Sidemount setup/bc that can support wetsuit/al80 and drysuit/steel

[Reku]

I'm looking for a sidemount setup that can be used in both Michigan for wreck diving and Florida for rec diving (not into caves yet). Basically it has to have enough lift to deal with drysuit and steel tanks but be manageable in a wetsuit with al80's as well. I've read most of the sidemount threads and I can't seem to find something that can fit these criteria. Please help

(most i've ran across don't have enough lift for steel tanks.)

I know you'll all post something different but that's OK this is the sidemount forum after all ,where you get 25 different answers to the same question.

So far I've looked into xDeep stealth 2.0, UTD, Razor. But I'm looking for actual real world experience from people on how they liked it. I don't have the luxury of trying out different setups right now or I would.

 

[tbone1004]

best thing you can do is drive out to Marianna and pay Edd and his team a visit. It's the only place in the area you'll be able to try a bunch of different rigs at the same time. He does have a few razor style rigs and they're mostly the same, and you can try them against the rest of the rigs. Nomad LTZ would be on the top of my to check out list, and the new Hollis Katana looks pretty slick. Everyone is at DEMA this week, so I'd wait until after that is over. A few new rigs are being formally released as well.

They'll have reg sets there to try out as well so you can try out Hollis, Hog, Dive Rite and a few others if you haven't bought regs yet

 

[a878bob]

I have a manta wing on a DR transplate sidemount harness, imagine that, with an xdeep central weight pocket. Its really the best of all worlds. HP100"s, al80's, LP50's. It doesn't matter. It dives good on any and all. No adjustment, just hook up and go.
If I were diving warm water and wet all the time, I'd take my stealth.
But I can do it all with my Manta rig, deep, cold, deco lake dives to long rec dives to training dives.

 

[decompression]

The rigs I have most experience with in both cold (steels) and warm are the HOG and the UTD. Both can easily handle steels and aluminums. They both allow customizing of the bladders to put the lift where you want it. The UTD goes further with several easily changed wing sizes (20, 37, 40, 50). I've used both for travel, they are light and pack small. If I had to choose one over the other I'd go with the UTD, mainly for the versatility and I hate the door handles on the HOG. The stealth is another very well designed rig but I don't have near as many dives in it as the others.


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[johnnywulff]

I will recommend the sidemount only systems are minimalist and lite, avoid hybrid systems and no less of 40 lbs lift, like: Halcyon, Razor , Hog, Xdeep Tec, UTD Z plus, personally dove the Razor redundant Bat wing with modified harness added chest and quick adjustable release strap for dives on steel cilinders and more than 2 aluminum is perfect.

 

[JohnnyC]

xDeep Stealth 2.0 does all that. I've seen a guy diving dry with steels right next to a guy diving wet with AL80's. I was pretty impressed with the system. With the newly available rec and tec wings, it's pretty versatile.

My only other sidemount experience other than watching guys is the abortion known as the SMS100. That thing sucks.

 

[Aquavelvet]

I will add my recommendation for the Xdeep Stealth system, probably with the Tec wing. I have used mine for cave diving in a wetsuit (Mexico & Thailand) and also for drysuit diving locally in Puget Sound. The cave diving was all with Alu 80s, including a third bottle for deco. The heaviest steel tanks I've used were Faber FX100s. I prefer lighter steel tanks such as Faber LP85s or the old LP Steel 72s, but the system can certainly manage heavier tanks as long as you plan to leave them clipped in.
The advantage of the Stealth system is its ability to accommodate a wide range of weights in several locations as necessary for the conditions. The main weight pouches down the spine are sufficient for wetsuit diving in fresh or salt water. For drysuit diving, I add the side pouches and front trim pouches. There is also a tail plate with "door handle" rings for clipping your heavier steel tanks. (I used that at first, but dropped it in favor of the drop D-rings on the waist belt for both Alu and lighter weight steel tanks.)
The original wing has about 35 lbs of lift and the new Tec wing is good for about 52 lbs.


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[forgetmenows]

I had an SMS100d and ultimately sold it. Now I dive a Razor with my drysuit here in the North East US with 2 HP120's plus up to 2 AL80 stage/deco tanks without any issue. Needless to say it works great wet with 2-4 AL80's as well. So far I've only modified the string for the dump valve to include a bead so I can grab it with thick gloves on. My primary complaint is the chest d-rings get pretty crowded when I use steel tanks and have to clip off the chokers for my hp120s plus the clips for the deco tanks and the bungee clips along with the LPI, can light, and long hose (when not in use) all competing for space. I've managed to work around it a little by having different sized bolt snaps and how I orient the bolt snap releases so I can tell them apart by touch with gloves on. But I feel like a more elegant solution needs to be found.

 

[DevonDiver]

IMHO, XDeep Stealth Tec is the first sidemount rig that truly crosses the boundary as an optimum cold/warm-water diving rig. The buoyancy is sufficient for all your needs (steel tanks, technical/overhead stages etc). It's streamlined and sufficiently minimalist and low bulk.

Lots of choice though.... try as many as you can to get a feel for what you like the most:
A List of Modern Sidemount Diving Systems

 

[bamafan]

You don't need a whole bunch of lift with steel tanks. 35 pounds of lift or so will be plenty. Door handles work great for steel tanks but suck for al80's unless you are putting weight on the tanks. I really don't think you will find any one sidemount rig to do both.