Tank/weighting conundrum

[gtto]

Here's the story. I recently started using a bp/w. I thought I would be mostly diving with al80's so I got the ss plate. Now, after being nitrox certified, I want to use a steel 100. I tried a Worthington a few days ago and, of course, was overweighted. Not that big of a problem but I couldn't hold a stop without a little inflation. The Faber/Blue Steel is a few pounds less negative, full, but I can't find one to rent.I would also rather have the galvanized Worthington finish. I know that I could solve all this by buying a Kydex plate but I can't afford both the tank(s) and plate at the moment. I also know that if I got a 5 mil instead of a 3/2 I would get more positive but I dive in So. Fl. and it would be too warm. I guess my questions are: Is it foolish to dive a little heavy until I can spring for the Kydex plate? Do I buy the lighter tank and not worry about the finish? I know the real answer is to be properly weighted but I am interested in your opinions. Thanks. Gary

 

[ScubaSteve]

What is the lift of your wing? Have you actually calculated that you would have insufficient lift to get you (and potentially a buddy) to the surface from depth? Do you know that you would be unable to safely swim your rig up from depth if your wing failed?

 

[black1]

I live and dive in South Florida Boca/Pompano/Ft Laud area every weekend with my spearfishing club, we do wrecks and drift mostly because that is what is out there. I use a Worthington X7 steel HP 120 Tank with a SS backplate by DSS, 27lb torus wing and a 3mm w/3mm vest and hood. Yes im a bit overweighted but not by much and I use a touch of air in my Wing to hold stops nicely. I have big lungs as well and the SS plate over my lungs helps me trim nicely. The most important thing is on a full tank and gear i can swim my rig to the surface with my freedive fins no problem in case I have a problem with my wing, If I were to have such a problem (rare, but things happen when wreck diving especially) and my air supply sufficient i would relax and breath my tank down to a safe amount then ascend, when I have breathed my tank down im now at half the weight and so it is even easier to ascend with.

my tank FULL = -11 3mm wetsuit w/3mm vest = 3 to 4 lbs positive
my tank EMPTY = -2
SS plate = 6lbs
Wing/hog harness = 2lbs

All in all im roughly 6 lbs over and i can deal with this just fine with a touch of air in my wing for stops, hope this helps.

By the way i also have the DSS Kydex plate and a 20lb LCD wing, I use 5lb on my ditchable weight belt, so it's roughly the same, i just like the SS better because it distributes the weight nicely over my lungs and therefore i need no weight belt as well.

DSS is the best company, big props to them.
I used to own Faber tanks but sold them and got the worthington, my Faber 120 steel HP were heavy as hell and hard to trim out nicely, getting out of the water was like haveing a buffalo on your back.

 

[fnfalman]

The Faber tank may have the pretty white paint job on the outside, but it's still galvanized underneath.

 

[Anti-Hero]

Find a cheap, used aluminum plate on EBAY and you should be good to go.

 

[Puffer Fish]

The Faber tank may have the pretty white paint job on the outside, but it's still galvanized underneath.

And given the deals that can be found with them, they are usually the low cost solution

There is a very big difference between the old Faber HP and the newer FX series..one needs to be aware of that. I have several of the FX coming up on their hydro next year, without any rust issue inside or out. (and almost all saltwater diving in florida)

But I like the low cost AL plate solution..you can also get blemished one's fairly cheap..

 

[DA Aquamaster]

Fabers are not hot dip galvanized under the paint and have not been for over a decade. That said, rust is not really an issue with them.

Worthington X7-100s are about 1.5 lbs negative when empty compared to an AL 80 which is 4.4 pounds positive when empty. PST E7-100s are about 2.5 lbs negative when empty and some of the Fabers are really negative, so it will be hard to find a 100 cu ft tank that is less negative than an X7-100.

If you were properly weighted at the end of a dive with an AL 80, you are going to be about 7 pounds over weighted with an X7-100 . If none of the weight is ditchable, you need a lighter plate. Swimming up 7 pounds is not all that hard in the event of a very unlikely BC failure, but you will also be over weighted for the entire dive by 7 pounds more than you need to be and that makes precise buoyancy control more challenging. Switching to an AL plate should save you about 4 pounds in weight compared to a stainless steel plate.

And I have to ask what possessed a warm water 3/2mm suit diver to get a SS plate in the first place.

 

[black1]

"And I have to ask what possessed a warm water 3/2mm suit diver to get a SS plate in the first place."

Well for me it's about not needing to carry any weight on a belt and to distribute the weight of the SS over my large lungs which for me helps keep me very nicely trimmed. I know lot's of divers here who use SS plates, steel tanks and 3/2mm suits, it's not DIR who are against such practices but im not DIR, I understand why DIR and others say not to use SS with steel tanks and 3mm suits, but, for me personally it works beautifuly, it's probably not for everyone obviously but having that weight positioned over my lungs helped me out alot compared to using my Kydex with weight belt weights on my hips. I also have both for when I travel home to Cosat Rica i pack my SS to use with Al rental tanks at my friends house up north or if I go to my house i bring my Kydex for my steel tank there.

 

[gtto]

DA Aquamaster- You asked why I bought a SS backplate in the first place? I thought I would be diving AL80's and don't need to use much weight, if any, when using that combo. Unfortunately, AL 80's are not my tank of choice now.

 

[rstofer]

Well for me it's about not needing to carry any weight on a belt and to distribute the weight of the SS over my large lungs which for me helps keep me very nicely trimmed.

Not having ditchable weight makes rescue difficult. In the event of a wing failure, your rescuer now has to support you while ditching your rig. And you could be 12+ pounds negative.

Almost everyone disagrees with me but I see a great future for floaty aluminum tanks for warm water diving. The positive buoyancy at the end of the dive almost guarantees that the diver will have to wear ditchable weight. I personally don't think much of using a -10.5# tank and a -6# backplate when I realize my wetsuit is only going to make up 3 or 4# of it. At depth it will probably be less.

Richard