Universal BP/W for cold water and travel?

[boulderjohn]

Thanks everyone for answers, really appreciate your help.

Halcyon Infinity is a bit out of my budget unfortunately.
I'd like to get a few more comments on Mirage 23/38lb BP/W Package please, as it seems like a really good deal for a novice in BP/Ws:

1. is there anything inherently bad with this design I should be aware of?
2. if I get it with alu plate (to save weight in luggage), when I get back to Seattle - would I be able to add weight pockets on cambands, or would I need separate SS backplate?
3. this set comes with STA. Do I really need it for warm water diving, or could I leave it home and mount tank directly to backplate?
4. is there any difference between Hog and Diverite/Hollis backplates to warrant price difference (not much, but still)?
5. would this setup also work for my wife, or does she need drastically different lift/harness/whatever else?

I’m not positive, but I believe @boulderjohn was one of the test divers for the Mirarge wing.

Yes, I was a test diver for the Mirage, and when it eventually went on the market, I purchased it.

I took it to Palau this spring, where I wanted to save as much luggage weight as possible. I took an aluminum BP for that reason. I also took the smaller version of the wing. I have weight pockets on the cam bands, one on the left side and one on the right for balance. (I reverse the cam bands so that I can do this without interfering with the velcro closing.) I needed a few pounds in each while wearing a 3mm suit and using AL 80 tanks. I loved the small size--it was like having nothing there.

Returning to the United States, I dived almost exclusively with doubles, so I put it away for most of the rest of the year. I am now in Florida, and I have been doing mostly single tank diving. I am now using a 5mm suit and a hood. I have a steel BP on it, and I am using my steel LP 85s (Worthington). I need no weight. I might possibly get by with the aluminum plate, possibly with a few weights in the cam bands. For the first few dives, I used the smaller wing size, but when I had to spend a long time on the surface waiting to be picked up, I decided to switch to the larger wing size so that my head was farther out of the water.

I always use an STA. If you are switching BP's and wings, it makes it so much easier. That is especially true if you have weight pockets on the cam bands.