OMS systems BP/W

[Nwcid]

Well you are posting in the PSD forums under equipment...........

I don't think anyone is against it. I had a similar set up for my first handful of dives and found it was way more complicated and served no purpose. I did list a couple of points above in my first post about the differences.

The advice given here is usually from people that have tried many different things and are trying to pass on those lessons. When I bought our (my wife is my main dive buddy and also PSD) first gear it was BP/W from recommendations on this board, go back and read some of my first posts. It was a huge leap to go from something completely unknown vs what was taught in class, but in my opinion it was one of the best choices I ever made. I was told over and over again to just get a single webbing and I could not make that leap and found use padded adjustable harness.

Loaning gear is one thing, but being able to set it up properly, adjust it and help evaluate it is not something that can be done long distance. If you come diving in the PNW there are dozens of people that would willing do this. I have enough spare gear I can easily outfit another diver and again I do share but locally so they can gain the knowledge also. One of our dive buddies had a regulator failure at our last training a couple months ago and she still has it.

I am not sure what the diving scene is like were you are at, but get with as many locals and see what works for them. See what options are out there. You will see just on this board there are tons of opinions about what is right, what is wrong and what one person says is sure to kill you another has dived 1000 times.

 

[cool_hardware52]

The way he explained it to me, simply because it is a tax right off. He is not only the lead instructor but shop owner as well. He says the 95 pound bladder is way to much and he has had trouble selling it, so the last one he had in stock, he used, and justified it as a tax right off. He recommends a small bladder like a 35 pound lift.

Is he actually using a 95 lbs wing for single tank diving? Wow.

If you'd like some guidelines on how to determine required lift give me a call. No obligation, just information.

626-799-5078 M-F 9-5

Tobin

 

[DiverDownD3]

I dove a scubapro comfort harness at the beginning and quickly dropped it for a single piece harness. Why? It wasnt necessary. It had a lot of unnecessary d rings and I also didn't like that I couldn't adjust d rings to where I want them. But if a comfort harness works for you, all the power to you.
The one thing I am baffled by is your instructions 95lb wing. No offense, but I envision this thing to look like a 2 person life raft.
If I were you i would do a lot of research about BP/W before you buy anything. You may want to send Tobin or Jim Lapenta a PM

 

[Lake Hickory Scuba]

First of all, hello Jonathan, I'm glad you finally signed up here on Scuba Board. Once you get the hang of things, you will find a lot of great information here. Learning to filter through a lot of these threads may take some time but just about any question you can imagine has already been asked and there is a lot of valuable information here on the board. I guess though I need to hijack this thread to clear up certain things. For the ones who seem to be confused in regards to my use of a 95 pound single bladder system for single tank diving, I will be happy to clarify. Yes it is true, I have an OMS Red Wing, single bladder, 95 pound wing, and have used it with a single Aluminum 80, single Aluminum 63, and even with a single Steel 72. The application of such use is not to hard to comprehend. Sometimes you grab and go, heck there has been times where I have forgot the whole grab part, got to the dive site, and whoops, no dive gear. When you own a shop, one like ours where we do salvage at least 3 to 4 times a week, sometimes, time is of essence and you grab which ever rig is closest to the door and go on about your day. The OMS bladder in question was originally purchased for doubles, and in the process became a temporary single's system for Public Safety, and Ice Diving. With the manufacturing of the new XR Line from Mares, the OMS rig has been benched for a while. As far as dropping OMS from our sales floor, this decision is simply a practical business matter and has nothing to do with the quality of their gear. OMS is still in my opinion, high quality and extremely hard to destroy. In regards to your comfort harness, I do agree with the others, as we have spoke in person, a little on the overkill side, with all the extra D-rings, however, to say it was a bad purchase or that there is no need for it is simply not true. I can remember sitting back and watching re-runs of SeaHunt, with Mike Nelson running around with all his neat gadgets and gizmos dangling from his weight belt, something now days most of us would cringe watching some one do. But he did what he was comfortable doing, as do I, and as does everyone here on the board. The other posters on this board mean well, but just like myself, sometimes we forget the fact that each person / diver are not all a like. A prime example of this is the whole Truck with Camper Shell / Truck with Tonneau Cover debate we had a few weeks back. The practical application we use things will differ from diver to diver, or in that case driver to driver. You should always focus on what makes you feel comfortable while underwater, take each piece of advice with a grain of salt, even my advice, and become your own diver. Remember what I said during your Rescue Diver course, dive as many different types of gear as possible, always ask questions, and always be curious, because you never know, one day you maybe rescuing a diver in a single harness system and may have to cut the harness to get it off. Or who knows, you may be able to slide there arms out if they are flexible enough, even in 5 to 6 foot seas. Just wait until you are in a Rescue Diver situation with a Sidemount Diver who has dispersed his weight across his back plate and still is wearing his weight belt under his crotch strap, and you can't seem to ditch his weight. Or who knows, you may be rescuing your Instructor (yep that's me) who is in single 95 pound OMS bladder, with an Highland steel back plate, half a drysuit, one split fin, one jet fin, a pair of swim goggles, one Michael Jackson Glove, one OJ Simpson glove, with a spare Freddy Kruger glove for back up, a Rambo knife on my leg for the all the sharks in the lake, and for the zombies, and para-cord for a dive harness, oh and most definitely a dry top snorkel or one of those new snorkeling mask .........................Sorry I got a chuckle out of that. In all seriousness, dive what makes you feel comfortable and enjoy diving without making it way to complicated. You still have a little ways to go before we get you up to the Public Safety level, once you are there we will start focusing on gear configurations for that particular type of diving. And if you ever want to try equipment out, all you have to do is ask. I don't mind letting you take it off the shelf and try it before you buy. Happy Diving.

 

[AlexL]

Does anyone have any knowledge they could share about the OMS BP/W? I have ordered a comfort harness II along with a single SS tank adapter and two cambands (2in). I plan to order a single bladder wing (45lb) soon "also OMS systems" and weight pouches. Could anyone share what additional equipment I may need with this setup and what experiences you have had?

my wife has about a dozen dives on her OMS plate with a DGX STA and 25 lb wing. works great. only additional gear added for us was a trilobite on the right hip.

weight is placed on a belt, not pockets, because there is no hesitation dropping a belt into the abyss, nor is there any room to place pockets on a single webbing when also using hip d-rings.

one day you maybe rescuing a diver in a single harness system and may have to cut the harness to get it off.

the LDS loves when we get to play victim in their S/R classes, as they get to role play this exact scenario. its not fun, nor easy. after going through it a few times and seeing how even experienced DMs and instructors fared, its now instructed there that if you see a unfamiliar webbing type rig on an unresponsive diver, either BP/W or sidemount, don’t bother messing with the harness releases; just grab the line cutters and start slicing.