BP/W For Cold and Warm Water Suggestions

Please register or login

Welcome to ScubaBoard, the world's largest scuba diving community. Registration is not required to read the forums, but we encourage you to join. Joining has its benefits and enables you to participate in the discussions.

Benefits of registering include

  • Ability to post and comment on topics and discussions.
  • A Free photo gallery to share your dive photos with the world.
  • You can make this box go away

Joining is quick and easy. Log in or Register now!

samuel990

New
Messages
1
Reaction score
0
Location
Ohio
# of dives
25 - 49
Hey guys,
I am looking for some advice in regards to getting a bp/w. I am currently diving with a Aqua Lung Pro HD, which I really think is to bulky and gets in the way while spearfishing. It has served me well, and I had a really good deal on it, but I would like to get an upgrade. I have only ever dived in Florida and Alabama, but am moving back to Ohio soon. I would like to get a rig that is good for cold water quarries and The Great Lakes, but can also be used on trips back down South and in warmer places. I currently dive with 3mm wetsuit, with 10lbs non-ditchable weight and 14lbs ditchable. It has 33lbs lift. From what I have read, a SS backplate and 30lb wing. Does this sound good? Any suggestions on what exactly to get? I have looked at dive rite's website, but really am not sure. Also, I weigh 170ish and am 6ft tall.
Thanks,
Sam
 
Hey guys,
I am looking for some advice in regards to getting a bp/w. I am currently diving with a Aqua Lung Pro HD, which I really think is to bulky and gets in the way while spearfishing. It has served me well, and I had a really good deal on it, but I would like to get an upgrade. I have only ever dived in Florida and Alabama, but am moving back to Ohio soon. I would like to get a rig that is good for cold water quarries and The Great Lakes, but can also be used on trips back down South and in warmer places. I currently dive with 3mm wetsuit, with 10lbs non-ditchable weight and 14lbs ditchable. It has 33lbs lift. From what I have read, a SS backplate and 30lb wing. Does this sound good? Any suggestions on what exactly to get? I have looked at dive rite's website, but really am not sure. Also, I weigh 170ish and am 6ft tall.
Thanks,
Sam
See if this helps- Review: XDeep Ghost BCD- BP/W
 
I'd start with suggesting that you're almost certainly massively over-weighted with 24lbs at your height/weight with just a 3mm. But that's not the question you asked...

For a BP/W, I'd go aluminum if you only want one setup, since you'll likely find when you get your weighting dialed in that a tropical dive with a SS backplate will again have you over-weighted, but you can always add lead for your cold water dives. Personally, I prefer to have both AL and SS backplates and they can be swapped quickly/easily, so that's an option as well. 30lb wing should be adequate for both sets of diving, depending on your specific gear. There's a calculator on here somewhere for determining required lift, but I don't remember where at the moment.
 
Did you really mean you use 24 lbs with a 3 mm wetsuit? Weighting is obviously very dependent on the person, but I’ve never seen anyone correctly weighted with a 3 mm over 10 lbs...I’m currently using 2 lbs and my girlfriend 4 lbs with Al80 tanks...

Anyway I’d you really need so much weight, definitely get a steel backplate, because you can save from putting about 4 extra pounds on your harness somewhere.
 
Did you really mean you use 24 lbs with a 3 mm wetsuit? Weighting is obviously very dependent on the person, but I’ve never seen anyone correctly weighted with a 3 mm over 10 lbs...I’m currently using 2 lbs and my girlfriend 4 lbs with Al80 tanks...

Anyway I’d you really need so much weight, definitely get a steel backplate, because you can save from putting about 4 extra pounds on your harness somewhere.
agreed - that's an insane amount of weight. plus 170 at 6 ft to me says not a lot of fat. weighting guidelines (https://elearning.padi.com/company0/tools/BasicWeightGuidelines.pdf) say you should be at 8-9 #. granted your mileage may vary, but to have 3 times that is wrong.
 
I dive Halcyon Infinity. Great build quality, but expensive. I feel much more stream lined and agile underwater than in a jacket style bcd.

I’m 6’ 180lbs. In a well worn 3 mill, I dive with 6 lb STA and 8 pounds ditchable weight, and I’m over weighted by at least 2 pounds.

There are factors beyond simple BMI measurements that determine buoyancy, but you should experiment with dropping some weight from your kit.
 
I have a SS DGX plate and a 30# Oxycheq Extreme wing for all my cold/fresh water diving. When I travel to the warm salty bathtub I have an Oxycheq "wishbone" SS travel plate with an Oxycheq 18# Extreme wing. Essentially, I have two separate sets of gear and if you want to do both, you may end up with two separate sets also.
I really like the Oxycheq wings (or the VDH is basically similar) because they have a small streamlined profile. The "Extreme" version isn't necessary but Edd at Cave Adventures gave me a screaming deal. The standard Mach V signature series will do just fine.

The DGX 30# wing looks pretty awesome for the money but I don't know enough about it to actually recommend it- other than recommending that it probably warrants some further research.
 
i was diving the same aqua lung pro hd for a couple of years just switched to the oms lite (no steel back plate but can add one later)only used at the pool for one session but already noticed a huge difference in movement .best decision to trade up on
 
I'm a fat kid (6'2" 245#) and with my waterproof 2.5mm suit I wear 10 lbs in pool. I'd do a weight check for sure if I was you.

I'm going BP/W soon and I already have a SS backplate (Zeagle) with one piece webbing. Now I'm thinking I'll buy a setup with an aluminum wing and a 30-40# wing, plus a 20# wing for tropical diving. (Swap stuff out based on where I'm diving.)
 
For a BP/W, I'd go aluminum if you only want one setup, since you'll likely find when you get your weighting dialed in that a tropical dive with a SS backplate will again have you over-weighted, but you can always add lead for your cold water dives. .

I Agree. I used to dive a SS BP and zero weights with a drysuit/double-fleece in fresh water. Eventually I switched to an AL BP so I could move weight to my waist. That was a good day.
 
https://www.shearwater.com/products/peregrine/

Back
Top Bottom