Help me spend my X-mas bonus - BP/W

[clipperTT]

Hi all,

I'm a newly certified diver at the end of this season and am sick of rental gear already. I have booked a Curacao trip for February and would like to purchase my own gear by then. I'm from Ontario so the majority of diving will be in the great lakes with the intent of diving tropical water twice a year.

I've only dove jacket style BCD's so far but am very interested in the BP/W setups. I've got an X-mas bonus from work coming an am seriously looking at this package:

- Atomic M1 reg with Z2 octo
- Halcyon Stainless Steel or Aluminum MC System, with harness
- MC Storage Pak
- Weighted or non-weighted Single Tank adapter
- Halcyon Active Control Ballast Integrated weight system
- Eclipse Single Tank Wing in 30 or 40lb lift capacity

I have Atomic zoom split fins, will this be a problem with this setup?

What do you guys think?

 

[TSandM]

I think the 30 lb wing will be enough. You can use whatever fins you want -- I don't think the Halcyon backplate will attack at the approach of split fins, but it's always possible

Halcyon makes nice gear, but you might want to shop a bit, because it tends to sit at the very highest price point.

 

[cbrich]

I think the 30 lb wing will be enough. You can use whatever fins you want -- I don't think the Halcyon backplate will attack at the approach of split fins, but it's always possible

Halcyon makes nice gear, but you might want to shop a bit, because it tends to sit at the very highest price point.

I agree.

My bp is a marriage of several different manufacturers, Hollis, Dive Rite, OMS, Oxycheq, and DIY. Do some shopping. All of the components for my bp came from the internet or LDS sales. I would recommend the bp pad but that's just me.

 

[divermatt]

Your X-Mas bonus would be best spent on a White's Drysuit...I'm a size medium. THANKS!

 

[rongoodman]

I'd hold off on the ballast system until you actually need it. The SS plate and weighted STA will probably be enough for a light wetsuit on Curacao. The XS Scuba weight pouches are cheap and compact if you need a couple of pounds more. As for the storage pack, it's nice, but again, wait until you need the storage before you buy it. A small SMB and spool will ride easily on your hip D-ring.

 

[divingguru]

I would recommend that you bought Apeks regs instead of Atomic. Try and find some divers with similar gear that you can test dive with, or even a store. Some wings are great some are terrible, and it is a very individualised thing.

Good Luck

 

[pickens_46929]

Check out Tobin's stuff at Deep Sea Supply...

 

[scuba_sirhc]

i highly recommend u shop around abit more..yes Halcyon makes quality stuff but its premium pricing is somewhat discouraging. Check out CaveAdventurers (Dive Rite back plate w/ Dive Rite Basic Harness & choice of wing [DROCpkg] - $345.00 : Cave Adventurers!, We will NOT be undersold!!! )for the superb package!
For regs,cost of servicing and the availablity of spare parts are some important areas for consideration as well.I don't know about Atomics but Apeks (what i am using) parts are easily available ANYWHERE GLOBALLY and servicing is cheap (at least over here in Singapore!)

 

[Madacub]

On the question of ss vs aluminum backplate, you should consider whether you will be using steel tanks or aluminum. Without knowing more details about your configuration, it is hard to say, but if you use a ss backplate, plus STA, with steel tanks and a thin wetsuit, you may end up overweighted, especially if you are keen on having ditchable weight. It won't happen very often, but you could end up in a resort where all they have are steel tanks (most use aluminum tanks). I've started making a point of checking before I go. A lot of people have a ss bp as well as an aluminum and use one or the other depending on the situation.

I may be mistaken, but I think that with Halcyon you have to use an STA. That was not good for me, since I travel a lot.

I don't know what you have in Barrie, Ontario, but are you doing this mail order or through a dive shop? I assume you have a good idea of what you need for local diving up there. TS&M says 30 pounds should do, and it probably will, but you haven't really provided details about exposure suit or weight you need. Or your future plans. I do just warm water diving myslef, but I understand a lot of cold water divers have two wings - smaller for travel to warm waters and larger for cold water. Happy shopping!

Hope you get a big bonus! Looks like you'll have no trouble spending it!

 

[TSandM]

A 30 lb wing will suffice for most people for most cold water single tank diving setups. You can also use a 30 lb wing for warm water diving; it may not be optimal (and it's FUN to dive a little tiny wing in the tropics) but it is not so large that you get burnt by the "taco" effect. So for the average person who lives in cold water but travels to warm, it is possible to get by with one BP/W setup, although one may have to go through the nuisance of adjusting the harness for different exposure protection.