Good BCD under £300

[duppy_conquerer]

Hello,

Looking to my a new (first) BCD, ideally for under £300, and was hoping to
get some advice as to what is the best value for money within this range?

Looking for either a jacket or back inflated BCD. Was thinking about either the Aqualung Pro Lt, the Aeris ex100, or the aqualung axiom but I'm really at a loss as to which to choose.

Would be very grateful for some tips!

Thanks,

 

[doctormike]

Hmmm... thats about $480 USD, right?

How about this? https://www.divegearexpress.com/bcs/dgx_bpw.shtml

$300 (£186), and you can save the cost of the original jacket BC when you get a backplate and wing eventually anyway..!

 

[duppy_conquerer]

Thanks for the link, looks like a pretty sweet deal. I like what I've read about this hogarthian stuff. The only thing which makes me hesitant is I'm training as an Padi instructor (up to msdt) in the summer and I figured it would be better to use kit which was similiar to the stuff I would be training students on (as part of my internship I will be certifying at least 25 divers, and I don't fancy having to explain to an OW student how to use all their gear, and then the inevitable question of why mine looked completely different)?
Would welcome opinions on this as I am but a humble rescue diver, If I'm going pro I suppose i really need to know more about the equipment side of things!

 

[Jim Lapenta]

It is not different. It's a bladder that holds air, on a plate to support the tank with cam bands, you put it on the same way and take it off the same way. If you can't easily explain the lack of unnecessary buckles, clips, and straps in a few minutes so that students are not confused you should not be teaching anyway. Shoot me your email. I'll send you an article that will help you explain it.

 

[doctormike]

Thanks for the link, looks like a pretty sweet deal. I like what I've read about this hogarthian stuff. The only thing which makes me hesitant is I'm training as an Padi instructor (up to msdt) in the summer and I figured it would be better to use kit which was similiar to the stuff I would be training students on (as part of my internship I will be certifying at least 25 divers, and I don't fancy having to explain to an OW student how to use all their gear, and then the inevitable question of why mine looked completely different)?
Would welcome opinions on this as I am but a humble rescue diver, If I'm going pro I suppose i really need to know more about the equipment side of things!

I personally think that a BP/W beats a jacket BC hands down for just about any type of diving. However, there was a thread here a while ago which pointed out one possible exception - some dive shops insist that their instructors use BCs that they can sell to their students, and very few dive shops push BP/Ws on their OW students. I'm not an instructor myself, but that might be one potential issue down the pike, if you are locked into a particular shop (maybe ask them).

 

[duppy_conquerer]

Okay, guess I'm pretty convinced about the BP/W then.

How about this? https://www.divegearexpress.com/bcs/dgx_bpw.shtml

Seems like a pretty sweet deal.. Comparing the price of this to some of the pricier harnesses etc, is there any real difference between a $64 Dive rite standard harness and a fancier looking $200 one?

 

[Jim Lapenta]

email sent with article

 

[doctormike]

Okay, guess I'm pretty convinced about the BP/W then.



Seems like a pretty sweet deal.. Comparing the price of this to some of the pricier harnesses etc, is there any real difference between a $64 Dive rite standard harness and a fancier looking $200 one?

Not sure which site you are looking at regarding the harness...?

Here's another option - The owner of this business is a regular here on Scubaboard, and seems to have a great reputation for customer support: https://www.deepseasupply.com/index.php?&page=rig_configurator

 

[duppy_conquerer]

The store I've been looking at is Mikes dive store in london Scuba Diving equipment from Mike's Dive Store, Chiswick, London

I figured it wouldn't hurt to try on the stuff before I buy it and london has plenty big dive stores. This is just the one I used to live down the road from.

The fancy harness I was looking at is the hollis elite 2. It looks more comfortable than the basic dive rite one, but I can't really tell what the huge price difference is all about

email sent with article

Thanks for the article, really helpful stuff

 

[doctormike]

The fancy harness I was looking at is the hollis elite 2. It looks more comfortable than the basic dive rite one, but I can't really tell what the huge price difference is all about

I don't know the elite, I haven't dived it. But most experienced divers will tell you that padding on a BP/W harness is not a desirable feature at all, just the reverse. In my experience, the harness just does not need it for comfort, and padding simply adds buoyancy that needs to be countered with weight elsewhere. I dive my plain Hogarthian harness in a very thin 3 mm shortie wetsuit and I am very comfortable. My son dives his like this:



The other thing is that the Elite has the quick release buckles, which some people like for donning and doffing, but which I find totally unnecessary - my BP/W pulls on like a comfortable sweater with a simple, continuous webbing harness. Maybe if you have significant shoulder issues, it would be a good idea. Just know that some tech instructors consider the quick release a potential failure point and won't use them - I'm not sure how much of a real world issue that is...

Finally, I see that the Elite has four chest D-rings. Don't know if they are removable, but some people would consider that overdoing it, adding entanglement points. I personally like a clean rig with only what I need. That's what is nice about the modular BP/W system, you can add whatever you need and nothing more.