Getting a BP/W, questions I have

[RJP]

hog rig - way too much what?

way too much less crap, I guess

Sort of a "yes, we have no bananas" kinda thing...

BCD = too much crap
TransPak = less crap
TransPlate = much less crap
Deluxe harness = too much less crap
Hog rig - way too much less crap

I started on the BCD end and after dive ten switched to DiveRite BP/W with a Deluxe harness. Bypassed TransPak/Plate because they are both pretty much a BCD/W setup.

After 5 dives with the Deluxe harness I went hog-compliant and it is the way too go - at least for me. Smooth, streamline, simple.

When it comes to "stuff" attached to you while diving - more is not better, more is just more.

PS - as to weight. I went from wearing 16lbs with the BCD to 0lbs with the BP/W setup.

 

[Quaff King]

You can mix many different wings on differnt plates as long as they have the standard 11" hole centers. I dive a Hammerhead backplate with a Dive Rite Trek Wing. I used to use the Halcyon Pioneer on the Hammerhead and that worked fine to.
I prefer a hog one piece harness. It is extremely simple, very comfortable and you can modify to add accessores any way you like. The big advantage in addition to being lean and mean is if it wears out in 5 or 6 years you are only replacing about 15' of 2" webbing which is pretty inexpesive.
I added some xs scuba pouches for my weights and the whole set up works great.

 

[cecilb63]

I've decided almost for certain that I'd like to move from my current BC, a 2 month old Pro QD with 20 dives on it, to a BP/W setup. The LDS sells DiveRite, so that is probably what I will get. For the harness, I'm looking at buying the TransPlate harness, though I'm also considering the deluxe harness since I think it costs a bit less. I'm really not interested in a hog harness at this time. I'm not to worried about the quick release buckles killing me, and I'm just a rec diver at this point anyway. Any advantages to the TransPlate harness over the deluxe harness?

Which wing should I get? I'm just doing single tank dives at this point, and into the forseeable near future. I was looking at the Venture wing (30# lift), but it seems a lot of the wings that the LDS has are the Rec wings, which supposedly work with both single and dual tanks. I kind of like the idea of having one wing that will work for both, and the rec wing still looks fairly compact (especially compared to my Pro QD!).

How will my weight change when I switch to the BP/W. The owner of the shop said the plate with the single tank adapter was about 8 lbs, so that's what I could drop from my belt, but I'm thinking the Pro QD is probably more positively buoyant than the Rec Wing and harness. Might I be able to drop more than that?

I'm sure I'll think of more questions, but that's what I have for now.

Brian

The pro cd isn't that buoyant, not as much as I expected -- I had one and switched to a bp/w after about 20 dives. Got a pro-fit but now use hog. I suggest an oxy sig series, maybe dss, oms (those I have tried and all good) Haven't tried transpac but they look funky to me

 

[kidspot]

I'm also considering switching from a jacket-style BC to a harness/plate/wing system. I looked at some yesterday, and liked some components from one brand, and other components from another brand. Can you use a Halcyon Ecclipse wing with a Dive Rite TransPlate? How about with the TransPac? Or can you put the Dive Rite harness on a Halcyon plate? Anybody out there actually using a rig like this now? Thanks.

The camband slots do not line up, so you'd have to use an STA. Diverite uses 5.25" between camband slots, Halcyon uses 3". But with an STA you can swap nearly any wing/plate combo as the holes for doubles are a standard 11".

You might also consider the DSS rig with their pro-fit harness and one of their new Taurus wings.

 

[kidspot]

For deciding if the 30# Venture wing is enough lift for you check:

http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=2182832&postcount=35
or
http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=158370

to calculate what you need for lift.

Peronally, even when diving my drysuit in colder water with 30# of weight my 27# pioneer was more than adequate.

Aloha, Tim

 

[sambolino44]

Thanks. Now that I've done a little more checking, I see that there are a whole lot of people making back plates, harnesses, and wings. Apeks is another one I just found out about. And it looks like you pretty much just have to check them out thoroughly before you try to match them up. From what I've seen so far, it looks like I'll seriously consider the DSS if I go for the true harness/back plate/wing system. However, at this point I'm not sure just how far into tech divng I'm going to go, and I've also been looking at the Zeagle wing/style BC, and today I got my first look at a new Poseidon BeSea. It's neat! Since a lot of the shore diving I've done involves some pretty not-fun scrambles just to get to the water, I really like the way it's built like a backpack for carrying the weight. Not so sure how well all those little screws that hold everything together are going to stay tight, though. Anybody out there tried one of those yet?

 

[PerroneFord]

The Hog harness will deal with the weight, and your shore dives better than anything I could name. It also distrubutes the weight better than any BC I've seen. And yes, I am familiar with the BeSea.

Of course, you are welcome to ignore the advice of people whov'e "been there and done that", and get a "backpack" or something else. But thinknig you don't want a hog harness because they are not comfortable or are "tech" is entirely the wrong idea.

Best of luck.

 

[bdshort]

So I found out today that the LDS is also an Oxycheq dealer. Are their wings compatable with the DiveRite stuff or should I got with all Oxycheq stuff? The Razor looks like a nice setup. Would I be smart in getting a wing with a bladder though, like the Signature Series?

 

[kidspot]

Since it sounds like you're getting the Single Tank Adaptor then you can use pretty much any plate you want with any wing ... Oxycheq has well respected wings here on the board too ... glad you found a local dealer.

Aloha, Tim

 

[Ron Brandt]

Buy the one with the least crap on it. Less stuff to toss out later. Or just buy the hog harness and save yourself a LOT of trouble. Really. Take the money you save and spend it on something important... like beer.




Oxycheq Razor, DSS Torus, Golem, or Halcyon Eclipse (plastic inflator)



It will work for both....it will work just as badly. Buy a single wing if you want to dive singles. A minute ago you said you were just a recreational diver, so why worry about doubles now?



Yep. Maybe 10-11 pounds would be my guess.



Ok.

I mostly agree ,except...... go for the Qxycheq Mach V wing...it kicks A !

Ron