Them
Contributor
Another noob question.
On this forum there seems to be a theme of BP/W, "less mainstream" regulators, and so on. Of course as a noob I want to buy equipment that will serve me safely as I learn, and serve me well as I improve, so I'm curious about all this stuff. Especially since most of the shops seem to be dealers for particular brands and don't carry a lot of what gets talked about here.
So the other day I found a shop with a very broad range of gear. Neat shop. I started talking to one of the guys there, said I was part way through an OW certification and would be going out for my first non-pool dives this weekend, after which I was going to start picking up gear. I then asked a question that has been bugging me: "What's the deal with conventional BCDs vs. Backplates and Wings? It seems like when you go online and read the forums everyone is talking about how they switched to a BP/W set-up, but dive shops have stacks of BCDs and few if any backplates."
His reply: "The people on those forums are all technical. BP/W setups allow a lot of customization and they are great for travel or unique needs, but if you are just starting out you will be happier with a more conventional BCD."
He then showed me some Zeagle BCs that he thought were "A better starting point." Since one of my concerns was packability he demonstrated how it could fold up for travel. The Zeagle actually did look quite nice to my noob eyes.
So, was he right? Are y'all technical? If so, how does that relate to the folks recommending HOG regulators and the like? Is it all just "Pick your Koolaide"?
On this forum there seems to be a theme of BP/W, "less mainstream" regulators, and so on. Of course as a noob I want to buy equipment that will serve me safely as I learn, and serve me well as I improve, so I'm curious about all this stuff. Especially since most of the shops seem to be dealers for particular brands and don't carry a lot of what gets talked about here.
So the other day I found a shop with a very broad range of gear. Neat shop. I started talking to one of the guys there, said I was part way through an OW certification and would be going out for my first non-pool dives this weekend, after which I was going to start picking up gear. I then asked a question that has been bugging me: "What's the deal with conventional BCDs vs. Backplates and Wings? It seems like when you go online and read the forums everyone is talking about how they switched to a BP/W set-up, but dive shops have stacks of BCDs and few if any backplates."
His reply: "The people on those forums are all technical. BP/W setups allow a lot of customization and they are great for travel or unique needs, but if you are just starting out you will be happier with a more conventional BCD."
He then showed me some Zeagle BCs that he thought were "A better starting point." Since one of my concerns was packability he demonstrated how it could fold up for travel. The Zeagle actually did look quite nice to my noob eyes.
So, was he right? Are y'all technical? If so, how does that relate to the folks recommending HOG regulators and the like? Is it all just "Pick your Koolaide"?