New Halcyon Infinity Owner With Questions

[CGE925]

Newbie poster here, returning to diving after a multi-decade hiatus. Courses booked and start in January, can't wait to get back into it. I've just taken possession of a new, all-dressed Infinity system, SS backplate, the STA w/6 lb weight, et al. Beautifully made, extremely high quality rig sure to outlast me by a hundred years. I do, however, have a few questions, be it for Halcyon or those who know the system.

Right out of the box, the wing doesn't hold air perfectly, as I would have thought it should. If I orally inflate, it drains out and clearly loses a bit of air over the space of an hour or so. The leak eventually stops and the bladder holds the remaining air I have to wait until after the Xmas crunch to find the time to do a dunk test in the bathtub to see where the leak may be. Any thoughts? I assume this is not normal, and presumably is going to come from either end of the inflator tube, or the bottom dump valve.

I will have to occasionally remove the STA weight. It seems that I am supposed to be able to just unbolt the weight via the other side of the backplate (I've now gone with the supplied wingnuts over the Loctited nuts), and even after "unslacking" the tank cambands as far as I can, the epoxy-covered weight won't come out without damaging it, the fit into the STA with the bands is so tight. I have to completely remove the STA and remove the cambands to remove the weight. Is this normal?

What's the best way to store a BP/W system like this, be it between dives, or for short, medium or long-term storage? With no tank on, if it should be laid horizontally, is it strap-side up, or wing-side up? Can it be hung in a closet from the handle on the top, unweighted?

Thanks in advance

 

[TSandM]

If you lay it down, lay it plate-first. The edges of the plate can pinch the wing otherwise. I hang my backplate setups on a BC hanger.

It is possible you are inflating the wing to the point where the overpressure valve is opening slightly? When it will hold air, does it seem full, or flaccid? It should be able to stay full but not tense, otherwise something is leaking.

 

[Pullmyfinger]

Pull the cord on the OPV; It may not be seating properly. Your wing should not be losing any air. It could be leaking a little bit of air from the inflator. Let it sit in fresh water for awhile, and press the buttons repeatedly while immersed (just the inflator). Maybe it has some small deposits inside from previous use, and not being rinsed.
DSS also makes a hose attachment that is used to rinse the inflator.
https://www.deepseasupply.com/index.php?product=1301

I hang mine up with one of these types of BC hangers.
Scuba Diving BC/BCD & Regulator Durable Super Hanger fo - Others : House of Scuba

I couldn't tell you about the STA weight; I have one, but have yet to use it.
Maybe the coating on the weight is causing it to stick in the STA channel. Just a guess on my part.

Reading fail on my part: I just read again, and realized that your BC is new.

 

[CGE925]

If you lie it down, lie it plate-first. The edges of the plate can pinch the wing otherwise. I hang my backplate setups on a BC hanger.

It is possible you are inflating the wing to the point where the overpressure valve is opening slightly? When it will hold air, does it seem full, or flaccid? It should be able to stay full but not tense, otherwise something is leaking.

Thanks for the advice. Plate down/Wing up makes perfect sense. And I'll get a BC hanger right away, great idea.

I do admit that when I inflate it to test, I inflate it "well". Not rock hard/overinflated, but your point about the OPV actuating may be a good place to start, I'll run some tests. Thanks.

---------- Post added December 24th, 2013 at 07:46 AM ----------

Pull the cord on the OPV; It may not be seating properly. Your wing should not be losing any air. It could be leaking a little bit of air from the inflator. Let it sit in fresh water for awhile, and press the buttons repeatedly while immersed (just the inflator). Maybe it has some small deposits inside from previous use, and not being rinsed.
DSS also makes a hose attachment that is used to rinse the inflator.
https://www.deepseasupply.com/index.php?product=1301

I hang mine up with one of these types of BC hangers.
Scuba Diving BC/BCD & Regulator Durable Super Hanger fo - Others : House of Scuba

I couldn't tell you about the STA weight; I have one, but have yet to use it.
Maybe the coating on the weight is causing it to stick in the STA channel. Just a guess on my part.

Reading fail on my part: I just read again, and realized that your BC is new.

Thanks for the links. I was going to hit Halcyon to see if they made a rinse adapter, now I know where to look. And yes, the soft, thick epoxy coating is what I am worried about. If I try to force the weight out of the channel, I'm pretty sure the coating would get damaged. If they only made the weight maybe 1/8" narrower it would come out much easier.

 

[HalcyonMFG]

Hello CGE925,
Thanks for your purchase of Halcyon products.
It appears most of your questions have been answered correctly. If getting the weight out of the channel is still an issue please contact me at the factory so we can discuss your options to get it out. 800 425 2966 x 305 My name is Ken.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Another place to check for leakage is where the inflator screws into the wing. Make sure it's not cross threaded and tight. I've had new wings where the inflator was just a tad loose out of the box and so not fully seating.

 

[rongoodman]

I have the same STA--you have to remove the straps, which is a pain because of the thick anti-skid pads. I finally just bought a second STA without the weight rather than have to fool with it.

I'd recommend replace the OPV with the one from DSS, just because it's so much nicer to use and doesn't cost much.

 

[CGE925]

Hello CGE925,
Thanks for your purchase of Halcyon products.
It appears most of your questions have been answered correctly. If getting the weight out of the channel is still an issue please contact me at the factory so we can discuss your options to get it out. 800 425 2966 x 305 My name is Ken.

Thanks Ken. Appreciate the help.

---------- Post added December 24th, 2013 at 12:33 PM ----------

I have the same STA--you have to remove the straps, which is a pain because of the thick anti-skid pads. I finally just bought a second STA without the weight rather than have to fool with it.

I'd recommend replace the OPV with the one from DSS, just because it's so much nicer to use and doesn't cost much.

Ouch. Thanks Ron, looks like a MacGyver fix is called for. For us Canadians, a second OEM STA with straps, outrageous taxes and shipping would run about $300, though third party systems would probably work for less. I think I'll just look at modding the weight to make it a bit narrower so it can slide past the interfering straps. I wouldn't need to remove too much material from the sides, and then I'd just have to try and color match the coating. Any particular reason why, aside from looks, the weight is epoxy-coated? is lead that corrosion-prone? My various 5 pounders are bare lead.

And I'll check DSS for the valve. Thanks for the heads-up

Jeff

 

[TSandM]

I would assume the epoxy coating is to minimize lead exposure to the person handling the weight, and to the environment. Lead is rather toxic. On the other hand, I handle bare lead weights all the time. I just wash hands (most of the time) before handling food.

 

[CGE925]

Another place to check for leakage is where the inflator screws into the wing. Make sure it's not cross threaded and tight. I've had new wings where the inflator was just a tad loose out of the box and so not fully seating.

Seems that's exactly where the problem lay. With Christmas festivities and family invasions over with, I had the time to finally put the wing into a sink and locate the source of the leak. A few escaping bubbles showed the leak to be comng from that very connection. It felt snug, but was not fully "engaged", so I unscrewed it to see how it was assembled, checked the flat rubber washer for condition, got a feel for the nifty anti-rotation design of the flange on the end of the hose, then re-seated and re-snugged everything as tight as I dared, given the plastic construction of that particular connection. She passed the dunk test and two hours later is still holding air very well. Problem solved.

Thanks for all the helpful advice.

Jeff