Hogarthian/Sidemount Travel Rig

[rakpix]

i am putting together a BP/W rig which i want to be as flexible as possible. i want this meet the requirments of the most dive scenarios possible, specifically while traveling.

-> single HP-X8-130 wo/ adapter

-> doubles HP-X7-100

-> sidemount AL80

-> occasional monkey diving

the best rig i've come up with so far is an oxycheq/oms combo. i would mate the oxycheq travel backplate with an OMS doughnut single bladder BC.

OxyCheq Travel Backplate reviews and discounts, OxyCheq
OMS Single Bladder without retraction bands 32 lb. lift

will this do the job? could there be any conflicts between the two manufacturers? from the looks of things, both will accomidate cam straps without a STA. and finally, what should i do about a harness? i know the DIR folks will say make one yourself, but i'm a bit averse to just lashing together webbing and hardware!

 

[zaberman1]

I do not dive SM yet but all my buddies do so here is just a lonely bm opinion:

I have seen the DR Nomad and really like it but comparatively speaking, it has a pretty big profile. I've noticed its harder to trim out in the nomad than the oxycheq rig but that is anecdotal and not sure how 'universal' the statement is.

The oxycheq sm set seems to at least look better than the other rigs as it has a smaller profile and very durable. I've had friends drop their nomad, pick up the oxycheq and never turn back. But hey, its all preference.

 

[shoredivr]

i am putting together a BP/W rig which i want to be as flexible as possible. i want this meet the requirments of the most dive scenarios possible, specifically while traveling.

-> single HP-X8-130 wo/ adapter

-> doubles HP-X7-100

-> sidemount AL80

-> occasional monkey diving

the best rig i've come up with so far is an oxycheq/oms combo. i would mate the oxycheq travel backplate with an OMS doughnut single bladder BC.

OxyCheq Travel Backplate reviews and discounts, OxyCheq
OMS Single Bladder without retraction bands 32 lb. lift

will this do the job? could there be any conflicts between the two manufacturers? from the looks of things, both will accomidate cam straps without a STA. and finally, what should i do about a harness? i know the DIR folks will say make one yourself, but i'm a bit averse to just lashing together webbing and hardware!

I have the OMS doughnut wing, and it does work fine for singles without an STA. I have two DiveRite cam bands, which I can switch to be either for two sidemount tanks or for a backmount single. I added a DiveRite Transpak harness to the OMS wing. It's really great for travel, especially when I took all the excess padding off the Transpak....cummerbund and lumbar cushioning were just extra floatyness I didn't like for diving, and extra weight I didn't need for today's travel restrictions.

Although DiveRite says that the Transpak works well for doubles, I prefer an ALu backplate for doubles with webbing I made myself (it's in the top of my Avatar pic) and it really is no big deal to make.

Up here in drysuit land, 32 lbs is not enough lift for heavier doubles (as in one size wing does not fit all tank configurations)..... *edit*

excellent post here which covers most of this http://www.scubaboard.com/forums/si...emount-hogarthian-travel-rig.html#post5008612

 

[rakpix]

what about a harness for the oxycheq?

 

[b1gcountry]

what about a harness for the oxycheq?

Just rig up a hogarthian harness. They are cheap, universal, and you can always spend the money on a more commercial harness if you don't like it.

 

[bs63366]

I say make your own. You can go to scuba toys website and they have a great video on how to rig a harness on a bp/w setup. I took my time and it took me about 20 minutes was it.

 

[rongoodman]

what should i do about a harness? i know the DIR folks will say make one yourself, but i'm a bit averse to just lashing together webbing and hardware!

You wouldn't be lashing together anything--the harness is a single unbroken piece of 2" webbing. If you put the D-rings in the wrong spot they might not work efficiently, but they won't cause the harness to fail.