NEW diverite BP & wing questions

[Swamp_monster]

Just got a new backplate and wing with the transplate harness and voyager wing. I have some questions about the setup. Where the buckle is there is way too much nylon webbing... Am I supposed to cut that or tuck it away? It seems weird cutting up my brand new gear (maybe because I was a BC diver). My voyager wing has a bungee on it... Am I supposed to fix that bungee to the plate somehow to prevent the taco effect? Also, I have a STA... Is that the only thing that is supposed to hold the wing to the plate?

 

[JahJahwarrior]

I believe the transplate harness is like a prethreaded harness...and it's normal to trim the ends of nylon harnesses for technical diving. I tend to leave mine a little long because I am worried to cut it too short. When you trim it, leave some extra on the inside of the buckle, and some extra on the outside, so you can reposition later if you want to, and I trim the edges like a V and then melt them with a lighter. If you put a line cutter on the buckle side, you can use that to thread the extra through to hold it in.

The bungee should not be connected to the plate, it's just supposed to be connected to the wing. And the STA goes on the outside, then the wing, then the plate, and that's all that holds it on.

I think Dive Rite has some setup tip videos online that could help, but once you've seen one, it's pretty intuitive and not complicated, don't overthink it.

 

[Swamp_monster]

I believe the transplate harness is like a prethreaded harness...and it's normal to trim the ends of nylon harnesses for technical diving. I tend to leave mine a little long because I am worried to cut it too short. When you trim it, leave some extra on the inside of the buckle, and some extra on the outside, so you can reposition later if you want to, and I trim the edges like a V and then melt them with a lighter. If you put a line cutter on the buckle side, you can use that to thread the extra through to hold it in.

The bungee should not be connected to the plate, it's just supposed to be connected to the wing. And the STA goes on the outside, then the wing, then the plate, and that's all that holds it on.

I think Dive Rite has some setup tip videos online that could help, but once you've seen one, it's pretty intuitive and not complicated, don't overthink it.

Do you know if this wing will taco?

 

[Narcoz]

Do you know if this wing will taco?

Had that exact setup. The wing is too narrow to taco. Most taco issues are with large double wings.

 

[Diver below 83]

I didn’t think the dive rite plates require an STA. Especially when used with their own wings. You should be able to attach the wing with sex bolts and the cam bands alone.

 

[Divectionist]

You can absolutely trim excess webbing, however, be a bit conservative with that. I trimmed mine with what I thought was plenty of extra for my 5mm wetsuit and I now wish I had left another 5cm or so more on it when I later fitted it for a drysuit, where I also pulled the chest straps out a bit for more room, which in turn further shortens the waist strap. If I ever have to go out in really thick undergarments, I probably need to fit a new harness. Oh the joy of that procedure.

Also, I just trim them flat and burn the ends with a torch lighter, rather than trimming to a V.

Excess webbing should exit the bottom of the clasp and fold back onto the piece of webbing the clasp is on, so you can hold that double webbing together with some tight pieces of rubber tubing and it will not cause any trouble.

I am not familiar with your model bp/w, but my Scubapro X-Tek has an STA and the bolt goes in on the STA end, then the wing, then the backplate, where the nut goes on to hold it all together. Without STA, you bolt the wing to the plate.

 

[Zef]

Here are some resources on assemply...there are videos here for both the old and current version of the Transplate harness:

The bungee on the Voyager wing is to help keep it streamlined in its uninflated stated. I have 2 of these wings...an older one without the bungee and a current model with the bungee....there is not much difference to their profile in the water uninflated. They both work equally well. The bungee is not supposed to be attached to the back plate, though I suppose it could be passed through the holes towards the edge of the plate if you want. Dive Rite and others recommend removing the wing from the plate for storage and transport, if you adopt this recommendation/practice, having the bungee looped through the holes in the plate will make removal a pain the arse. It is not really necessary but can be done and will zero impact on the how the wing inflates as the bungee is on the side closest to the plate.

You really don't need the STA for the Dive Rite setup, especially if you are using 2 cam straps and they are setup correctly. I have never had a cylinder move out of position/roll and I have Dive Rite plates with Voyager XT and Voyager EXP wings on them. Of course you can use an STA...in this case you will sandwich the wing between the STA and the plate with the STA on top and secure it by bolting it in place. The cam straps will then pass through the slots in the STA. The STA was originally developed at a time when some backplates and wings did not have slots for cam straps to pass through for single tank setup, and it allowed for quick change between single tank setup and double tank setup by eliminating the necessity of having to unthread or rethread the cam straps through the cam strap buckles and the plate/wing if slots did exist. If you are going to be swapping between single and double setups then perhaps using an STA is the best choice, but there is no bad choice here, especially if you already own one....just figure out what works best for you and dive-on.

I recommend setting up your system without cutting the webbing at first, and do a bunch of dives with it. Consider the different thicknesses/bulkiness of any changes in exposure suits and only cut when you are sure you have the fit dialed in, then cut conservatively to fit with the thickest/bulkiest exposure protection you will use....as an example, the undergarments I use in late winter with my drysuit requires a harness adjustment compared to the undergarments I wear during the fall and early winter for me to not feel restricted.

-Z