Which of these would you choose - part 1

[galvanni]

I'm trying to narrow my choices to make a final decision. I'm not 100% sold on back inflate yet - although I acknowledge from my research that this could be an expensive lesson of replacement later on. So just entertain me here. Part 2 will be choices of back-inflate - this is front-adjust or hybrid. My LDS offered to let me try a back-inflate and/or BPW setup from one of their rental or staff units at the local pool in a few weeks so I'll get my first shot at them at that time - I've only used front-adjust so far.

So my choices if I were to go down this road are as follows. Keep in mind I will be traveling with it, but right now I'm willing to give up luggage expense and room to have something more full-featured. Just looking on one or two points that might weigh a decision on one over the others. They are in order of what I think I would go with in this style BC.

1) Aqualung Pro QD - not i3
2) Scubapro Glide Pro
3) Aeris Atmos LX
4) Mares dragon (not AirTrim) or MRS Prestige Plus
5) Oceanic Probe LX

 

[kona74]

I have 75 dives on a Mares Dragon. It is a robust design although some problems have occurred with the weight pockets. I had a broken clip that prevented the weight pocket from being removed. Did not cause a problem but if it had been an emergency....

It is a trim design and has plenty of venting solutions. Just a little heavy for travel so I am looking at some travel BCs. I am not sure I have found the replacement yet.

 

[galvanni]

>> I had a broken clip that prevented the weight pocket from being removed. Did not cause a problem but if it had been an emergency....

I witnessed a classmate drop a pack out of his Mares during OW checkouts at a quarry - did not instill confidence - especially carrying that much lead in a 7mm john and jacket.

That's why I have the Scubapro so high on my list. I'm not a big fan of extra effort in a crisis situation to have to release the weights, but dropping them accidentally at depth scares me more. I'm pretty sure in an emergency that I'd rip half the BC off if I really had to ditch them - think Bill Bixby scene changing the tire.

 

[spring_s]

i wouldnt pick any. i would pronbabnly go with the oceanic excursion....plenty of d rings interchangeable bladder and it is bag inflate

 

[spring_s]

oops back inflate......its a myth that they push you over on your face....they are much more streamline and they improve your trim in my humble opinion....

 

[Damselfish]

Which fits you best, which feels right and has things where you like them, which has the features you want? Fit is #1. No one else can really answer this for you. You will find people that love and hate everything on your list, or any list. If there's something really awful about a particular BC you may get a consensus on that, but that's about all you will get for useful information from this exercise.

Keep in mind I will be traveling with it, but right now I'm willing to give up luggage expense and room to have something more full-featured.

It doesn't make sense to me not to consider this. You're making a lot of effort to analyze this, then ignoring one of the things you know for sure. As someone who travels a fair amount, I suspect you will quickly regret that.

Full featured is not necessarily a good thing, depending what you mean by that. If it means as many features as possible in case you might want them someday, maybe not the way to go. What you'd like is something with the features you need and not ones you don't that will get in your way.


Something to keep in mind when you are trying BCs - say you get to try one back inflate in the pool. You might happen to get to try a model that doesn't really fit you all that well in any size, and you won't like it. That doesn't mean you don't like back inflates, it just means it didn't fit. I would suggest focusing on if you like the way the bouyancy behaves and the general feeling of the style to decide if you like that type. Same goes for jackets, it can be hard to get one that truly fits right. When you don't like a poorly fitting jacket it may not mean you don't like jackets in general, it may mean you haven't found the right one yet. (Last time I bought a BC I tried on a bunch of jackets and back inflates until I found the one that fit and felt best, without much regard to the style.)

 

[vladimir]

The ScubaPro Glide Pro. I haven't used it (or any of them), but I have had 3 ScubaPro vests. Their weight integration system is superior to others I've used and the quality is excellent.

 

[fnfalman]

None of the above.

I'd suggest Halcyon Infinity.

 

[vladimir]

Typical Scubaboard. If you ask, "Which do you prefer, Cozumel or Belize?" you'll probably get "Bonaire" for about 25% of your responses. Good luck, Galvanni.

 

[oldnotdead]

I second damselfish on the importance of travel friendly gear. If you are going to tropical locations, you might find that you need less "features" than you think. Airlines are getting to the point of charging for the air you breathe.OND
p.s. probably more than $5 a flight.