BP/W combo

[pchris2]

It's a shop in Cali that ships everywhere. Very good guys. The package is called the "Storm" package as Storm is the maker of the backplate. It is absolutely identical to the Diveright AL backplate. It usually comes with a 38lb wing, but I called and told them I was looking for a singles wing so they gave me the 32 lb hog for no extra cost. I figured they would add about 50 on for the hog, but they didn't. I went ahead and got a STA while I was there. It's not needed, but I wanted to dive with it.

 

[bubblegumrissa]

sweet. Thanks for the info. I will look into that.

 

[Pullmyfinger]

I have a Dive Rite Venture 360 single tank wing for sale, along with it I have an aluminum backplate, aluminum single tank adapter (STA), Dive Rite TransPlate harness, low pressure inflator hose, crotch strap, and 2 cam bands.
One of the cam bands is a stainless Dive Rite band, the other is one with a plastic buckle.

This is a complete rig, as shown in the pictures. The wing has been dove about 6 times, as a loaner rig.

If you are interested, it's yours for $300. You pay the shipping.

 

[Damselfish]

I've been told BP/W is the way to go...It doesn't really matter to me whether it's aluminum or SS although I would obviously prefer SS...with about 50lbs give or take of lift...

nothing against BP/W, but if you don't have any specific reasons to go with that other than "I've been told", don't care if it's alum or SS, and don't know how much lift you need - possibly you aren't quite ready to buy a BC and should research this a bit more.
(Note that with no info about your diving, it's actually not obvious you would prefer SS. Even if most people do, there's no way of knowing if their reasons apply to you.)

(BTW if "I've been told" by any chance means "I've read it 1000 times on Scubaboard", that doesn't really mean anything. There's just a vocal BP/W contingent here.)

 

[RonzoTheGreat]

dolphin is an awesome shop and i have had great experiences with both their sales and service ... and im thousands of miles away

 

[bubblegumrissa]

@ Damselfish-Thanks for the advice although I have actually dove with a regular BC and a BP/W and far prefer the BP/W because of the lack of bulk and its user friendly nature. I was considering a SS plate because I generally use a lot of weights and felt this would cut back on the pounds I was packing, although I have recently reconsidered this view. Trust me, I have done lots of research and have received some good advice on here as well as discussing the matter with a local BP/W user and feel quite comfortable in purchasing my own BC.

@ RonzotheGreat- thanks for the confirmation of the quality of Dolphin Scuba. I have looked into their website and think that might be the way to go!

@Pullmyfinger-Thanks for the offer but I think I'm set on either a typical donut or horseshoe shaped wing.

 

[Pullmyfinger]

No problem,

Mine is a donut wing, but I believe you are referring to the overall shape.
The Venture does have that different (odd) shape.
Good luck with your search.
Check out the DSS packages, although I am sure you've already heard about them. They have all the cool shapes and sizes.

-Mitch

 

[deich]

nothing against BP/W, but if you don't have any specific reasons to go with that other than "I've been told", don't care if it's alum or SS, and don't know how much lift you need - possibly you aren't quite ready to buy a BC and should research this a bit more.
(Note that with no info about your diving, it's actually not obvious you would prefer SS. Even if most people do, there's no way of knowing if their reasons apply to you.)

(BTW if "I've been told" by any chance means "I've read it 1000 times on Scubaboard", that doesn't really mean anything. There's just a vocal BP/W contingent here.)

Thanks for reminding me why I dont visit this sight... Full of elitest, vacation diving d!$kheads...

The girl wants to get a BP/W how about offering some help rather than questioning her inteligence and ability to decide which platform she wants to dive.

What does it matter what kind of diving she does? Are there certain situations where a BP/W is a wrong choice? From my experience they work great in the pool equally as well as stabbing fish at 200 fsw.

Go get it girl.... Feel free to PM me if you have any specific questions.

Just sayin, D

 

[Pullmyfinger]

The OP's first sentence made it clear:

"Looking to buy a single tank wing and backplate with harness setup."

Actually there's a big anti-BP/W contingent here, all too quick to jump on a thread and give multiple reasons why you shouldn't buy a BP/W.

If the OP wanted something else, she might have posted this instead:

*Looking to buy a Jacket BC setup.*

OR

*Looking to buy a back inflate BC setup.*

If someone posted that they were interested in buying a motorcycle, would all of you "anti-types" start "thread crapping" and start posting about how the OP only really needs a 50cc scooter?
Or how "all of my students seem to do fine in the rental jackets I provide them with."

Or......"Back in the day, when I was 'King $hit on Turd Island' I used a jacket and it's all I've ever needed."

Just sayin'.

-Mitch

 

[Blue Sparkle]

Maybe Damselfish could have been a little "nicer" about it, but to be fair, I can see why she brought up a few of the points she did.

Yes, the title of the thread was clear "Want to buy bp/w combo." BUT, then the OP mentions being pretty new (so maybe is not totally sure of choices), and mentions that she's "been told" bp/w is the way to go (which kind of opens up that maybe her info is not 100% certain). Additional things that made me wonder (although I didn't post because, being new myself, I didn't want to sound like some expert wannabe type):

1) She says that "of course she would prefer SS" (but doesn't mention why, so since neither aluminum nor SS are inherently "better" that made me wonder a little bit),

2) She says she's looking for "around 50# of lift, give or take." One can assume a beginning diver is using a single tank, and so that sounds like a lot of lift, without any other explanation about why you would need the "extra."

For example, my BC has 17# of lift and suits me really well. Now granted, that is for tropical waters, so it would not be the logical choice for colder waters/thicker wetsuit/steel tanks, etc. But again, we didn't get that info, and the OP is in Georgia, not Ontario (i.e. not where you would necessarily presume super cold water). Even in colder waters, it seems like 50# would be a lot for a single-tank right though, doesn't it?

In summary, it was a very specific request in the subject line, but then the body of the post had some qualifiers that -- put together -- didn't totally make sense (to me anyway).

What does it matter what kind of diving she does? Are there certain situations where a BP/W is a wrong choice? From my experience they work great in the pool equally as well as stabbing fish at 200 fsw.

But what kind of diving she does does matter, doesn't it? For example, warm, salt water reef diving with minimal to no exposure protection and an AL-80 vs. cold-water diving in a drysuit/thick wetsuit and a steel tank? It seems like those two scenarios would call for different set-ups, so her type of diving would matter. Then there's do you drive or fly to your typical dive site (weight of gear), etc.

I'm not defending anyone "piling on" at all; but just saying that I had some of the same questions in my mind, but just didn't post due to not being a super experienced diver either. OTOH, it doesn't seem unreasonable for someone to post back with a "Hmm, that doesn't totally add up, and I see you are new, so...."

Blue Sparkle