BP/W Wing - Aluminum or SS Advice

[Nemrod]

The difference here is you have to either plan on using a rented weight belt, which is fine, or if you are using any sort of weight pouches, or bringing your own weight belt, you have to factor the difference in weight of an aluminum/abs/kydex plate plus the cam band pouches against a steel plate. The difference in aluminum vs steel plates is roughly 3lbs, and I bet if you put a pair of cam band weight pouches on, that becomes closer to 1.5-2lbs in weight difference, and frankly that isn't enough for me to deal with weighted cam bands which I hate, or weight belts, which I also hate. 2lbs is not much and if you pack properly it's a non-issue in my experience.

Some of us are using travel plates like the Oxy fabric plate or the VDH Universal mini plate either of which are much lighter than even a standard aluminum plate (I have steel and aluminum standard tech plates for comparison). Much smaller also and the Oxy plate can be partially rolled or folded.

Today I used a steel plate for one dive and then my VDH Universal plate for dive number two. I added three pounds to each of the camband slots and used a weight belt for both dives for the remainder (as I am a believer in jettison-able weight sufficient to establish significant surface buoyancy which is a problem for me with either steel plates or camband weights in certain configurations).

Lol, I can carry a lot more dive equipment in my Tacoma than in an airplane suitcase. In a 3/2 I would typically carry two pounds in each camband slot and two pounds in my two QR weight pockets for a total of eight pounds, my camera adds two more pounds.

N

 

[halocline]

I frequently travel with an AL plate and put weights on the cambands. I would say it feels close to a steel plate, but not exactly the same. And I do shove the weights against the plate, one on each side. BTW, you don't need camband pouches, you can thread the weights on the cambands. Awap made some little webbing straps with velcro closure that thread through weights, then go around the camband. They work great.

It's still not as good as a steel plate IMO. But for me, I often need the AL plate for doubles on the same trip, so I don't bother with two plates.