Back inflate or wrap around BCD??

[Neilwood]

I do know some divers that love the jacket style for the same reason i hate them, the squeeze. The two people I mentioned both like it as a form of comfort as they were not the most calm people when they started to dive.

Like always being hugged underwater.

I am exactly the same. I hated the feeling of tightness that a jacket type gave me. I felt it actually affected my breathing due to constricting my chest.

My BP&W has none of that feeling.

 

[BDSC]

Which is the best? I am planning on trying out both before I purchase. Seems the back inflate would put you face-down when inflated at the surface.

First of all great idea about trying them out before you buy and here are my thoughts.

You can become a very accomplished diver in either a back inflate or a jacket style. Really won't matter all that much. I just got back from Cozumel and the DM had a old and worn jacket BC and I suspect he has better trim than anyone who will post on this thread. They will react differently when you are on the surface. You can pump air in a jacket bc at the surface and it will "lift" you higher out of the water. Won't really matter if you pump more air in it than you need. That feeling will be the same. However, in a back inflate, if you put more air in than you need to keep your head just above the water, it can indeed start to push you forward so you just have to get use to putting in just enough air to keep you afloat.

Also, if you are properly weighted and as you get experience, you will find your bc isn't much more than a tank holder and something to clip things on. I seldom, if ever, put air in my bc during a dive. I've never understood this notion that a jacket BC will squeeze you. If someone is being squeezed by their jacket bc, they are most likely over weighted. I dove a jacket for years and never felt squeezed. I have no idea why a person would put that much air in a BC.

 

[Chavodel8en]

Either will allow you to dive safely. Honestly, it will probably come down to your preference, based on a number of issues.

I started with a wrap around. A criticism is that you cant achieve good trim in a stab jacket. I don't think this is correct. Maybe some back inflates are a bit more automatic when it comes to trim, especially if a lot of your weight is in the backplate. However, most BCs will require you to properly distribute your weight to fine tune your trim -- My trim was fine in the stab jacket. Your BC should have some sort of trim pocket or trim weighting system.

I prefer back inflates. Mainly bc I don't like how stab jackets squeeze you when they are inflated on the surface (which also makes access to accessory pockets hard), then you deflate to descend, and now you may feel the need to tighten up the straps.

I don't find that my back inflate pushes me face down, although I mainly am on my back. A stab jacket may float you a bit higher in the water on the surface.

Try them out an pick what you prefer.

 

[outofofficebrb]

Like others have said, the back inflate pushes you face forward if you are over inflated. I don't have a problem with it but I do notice in the classes I help out with that newer divers always want their BCs fully inflated and I can see why that would be a point of worry.

Trim and all that aside, if you ever need to add or subtract weights in integrated weight pockets, it's a little bit more of a nuisance to get them removed or inserted with a jacket style if you are actually sitting on the surface with it floating. You'll have to dump quite a bit of air and float lower to get it in and out. Minor detail, though.

 

[USMC CPL.]

I have bp/w that I really like. No issues floating face down just lean back a little while on the surface. But as other people have posted it is what you are comfortable with.

 

[Nasser]

As mentioned by USMC CPL, why not consider a BP&W ? There are quite a few advantages with this setup.

It is easier to get into trim, once you have the harness dialed in it will fit you perfectly, and it is modular so you can swap out wings depending on how much lift you need or if you plan on diving doubles in the future.

More and more newly certified divers are moving directly to a BP&W so it's not just for advanced or technical divers. The only major thing is to see if you find it comfortable diving with a backplate, so it's best to try before you buy.

 

[Coztick]

+1 for a harness.
Properly fitted, they are extremely stable without feeling at all restricting.
I prefer to fully inflate my wing and use the recliner method of laying back over the bubble while on the surface.

 

[jd950]

Try to rent/borrow both back-inflate and jacket styles and figure out what you like. If you are certified you have probably already been using a jacket style.

I like back inflate but know other divers who, despite substantial experience, prefer the jackets. Find what makes you smile more and use that...and if it takes renting for a few months or so, that is fine.

Very generally, yes, a back inflate may cause you to either float a little lower in the water or have a tendency to tip you forward a bit. Especially if you are overweighted and have all your weight up front. These things can be managed or overcome easily. Simply moving a few pounds of weight to a trim pocket and/or not over-inflating a BC at the surface can solve the issue if it is an issue for you, but it is mostly not a problem anyway.

I spend little time sitting on the surface anyway.

 

[dmaziuk]

One word: Chop. It goes rather poorly with riding low in the water. Particularly if you're OOG.

Errm... I suppose OOG could be a problem on the surface, like if you must dive again... but then the chop won't be.

Yes, bring a snorkel if you expect to float around in the chop for a prolonged period of time. Also, if you're not comfortable riding low in the water in general, buy a jacket BCD. This being SB, YOUR GONNA DIE if it's not a BP&W, of course, but that only happens if you dive in SB. If you dive in a sea, you'll be just fine in a poodle jacket.

 

[Storker]

Errm... I suppose OOG could be a problem on the surface, like if you must dive again... but then the chop won't be.

I have experienced chop that made me want to keep my reg in my mouth until I was out of the water. If I were OOG, I would really have appreciated being able to draw air from a place a little further from the surface than where my mouth was located. A few years ago, there was a fatality over here. The victim drowned on the surface because the wind had increased while they was below, and they wasn't able to avoid having their face drenched while they tried to get air. If they had been able to keep their reg in their mouth, that fatality might have been avoided.

Yes, bring a snorkel if you expect to float around in the chop for a prolonged period of time.

Two words: Shore dive.

It happens sometimes that divers spend a bit of time on the surface after surfacing from a shore dive.

Also, if you're not comfortable riding low in the water in general, buy a jacket BCD. This being SB, YOUR GONNA DIE if it's not a BP&W, of course, but that only happens if you dive in SB. If you dive in a sea, you'll be just fine in a poodle jacket.

I've dived a BP/W for a few years, and, frankly, I've never noticed riding lower in the water in my wing than in my poodle jacket. I fill it until the valve farts, and lie back on top of it. Brings my head at least as high as when I was wearing a poodle jacket and stood vertically in the water.