The only question I still have is what backplate marterial should I get? Im based in South East Asia so I wont need anything thicker than a 3mm suit and I'm only doing single tank diving at the moment.
It sounds like a ~2lb plate will meet your current diving needs quite well. You mention AL as the lighter alternative. Quite a few manufacturers have moved to a light (~2 lb) SS plate, and away from (more expensive) AL. One example is the Dive Rite SS Lite plate:
Stainless Steel XT Lite Backplate | Dive Rite.
The selection of material depends, in part, on your inherent buoyancy / trim characteristics. More divers are slightly 'leg heavy' than 'leg light', and moving weight to their back - and adjacent to their physiologic center of lift, make good sense. Some divers are more 'leg light', and don't really want any extra weight that high on their body. In those cases, the very lightweight ,travel plates, are an option. The Mares plate has been mentioned in the thread. Several other manufacturers offer them as well: Zeagle (
Express Tech Backplate), Apeks (
Ultralight Travel Plate), Oxycheq (
OxyCheq - OxyCheq Ultra Lite Travel Plate - Blue) to name a few.
Three additional thoughts:
1. While it may be appealing to plan for as many contingencies as possible, try to be realistic in what you are going to be doing with your plate. The idea of having a very light plate for those times when you travel (by air) may seem like a good idea. But, be honest about whether, and how much, you might really travel (by air). More people
think they will travel, than actually
do travel. I travel to Bonaire, by air, once a year. I have been traveling by air to a cruise port once a year as well for the past 3 years. That's it. That's all the airplane dive travel I do. I would
love to think I could be the vagabond / nomad diver, travelling the world in search of that perfect dive. But the VAST majority of my diving - inland and ocean - involves travel by car. I find a 6 lb SS plate to be ideal for me. And, for the 1-2 trips I make each year by air, I carry that SS plate with no issues at all. If you are honestly certain going to travel A LOT, a lighter plate might make more sense.
2. In regard to the trim characteristics of various plates, putting weight on your back (as I mentioned - adjacent to your physiologic center of lift) is a
good thing in the majority of cases. Most divers who think they are in good horizontal trim, who feel like they are horizontal in the water, are actually slightly 'head up'. (Some are more 'head up' than others - I call them the '45-ers'). If you feel like you are slightly head down - that's good. It means you are probably in good horizontal trim.
3. A backplate/wing is intended to be a simple, efficient, streamlined BCD. Keep it that way. Don't be lured astray by 'deluxe' harnesses, by unnecessary padding, by 'features' that add buoyancy and therefore carry a lead debt (the extra weight you have to carry to compensate for the buoyancy of the padding.
