Wear & Tear Of Bp/w

[cool_hardware52]

Properly finishing back plates is one of more time consuming steps in producing them. It's also kinda tricky to specify (if the task is contracted out to others) exactly what constitutes adequate de -burring.

DSS plates go through 5 different processes:

1) Round holes are deburred with a counter sink
2) Outside edge is flat sanded
3) Outside edge is radius sanded
4) Inside edges of slots are beveled using custom "burr bench"
5) Plates are vibratory deburred in a giant vibratory finishing machine.

Stainless is very ductile and one can raise new burrs when cutting / sanding off existing burrs. The vibratory takes care of all of these and imparts a even finish on the entire plate.

Then we over mold the harness slots.

One of the key benefits of over molding is the consistent radius of the molded grommets. Too little and you have nearly square, sharp edge, too much and you can approach a knife edge. Kinda Tricky....

Tobin

 

[uncfnp]

Maybe the wrong thing to do but on the small areas of fray I just melt the edge with a flame. Similar how I finish the cut edge of the webbing. Not much. Just enough to seal the edge.

 

[rb9228]

Thanks for everyone's responses. I'll try some of the recommendations. I figure I can do some filing on the plate, upgrade the harness webbing, and ultimately upgrade the entire rig.

 

[cool_hardware52]

Thanks for everyone's responses. I'll try some of the recommendations. I figure I can do some filing on the plate, upgrade the harness webbing, and ultimately upgrade the entire rig.

I'd suggest buying some emery cloth, fabric backed sand paper. 150-180 grit. Tear it in to strips. Use those to "shoe shine" what ever edges you want to make a bit more webbing friendly. You might find it in a roll, 1 inch by ?? but you probably don't need an entire roll. 2-3 8 x 10's should do the job. Helps if you have secure means to clamp the plate. Good luck.

Tobin

 

[rhwestfall]

and ultimately upgrade the entire rig.

I'd suggest wearing it out, and decide by then if you really need an "upgrade"......

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

You'd think by now somebody would have come up with a better design besides running shoulder webbing out the back of a slot and over the outside of a sharp edge to go over the shoulder????
Kind of bizaar in my mind.
I've seen webbing commonly cut through almost half way in that area especially on steep bend plates like Halcyon, OMS, when the straps are run straight and not crossed.
It would make more sense to me to run the strap from the back out through the front of the plate and forget about bringing it over the back edge. Something like Tobins plastic inserts and run the webbing correctly seems like a solution for those doubles style plates.

 

[BDSC]

Get yourself a good jacket BC and your problem is solved!

 

[Neilwood]

Get yourself a good jacket BC and that problem is solved but you have a multitude of others now!

Sorted that for you

 

[cool_hardware52]

You'd think by now somebody would have come up with a better design besides running shoulder webbing out the back of a slot and over the outside of a sharp edge to go over the shoulder????
Kind of bizaar in my mind.

The top edge of the plate shouldn't really be a wear point. In use the webbing doesn't really bear on the top edge, it passes Up from the upper slot, to forward over the edge. The typical plate is worn well below the top of the diver's shoulders. That makes the harness go Up.

We spend considerable time and effort finishing the edges on DSS plates, as no doubt you do on your Freedom plates, but we do this primarily so the plate is not sharp to the touch. I hate sharp edges when my hands are wet and my skin is softened.

Sharp edges are not the best thing to have next to your wing either.

The grommets we over mold (The plate is actually in the injection molding machine) onto DSS plates do a couple things; They provide a somewhat compliant (softer) material for the webbing to contact, they provide a very consistent radius, but most importantly they increase the thickness of the edge the webbing bears on. Most plates are 11 gauge / 3mm or about .118" thick. Radius that a bit on either side and you make it even more narrow. The DSS overmolded grommets make the plates effectively ~.300" thick at the point where the webbing contacts. That wider area reduces the load concentration on the webbing, and that is what leads to fraying harnesses.

I'll also point out that many plates have the harness slots undersized. When you fold 2 inch webbing on a 45 the resulting width is 2" x the square root of 2 or 2 x 1.414 = ~2.83" It is common for the "cross over" slots, the ones at a 45 degree angle at the top of most conventional plates to be 2 inch, and not 2.83" inch. This forces the webbing to be "bunched" and leads to wear on the edges of the webbing, not to mention the webbing doesn't lie flat on the plate. Your Freedom plate avoids this issue altogether, clever design.

Tobin

 

[rb9228]

Get yourself a good jacket BC and your problem is solved!

^^^This isn't a bad idea.

Only problem is I'm enlightened, born again, saved, and/or on the righteous path!