DiveDaddyDale
Registered
When I began diving I initially used the ST vest-style BCD set up (I think mine was a Mares one week and a Zeagle the next. For a while, I rented this gear each weekend and got about 12 dives completed. By the 10th dive I knew I was going to want to continue improving my skills and venturing into more advanced diving so I began shopping for my 1st rig.
A good man at ST directed me to look into the bp/w type dive system and I began reading the forums extensively. I learned that bp/w was the way to go if I wanted to progress beyond basic diving and furthermore I learned that I liked the DIR concept of HOG rigging. On the advice of many forum posters I chose to go with the DSS steel bp. I also bought an 18lb Oxycheq wind and mounted it w/o an STA.
My initial mistake was to not take into consideration what tanks I was using and what tanks I might like to use. My initial test dive (pool) using my AL80 was OK although I had some difficulty with holding consistent depth. I went to the lake that weekend and my 1st dive using the AL80 was cool so I though everything was OK. For my second dive, I hooked up the steel 100 and stepped off the bottom stair at CSSP and, to my surprise, went straight down 10' even with the wing halfway inflated. I blew gas into the wing and by heavy finning I was able to surface but could not get "floaty".
Oops, mistake 2, not entering the water much more carefully, good thing the bottom was only 8-10'.
Back to the drawing board. I switched the 6lb steel bp for the 2lb Kydax plate and the 18lb wing for a Hollis 25lb wing and then tried the dives again. Wow, and not in a good way! Something about the physics of that particular plate did not match with the physics of my body and I bounced up and down like a yo-yo unable to hold any sort of reasonable buoyancy. Back to the drawing board, I put the steel plate back on and did a lot more research while just using my steel plate, AL80 and the 25lb wing. During this time I also discovered that not only was I too negatively buoyant but I was also diving an unbalanced rig as I could not swim it up from the bottom with no lift in the wing.
I ran numbers, guessed some estimates and calculated that my rig weight was 14lbs and my dry weight going into the water (minus my body weight) was 32lbs. Although I have read many posts from forum divers that they dive this same rig and have to use weights, I have no weights at all and still am heavy. Honestly I don't see how anyone could swim up a 35lb weight...?
My latest evolution is that I have found a set-up that uses an aluminum plate a 30lb wing and minimizes any extraneous weight. This set up weighs in at 7lbs. This reduces rig weight by half to 7lbs. I have also taken some other measures like switching to OMS Slipstream fins which are almost neutrally buoyant, ditched my snorkel, taken off 2 D rings, changing to a neutrally buoyant mask and removed the plate pad and shoulder straps. Will this work? I will post back after my test dives.
A good man at ST directed me to look into the bp/w type dive system and I began reading the forums extensively. I learned that bp/w was the way to go if I wanted to progress beyond basic diving and furthermore I learned that I liked the DIR concept of HOG rigging. On the advice of many forum posters I chose to go with the DSS steel bp. I also bought an 18lb Oxycheq wind and mounted it w/o an STA.
My initial mistake was to not take into consideration what tanks I was using and what tanks I might like to use. My initial test dive (pool) using my AL80 was OK although I had some difficulty with holding consistent depth. I went to the lake that weekend and my 1st dive using the AL80 was cool so I though everything was OK. For my second dive, I hooked up the steel 100 and stepped off the bottom stair at CSSP and, to my surprise, went straight down 10' even with the wing halfway inflated. I blew gas into the wing and by heavy finning I was able to surface but could not get "floaty".
Oops, mistake 2, not entering the water much more carefully, good thing the bottom was only 8-10'.
Back to the drawing board. I switched the 6lb steel bp for the 2lb Kydax plate and the 18lb wing for a Hollis 25lb wing and then tried the dives again. Wow, and not in a good way! Something about the physics of that particular plate did not match with the physics of my body and I bounced up and down like a yo-yo unable to hold any sort of reasonable buoyancy. Back to the drawing board, I put the steel plate back on and did a lot more research while just using my steel plate, AL80 and the 25lb wing. During this time I also discovered that not only was I too negatively buoyant but I was also diving an unbalanced rig as I could not swim it up from the bottom with no lift in the wing.
I ran numbers, guessed some estimates and calculated that my rig weight was 14lbs and my dry weight going into the water (minus my body weight) was 32lbs. Although I have read many posts from forum divers that they dive this same rig and have to use weights, I have no weights at all and still am heavy. Honestly I don't see how anyone could swim up a 35lb weight...?
My latest evolution is that I have found a set-up that uses an aluminum plate a 30lb wing and minimizes any extraneous weight. This set up weighs in at 7lbs. This reduces rig weight by half to 7lbs. I have also taken some other measures like switching to OMS Slipstream fins which are almost neutrally buoyant, ditched my snorkel, taken off 2 D rings, changing to a neutrally buoyant mask and removed the plate pad and shoulder straps. Will this work? I will post back after my test dives.