Mulling over BP/W options...

[drrich2]

I’d love to see it in person, but from another thread I got the impression he’s backed up with orders, and from this one that buying from somebody who’s around to help me set it up would be highly desirable. That last is why I haven’t more seriously considered ordering the Deep 6 package.

Richard.

 

[uncfnp]

I’d love to see it in person, but from another thread I got the impression he’s backed up with orders, and from this one that buying from somebody who’s around to help me set it up would be highly desirable. That last is why I haven’t more seriously considered ordering the Deep 6 package.

Richard.

Rigging a BPW looks intimidating but it really isn't hard. Setting it up is really simple. It’s the tweaking to get it just right that takes time. One of the biggest mistakes I made was getting the shoulder straps too tight.

With your analytical mind your biggest problem will probably be over thinking it.

How to Assemble a Backplate and Continuous Weave Harness - SDI | TDI | ERDI

BAUE How To Size a Backplate

 

[gbf]

From one who set one up back in the day when there was no one to help.

Everybody gets spun up over fitting the harness. No worries. Just lace the webbing, kinda fit it so you can reach over your head and barely touch the plate. Make sure it is too loose. Leave plenty of slack on the waist band.

Go diving.

If it really is too loose in the water, it's ok - the waistband and crotch strap will keep it on your back.. Finish your dive and adjust it a little bit on the boat or when you get home. By "adjust it" I mean pull some slack thru the slots and lengthen (or shorten) the waist band. Do the same amount on both sides - unless you have a reason to keep one side looser than the other - like restricted mobility on one side.

Go diving.

Rinse and repeat until it suits you. The harness adjustment is the only real "tricky" part - and it's really not. It's not like it has to be perfect or you can't dive with it. I lost a bunch of weight, and never adjusted my harness. I suspect it was too tight for a long time, and now is just right. Or maybe not. Doesn't really matter.

The placement of D-Rings, weights etc. is a thing you can do after you dive it a few times and see what works for you.

I just got back from my BAIV trip. A guy on the boat said "your BC is too loose!! Doesn't the tank move around on your back??" when I slipped both arms out while sitting on the bench after a dive. So I did the same trick in the water and swam around for a little while, just for him.

I set up my SIL's Christmas present BPW by fitting it very loosely on me. He's 6'5", about 290 lbs. I'm 5'10", about 175 (or so) lbs. Then we went to Bonaire and he dove it without adjustment, except we moved the D-rings around a little. A complete WAG and it worked ok.

As far as packing goes, I always break mine down and roll my wings (I take a backup wing. It's small, light and my whole crew uses the same wing) and pack them separately from my plate.

For weights, I don't use any with a SS plate and full 3mm suit. On occasion I've wanted to pin myself on the bottom so I threaded a couple of 2lb-ers on my waist band. In any case, how much/where you put the weight can be figured out after you dive some with the bpw. Use a weight belt until you decide.

My lovely bride needs 8lbs. She wanted it in pockets on her waistband, so I put a couple of pockets on for 4lbs on each side. My young daughter wanted hers on the lower camband. SIL has a big head and said he felt floaty in the upper body so on the upper camband it went.

Setting up a bpw is not rocket surgery. And the good news is if you mess it up you can fix it - outside of puncturing the wing it's really hard to do permanent damage. My harness has lots of holes melted in it from me experimenting with placement of stuff. Someday I'll probably replace the webbing. If I live long enough.

Oh, we have DSS stuff x 5. Never a problem with wing punctures but it is a thing I think about - thus the spare, and the camband thing is genius.

You can dink around and customize to your heart's content - or not. For me, I love the smell of melting webbing in the morning.

(I will admit that threading the webbing thru the slots is a pita, especially thru those little molded plastic things in the slots on DSS plates)

 

[Johnoly]

..buying the SuperFabric version?...

I LOVE SuperFabric !!
You know I'm a lobster hunter and am always reaching into holes to retrieve a bug. I wear medical garbage waste gloves that we get from a hospital supply company that are hypodermic needle stick proof on the fingers and palm. In my spearo classes I take a razor sharp pointed steak knife and stab my hand repeatedly with the gloves on and not even a mark. I also get bit about 2-3 times a year from a hidden eel when retrieving a bug. (hate those spotted eels). Their bottom jaw has all the pressure, not the top. Not one has gotten thru my superfabric gloves yet. What does this mean for your BC??? I have no idea,,,,but I love superfabric cause it works !!

 

[drrich2]

Couple of updates:

Been in contact with Eric via e-mail; a Freedom Counter back plate would be a wait, and I've got a January trip scheduled, so all things considered, the scheduling might be quite tight (he's projecting mid-winter or early spring from what I understand).

On the coloring angle, I e-mailed Deep 6 Gear about their stainless steel back plate and mentioned that; I was told:

"Our Steel backplates are coated with pvd which gives them a bronze color. They would have to be powder coated for the color to stick but that would be your call."

I didn't realize they were bronze. That's be an improvement.

What I don't understand is, I see some nicely colored aluminum plates (e.g.: a HOG plate), but the stainless steel are universally bare metal silvery.

Now I need to find out what's involved in getting one 'power coated' - who does it, at what cost.

Richard.

 

[saxman242]

There are lots of powder coating shops out there. It's not a diving specific thing.

 

[lexvil]

Wait for the freedom plate! I have an aluminum plate and a diverite 25 lb XT wing I’ll loan you, just cover the shipping cost, PM me if interested.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Richard, like I explained in the email,
aluminum can be anodized which is a micro coating fused into the surface, but stainless needs to be left bare to take advantage of the benefits of the microscopic and invisible film of chromium oxide, which serves as a natural barrier against further corrosion.

For others reading this, I DO NOT recommend powder coating stainless steel or aluminum for use in a salt water marine environment. I do not recommend painting or coating stainless steel at all for any reason. All the benefits of the material would be lost. In fact, covering up stainless steel would do more harm than good.

 

[Johnoly]

... covering up stainless steel would do more harm than good.

I Agree with Eric.
On the powdercoated plates I've seen divers do, the designs look great ! But each one has chipped or worn out right where the waist belt goes thru,.and it rusts. Powdercoat is strong, but it's not built to hold up against chaffing.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

As a former powder coater, I agree with Eric and Johnoly. Powder coating stainless is a pain in the hind end. We used to have a customer that wanted stainless steel cabinets for a marine environment. They also wanted them in their company colors.

It involved sandblasting the cabinet and then shooting it with a primer. The one they specified had a semi-gloss finish which helped to allow the final color to just drop off when sprayed on. So the primered cabinet had to be sanded to rough up the semi-gloss. Then it had to be given the final coat. Which was fun because any tiny defect in the sanding showed up like a sore thumb. They had to withstand testing of 1000 hours salt spray.

If I had to give a price for powder coating a stainless plate? 150-200 bucks (labor only) plus the cost of the powder. All the holes must also be paid very close attention. Any defect or nick in the paint will allow water, especially saltwater, to penetrate.

There are also different grades and types of powders. The stuff we used for those cabinets? $50 a pound with a minimum of 200 lbs at a time to get from the supplier. You can buy cheaper ones in standard colors but 10lbs is usually the lowest amount we could order, 5 might be possible from some. But you'll pay 3-4 bucks a pound for the paint.

Your powder coater also better know what they are doing. Shooting steel and aluminum is easy. Stainless is another matter. It requires adjusting the air pressure on the gun, the amount of electric current you'll run through it, the oven temperature, and some powders simply don't seem to want to stick to it.

If you used some other technique like shooting it yourself with rustoleum? Good luck. You'd still need to provide a surface the paint could stick to.