Travel bcd for women

[Wisnu]

I'm using Zeagle scout, and my wife use Aqualung Zuma. We can put all our dive gears (BCD, regulators, fins, wetsuit) all in one bag with total weight less than 20 kg.

 

[scubbygirl]

I also have the Zeagle Zena and love it. Comfortable and packs easily. I like having a BCD made for my shape without smashing the girls.

 

[Clayton122]

My travel BC is a Hydros Pro.

 

[Nicholas Harvey]

My wife (about your size) has the Aqualung Zuma and loves it. We're with Wisnu, one checked bag for all our warm water dive gear combined including wetsuits, easily inside the checked bag weight restriction for regular flights. I have a Scubapro Litehawk.

 

[Drea13]

@Drea13 who overweighted you? Several times I've had the DM give me less weight than I asked for and had a $#&% of a time holding a safety stop.

Hey, I was overweighted by the dive masters. One who was questionable, one who was very good. Safety stops weren’t a problem but shallow dives were, preventing an unplanned surface was tough, as i just couldn’t seem to get the air out without shifting around a lot.

 

[Drea13]

Also,and I probably should have led with this, i like diving in my 5mm, even in the Caribbean, I’m just cold all the time. Will a travel BCD have enough lift for me?

 

[jd950]

If anything, most BCDs, including travel-oriented models, have way more lift than needed. A 5mm suit only requires a couple more pounds of weight that a 3mm. A zuma has something like 20 or 22 lbs minimum, more for larger sizes. A hydros pro has between 36 and 40 and a litehawk has something like 30 lbs. Assuming you are properly weighted, you don't need the BC to have much air capacity to help you remain neutral. You need lift to float on the surface or in an emergency. And even then, you should not need much.

There are some folks on this forum that really like doing math and if you want to provide some specifics about yourself and your diving gear and tank size and composition, I am sure there are some who will give you some specific suggestions of needed lift, but in the meantime, I don't think you need to worry about it too much.

 

[JamesBon92007]

I cannot give any recommendations for any specific BC but I can say that I much prefer a backplate/wing combination over a jacket style. I dove for about 42 years without ever using a BC so a small wing is the closest to nothing. Lately I've been wearing my backplate/harness onto the plane and putting the wing in my carry-on. With my 2.5mm full suit I need about 8 pounds of lift at the beginning of the dive: about 5 pounds for the air in my tank and a few pounds for suit compression at depth. With your 5mm you will have more suit compression so perhaps you will need a total of about 12-15 pounds of lift (more if it's a super-stretch suit). If you are using integrated weights then you should be sure to have enough lift to compensate for the total weights on the rig just in case you are on a boat that requires you to remove your tank before boarding. For me to do that with my small wing I would have to hand up some weights before taking off my tank or it might sink. Personally, I can just about compensate at the beginning of a dive by using my lungs and that becomes easier as I use up some air. I suggest that, before you consider buying a backplate/wing (BP/W), you try one out and see if you like it. They tend to offer excellent trim characteristics while horizontal during a dive but might require a little more effort to float on the surface while waiting for the boat.

 

[sagibson]

My wife loves her Zeagle Zena. Her first 50ish dives were in several different BCs that didn't fit really well. I talked her into trying the Zena on a few years ago and she loves it.

 

[Skulmoski]

My daughter uses a DiveRite TravelPac BP&W. It can be disassembled a little bit so it packs a bit easier than a traditional BCD. Good quality and performance too.
Good luck
GJS