Plateweights and how my cat baptized my wing

[shimbob]

I received my new plate weights today. First, a HUGE Thumbs Up (in the non-diver sense) to DSS for making the screws that attach the weights the same allen wrench size as the screws that plug our 1st stage ports (At least on my Mares). No need to carry several wrenches!
I'm sure you planned it on purpose :cool2:

And as I was checking out the plates and trying them on, one of my cats decided to projectile-vomit and hit my LCD20. A little rinse and onto the hanger it went.

 

[cool_hardware52]

I received my new plate weights today. First, a HUGE Thumbs Up (in the non-diver sense) to DSS for making the screws that attach the weights the same allen wrench size as the screws that plug our 1st stage ports (At least on my Mares). No need to carry several wrenches!
I'm sure you planned it on purpose :cool2:

And as I was checking out the plates and trying them on, one of my cats decided to projectile-vomit and hit my LCD20. A little rinse and onto the hanger it went.

Bad kitty. Hope he's feeling better.

I hope you are using an al 80 cylinder. A ss plate and harness + weight plates + reg + full cylinder may be more than a 20 lbs wing can float.

A medium SS plate and harness is about -6, a reg is -2, the WP's are -8 and full 80 is about -2. That about -18 lbs. Check to make sure you can float your rig with a full bottle if you ditch it.

Tobin

 

[shimbob]

She's fine now, she just wants me to bring home the fish!

Good point re: the 20, I had not yet done the math. I also have a Torus 35#. I just weighed the Large SS BP+WP+hog+etc, no wing, and it came to 16.4#. Plugging this into the buoyancy_Calculator.xls that's floating around, and it tells me I need 21# lift. Glad I bought that 35# wing!

 

[cool_hardware52]

She's fine now, she just wants me to bring home the fish!

Good point re: the 20, I had not yet done the math. I also have a Torus 35#. I just weighed the Large SS BP+WP+hog+etc, no wing, and it came to 16.4#. Plugging this into the buoyancy_Calculator.xls that's floating around, and it tells me I need 21# lift. Glad I bought that 35# wing!

Keep in mind that the "dry weight of your rig (minus the tank) will be about 10-12 less once it is displacing water. Take your 16.4lbs and add a reg ~2 lbs. Now you have 18.4 lbs

18.4 * .88 = ~16 lbs. Add a full al 80, which have a negative buoyancy of about 2 lbs and you are back to 18 lbs.

Your LCD 20 will most likely float the rig, but it will be closer than I like it.

I do not recommend having all of your ballast on your rig for cold water diving with buoyant suits. Your rig will provide about 12 lbs of ballast, if your exposure suit is in the 18 - 20 lbs positive range you will need another ~6 lbs in a belt. That's a good thing as the belt provides ditchable ballast.

Tobin