equipmnt for my children, long, but please help.

[gbf]

I retired from diving in 1988, but now my children are of age and recently certified and we're back in business.

Child 1 - 14 yo girl, 5'2", slim "womanly" shape. Child 2 - 11 yo girl, 4'7", athlete

We did check out's in the Keys, and they both far exceeded expectations of the PADI instructor and did well by my (cave diver) standards.

I still have my regulators/mask/fins and am comfortable with them, but am in the market for stuff for the girls and wife, and new bc for me.

Having been out of the equipment loop for years, I'm not up to speed on the makes/models/technologies now available, but do have a few criteria.

1. No BC jackets, to much stuff in front, bad fit for kids,...
2. No tech diving in the forecast. If they choose to go there later then they can deal with it then, and I'm retired.
3. small child has a very small mouth, so cyklon (I have plenty of those) is not a choice for reg.
4. It would be good if we could all use the same brand to minimize spare parts proliferation.
5. Caribbean and keys diving only is in the plan
6. They will probably have to wear weight belts (BC with integrated weights too heavy, especially for small child)

Obviously, I've looked at the DiveRite/Halcyon/Zeagle websites, but haven't actually touched their new offerings.

Any suggestions(and reasons why) for BC and regs for the girls, any other considerations you could share regarding equiping children would be appreciated.

Thanks in advance
Brad

 

[Lost Yooper]

They will never outgrow a simple harness/wing combo as offered by Halcyon, and the harness is anotomically correct for them too. My wife had me put neon green webbing on hers .

Mike

 

[Scubaroo]

If you are considering backplates for the kids, I've seen short backplate designs designed for smaller framed people, that might be just the thing for the kids. I don't think there are any commercial "name-brand" offerings though. FredT (a user on this board) makes a short backplate for smaller people - I've emailed you his contact details.

 

[BlueDolphin]

How much are you looking to spend?

(Just curious before suggestions come about)

 

[gbf]

The last time I bought dive gear in any quantity was late 70's, early 80's.

When I started looking at the on-line vendors I got a serious case of sticker shock...

BlueDolphin, I'm not really sure, but kinda whatever it takes. These are, after all, my children. Maybe, for reg/guages/BC $1000 per child? We've already got personal gear (mask/fins/snorkel/wetsuit/watches).

I've kinda got it in mind that I can do everything we need for me, kids, wife before next spring trip to Bonaire for $4,000-$5,000.

Will that get it done? Overkill? I don't want to throw money away, but I want them to be safely and comfortably equipped so they will enjoy diving. Poorly fitting rental equipment was the source of all the problems we had on the checkout dives.


Oh man, this is going to cost some serious cash. In addition to the girls, a lot of my stuff is really tatty - the bladder in my wings is shot, the cordura is well-worn, my jetfins are dry rotting, on and on.

Thanks for your help

Brad

 

[Lost Yooper]

I think if you did a Fred T plate and harness kit, 27lb Halcyon wing, Apeks regs from DiveInn, and a shorty wetsuit, you can come in under $1000 per person.

Mike

 

[roakey]

Lost Yooper hit the nail on the head. Even if you need the small backplate for either daughter, when they outgrow it for a whole, what, $60 or so you can "upgrade" to the larger backplate and move all the webbing, wing and STA from the older, small backplate to the new one.

Then eBay the small backplate(s).

Can't make the growth path any cheaper than that!

Otherwise with conventional BCs you're looking at replacing the entire BC when they outgrow it.

And note that this is not in any way trading off quality for an upgrade path. You get a superior system AND save money in the long run!

Win-win.

Roak

 

[gbf]

Thanks, Lost Yooper and Roakey. I've been in touch with Fred T. I looked at the photos of the backplate/STA assembly, and have a couple of questions, having never seen or needed this lash-up before:

1. Is the arrangement plate/wings/sta/tank or plate/sta/wings/tank?

2. Does the sta push the tank too far from the back? For small people will this be too much leverage for them to handle? Follow on - Does somebody make a "single tank plate" that eliminates the distance issue?

Thanks again

Brad

 

[Dryglove]

1. Is the arrangement plate/wings/sta/tank or plate/sta/wings/tank?


Goes as follows diver,plate,wing,stab,tank(on newer halcyon wings you can eliminate the external stab)


Does the sta push the tank too far from the back? For small people will this be too much leverage for them to handle? Follow on - Does somebody make a "single tank plate" that eliminates the distance issue?


Halcyon new style pioneer wings come with a built in stab eliminating the need for a seperate one.That also solves your problem as it brings the tank right next to the plate.

 

[Lost Yooper]

I like the STA for it's stability of the tank. Leverage isn't an issue, IMO.

No biggie at all, but it does add a bit of cost which may need to be considered.

Mike