Turning turtle in Transpac Harness

[satwar]

Decided to add a 7mm core warmer over my 7mm one piece and all of a sudden I can't swim anymore. I flip over on my back in a heart beat and my fins float up.

Any ideas on how to correct. I have 10 lbs lead in each side weight pocket and use a 100 steel tank.

 

[fnfalman]

You probably don't have enough weight to sink that much neoprene.

 

[satwar]

Do I need ankle weights to resolve my floaty feet ?

 

[super7]

Possibly yes, but if you're using buoyant fins, switching to heavier ones may also help.

 

[japan-diver]

In 15 years of teaching and thousands of divers I have never seen ankle weights solve a problem without creating a few more. I think proper weighting and moving some weight to the tank may help.

 

[Dive Rite]

Decided to add a 7mm core warmer over my 7mm one piece and all of a sudden I can't swim anymore. I flip over on my back in a heart beat and my fins float up.

Any ideas on how to correct. I have 10 lbs lead in each side weight pocket and use a 100 steel tank.

Hey Satwar,

Best to consult an instructor on these sorts of things. But for you to trouble shoot a bit, look at where you have weight (a tank on your back) is going to be the heaviest part of your rig, so you'll need to counter that weight by positioning your weight pockets on your front.

If you've added a 7mm core warmer (assuming this is trunk only?), then you shouldn't need to add ankle weights if you didn't need them before. You just need to trim out your core. Ankle weights are problematic and can create more problems then they solve. The key is to solve the floaty issue at the core.

Let us know how it goes,
Kathleen

 

[satwar]

Unfortunately my instructor is also the scuba shop owner, so there's a potential conflict of interest. He's recommending selling the Transpac and buying a traditional jacket BCD. I love the quality of the Transpac and would hate to sell, but I'm running out of options.

How do you position the weight pockets on my front ? Your video shows them attached to the metal side plates under the arm pits at the waist.

Update: I decided to move each of the metal side plates 1 inch forward on the cumberband belt and see if that helps. I hope that's what you mean by "positioning pockets on your front". How far can I move the weigh pockets forward ?

Update: I also think I'm underweighted. My instructor took 10 lbs of lead off me. I was able to achieve head bobbing with an empty BCD and full tank of air with 20 lbs of lead. I think I need 24-26 lbs to be neutral at 10-15 feet with an empty BCD and empty tank of air.

 

[Dive Rite]

Unfortunately my instructor is also the scuba shop owner, so there's a potential conflict of interest. He's recommending selling the Transpac and buying a traditional jacket BCD. I love the quality of the Transpac and would hate to sell, but I'm running out of options.

How do you position the weight pockets on my front ? Your video shows them attached to the metal side plates under the arm pits at the waist.

Update: I decided to move each of the metal side plates 1 inch forward on the cumberband belt and see if that helps. I hope that's what you mean by "positioning pockets on your front". How far can I move the weigh pockets forward ?

Update: I also think I'm underweighted. My instructor took 10 lbs of lead off me. I was able to achieve head bobbing with an empty BCD and full tank of air with 20 lbs of lead. I think I need 24-26 lbs to be neutral at 10-15 feet with an empty BCD and empty tank of air.

Hi,

Well the issue definitely isn't the TransPac vs a Jacket BC. In fact, you'll probably experience greater difficulty with a Jacket BC that has wrap-around buoyancy. A TransPac (or any backplate and wing combo), puts inflation at your back, which in your case will help as you need more buoyancy in the back to offset the weight of your tank that is flipping you.

Keep the sideplates no farther forward than under your armpit. You can move the weight pockets on either side of the waist buckle and hold them in place by sandwich-ing them between a D-ring and the waist buckle. Just try this for now and see how it helps and then you can eventually sandwich them between two D-rings or your D-ring and a plastic belt slide (to keep them from falling to the ground when you undo the waist belt).

Let me know,
K.

 

[satwar]

Thanks Kathleen,

I moved the side plates back to their original position. I sandwiched the end cumberband loop between the two weigh pocket loops. This moves the weigh pockets well towards the front (~4 inches) and seems to be secure.

I'm a little afraid this may create an impossible surface trim situation with my face in the water. Let me know your thoughts.

 

[Dive Rite]

The idea is to find balance between the weight of your steel tank and the weight in your pockets. You will have to play with finding the "sweet spot" and directly on either side of the belt buckle may be too far forward. You'll have to find out through trial and error.

Do you spend a lot of time at the surface (ie waiting for a boat, etc.?). If not, I would work primarily on your trim and comfort underwater. A 14mm core is very challenging to balance with a single tank. That is a lot of neoprene and it will take some experimenting to get the right balance.

Kathleen