Faber HP80 tanks for side mount

[Cdncoldwater]

Hi everyone.
I’ve looked through the forum and the most recent thread was 7 years old and no updates on how they perform.
I’m an intermediate recreational side mount diver and currently use Faber LP50s but have an opportunity to buy a set of HP80s for a great price.

I dive cold water, dry suit and no ankle weights; 5’10” around 220lbs and not overly buoyant lol.

Anyone still running these, how are they?

Thanks in advance.

 

[Marie13]

Hi everyone.
I’ve looked through the forum and the most recent thread was 7 years old and no updates on how they perform.
I’m an intermediate recreational side mount diver and currently use Faber LP50s but have an opportunity to buy a set of HP80s for a great price.

I dive cold water, dry suit and no ankle weights; 5’10” around 220lbs and not overly buoyant lol.

Anyone still running these, how are they?

Thanks in advance.

I SM’d them in 2018. I’m 5’5”. They trimmed out nicely on me. You’re going to be too tall for them to trim out well. I only know two other people who SM’d HP80s and they were both women shorter than I am. Tanks trimmed out for them. SM doesn’t work out for my boat wreck diving so I’m doing them as BM doubles now.

Why do you want to SM them? They make no sense for you. You want HP100 or LP85 tanks for your height.

 

[Cdncoldwater]

Marie13,
Thanks for the info.
I dive mainly shore entry; have a back injury (hence SM) and tried lp85s but they were hard to connect to my BCD solo and heavy. I plan on doing my solo this year and am doing the Wreck course in July (traveling as none local). This was an option for a second set, a bit more air and budget friendly.

Thanks again.

 

[rjack321]

Marie13,
Thanks for the info.
I dive mainly shore entry; have a back injury (hence SM) and tried lp85s but they were hard to connect to my BCD solo and heavy. I plan on doing my solo this year and am doing the Wreck course in July (traveling as none local). This was an option for a second set, a bit more air and budget friendly.

Thanks again.

hp80s are basically just as heavy but very short so all the mass ends up shifted towards your head and going to be head heavy. They work for short women or men because their torso length is shorter and their hips end up closer to the base of the tank.
At 5'10" not recommended for SM or doubles either.

 

[tbone1004]

you can dive HP80's as a tall person, I've done it at 6'4" and they actually trim out quite nicely because it's less mass down at your hips. That said they are about 4lbs heavier in water than LP85's, so as long as you are donning them inwater, they'll actually be more difficult to deal with.from a weight standpoint, and they're only 2.5lbs lighter on land so you aren't really gaining anything from them. If you can get cave fills, you'll be much better off with LP50's which are at least 10+lbs lighter per bottle than the 85's and have comparable buoyancy.

 

[Cdncoldwater]

you can dive HP80's as a tall person, I've done it at 6'4" and they actually trim out quite nicely because it's less mass down at your hips. That said they are about 4lbs heavier in water than LP85's, so as long as you are donning them inwater, they'll actually be more difficult to deal with.from a weight standpoint, and they're only 2.5lbs lighter on land so you aren't really gaining anything from them. If you can get cave fills, you'll be much better off with LP50's which are at least 10+lbs lighter per bottle than the 85's and have comparable buoyancy.

Thanks tbone 1004,

I dive LP50s now with a "good" fill and they trim great and have less bulk when accessing gear; I tried LP85s for shore entry and it was not as enjoyable, they were fine in the water.. I've decided to save up and buy a second set of LP50s as most of my diving is shore and average depth is 40-60 ft so I get a good amount of bottom time.

 

[Cdncoldwater]

hp80s are basically just as heavy but very short so all the mass ends up shifted towards your head and going to be head heavy. They work for short women or men because their torso length is shorter and their hips end up closer to the base of the tank.
At 5'10" not recommended for SM or doubles either.

Thanks rjack321,

Good points, I've never used one for BM as I own a HP100. Solid advice so far so I'm looking at buying a second set of LP50s as I mainly shore dive and average depth is 40-60 ft.

 

[Marie13]

Good points, I've never used one for BM as I own a HP100. Solid advice so far so I'm looking at buying a second set of LP50s as I mainly shore dive and average depth is 40-60 ft.

Yeah, for what you’re doing the LP50s would be a much better choice. The HP80s are fun (not!) to wrangle in the water for SM.

 

[Marie13]

@Cdncoldwater

If you have someone who dives with you, those HP80s are great for shorter people for single tank backmount. Much shorter than an AL80.

 

[Cdncoldwater]

@Cdncoldwater

If you have someone who dives with you, those HP80s are great for shorter people for single tank backmount. Much shorter than an AL80.

All my dive buddies are my height or taller, most own LP85s for BM; those diving SM are using LP50s and occasionally LP72 and rarely LP85s.