky can incorporate into suggestions on rigging the Freedom Plate. I use Highland bands so just lay the tank down on the plate and wing.

If anybody decides to order these straps, be sure and order the 3' ones, so you have enough strap.

 

[Akimbo]

If anybody decides to order these straps, be sure and order the 3' ones, so you have enough strap.

FYI to all: My local hardware Ace stores sell soft 1" webbing by the foot in several colors along with most of the plastic buckles.