BP/W or BCD

[Kevin Floyd]

I understand, at least I think I do, the additional comfort provided by your setup with regards to being able to adjust the snugness of the shoulder straps on the fly...but it seems to come at the expense of a couple of things:

1. it does not seem like you can don your rig even temporarily by just the shoulder straps, this would mean you have to hold or buckle the waist while you grab and maneuver your crotch strap into place.

2. It seems like with your setup you cannot tighten your waist strap independent of your shoulder straps...I prefer a certain degree of looseness for my shoulder straps but like snug waist strap, I don't know how that would be achieved with your setup.

3. Your setup looks like it would require a partner to lift your tank and plate to assist in donning it or that you would need to position the rig on an elevated surface to facilitate donning it...as opposed to lifting and slinging one arm through and then the other.

I played around with a bunch of ways to make my shoulder straps easily adjustable...there were various drawbacks to the functionality gained by each method, and in the end I found that once I zeroed in how loose/snug I needed/wanted the shoulder straps that I did not need to toy with the adjustment. I dialed in and marked the the fit for my wetsuit and did the same with my drysuit to make it quick and easy to adjust the harness and the position of the d-rings, and allows me to make my waist strap as snug as desired.

The above is granted that I do not have any shoulder issues that inhibit me donning/doffing my rig, but if I did, I think I would probably opt for a setup with a QD buckle on one shoulder or one of the comfort/adjustable harnesses.

-Z

I agree with all these points. I found the Sub-gravity harness sliders. I tried one on each side and found most of the issues Z points out. I removed the one on my left side and kept the one one the right. The extra buckle for the van light on the right side keeps it from opening up to much.

I go into the left side first for dawning or carrying, then I can go into the right and pull it tight. The sliders themselves keep a fair amount of tension and don’t slide super easy but just enough to allow you to get in and out easily. I dive a dry suit with zip seals and kept getting the edge of the zip as I was getting in or out and even opened a seal once.

I really like these, they are the best if both worlds.

OP you made note of the plate riding up. I keep my crotch strap shorter so that when I have looped the waist strap through the crotch strap and pull the crotch strap pulls down and forms kind of a V out of the waist strap. This keeps pressure on the bottom of the BP and keeps it from riding up. My wife says it makes it look like I have a pot belly in the dry suit but it works great.

 

[Hoag]

I understand, at least I think I do, the additional comfort provided by your setup with regards to being able to adjust the snugness of the shoulder straps on the fly...but it seems to come at the expense of a couple of things:

1. it does not seem like you can don your rig even temporarily by just the shoulder straps, this would mean you have to hold or buckle the waist while you grab and maneuver your crotch strap into place.

2. It seems like with your setup you cannot tighten your waist strap independent of your shoulder straps...I prefer a certain degree of looseness for my shoulder straps but like snug waist strap, I don't know how that would be achieved with your setup.

3. Your setup looks like it would require a partner to lift your tank and plate to assist in donning it or that you would need to position the rig on an elevated surface to facilitate donning it...as opposed to lifting and slinging one arm through and then the other.

I played around with a bunch of ways to make my shoulder straps easily adjustable...there were various drawbacks to the functionality gained by each method, and in the end I found that once I zeroed in how loose/snug I needed/wanted the shoulder straps that I did not need to toy with the adjustment. I dialed in and marked the the fit for my wetsuit and did the same with my drysuit to make it quick and easy to adjust the harness and the position of the d-rings, and allows me to make my waist strap as snug as desired.

The above is granted that I do not have any shoulder issues that inhibit me donning/doffing my rig, but if I did, I think I would probably opt for a setup with a QD buckle on one shoulder or one of the comfort/adjustable harnesses.

-Z

You bring up some good points. No single solution is right for every circumstance. What works for me very well might not work for everyone. Allow me to address your concerns.

1. I am a vacation diver. I do virtually all of my diving from boats, either day trips or LOBs. This means that my gear is set up typically with a seat in front of my gear. I simply run the crotch strap straight out from my BP/W so when I sit down, it hangs over the seat between my legs. I put my shoulders through the straps and then thread the crotch strap onto the waist strap & tighten everything up. It is really quite easy. If I was shore diving, then yes, it might be a bit of a challenge, however the last place I went shore diving had benches near the water to gear up at.

2. You are absolutely right. With this set up, as you tighten the waist strap, it does tighten the shoulder straps too. For me, this is not a problem, in fact, for me, it is the single biggest advantage to rigging it this way. I like my straps to be snug and that is easy to do with this set-up it might not be right for you.

3. As I mentioned, I do virtually all of my diving from boats where I can sit down in front of my gear and get into it. The issue that you describe here is not one that affects me at all. It might be a huge factor for shore diving, but I have never run into a problem.

The OP expressed concerns about the shoulder straps sliding off their shoulders, I was merely showing them an option that works for me.

 

[Zef]

You bring up some good points. No single solution is right for every circumstance. What works for me very well might not work for everyone. Allow me to address your concerns.

1. I am a vacation diver. I do virtually all of my diving from boats, either day trips or LOBs. This means that my gear is set up typically with a seat in front of my gear. I simply run the crotch strap straight out from my BP/W so when I sit down, it hangs over the seat between my legs. I put my shoulders through the straps and then thread the crotch strap onto the waist strap & tighten everything up. It is really quite easy. If I was shore diving, then yes, it might be a bit of a challenge, however the last place I went shore diving had benches near the water to gear up at.

2. You are absolutely right. With this set up, as you tighten the waist strap, it does tighten the shoulder straps too. For me, this is not a problem, in fact, for me, it is the single biggest advantage to rigging it this way. I like my straps to be snug and that is easy to do with this set-up it might not be right for you.

3. As I mentioned, I do virtually all of my diving from boats where I can sit down in front of my gear and get into it. The issue that you describe here is not one that affects me at all. It might be a huge factor for shore diving, but I have never run into a problem.

The OP expressed concerns about the shoulder straps sliding off their shoulders, I was merely showing them an option that works for me.

Thanks for taking the time to respond, it provides good insight into how your configuration is adapted to your comfort and diving. I hope you did not take my post as an indication that I thought your setup was incorrect or not useful, as I think it is very useful particularly in the context you provided in your response. As we both noted, in a different context (shore diving for instance) the configuration can present certain challenges.

Cheers,
-Z

 

[Fastmarc]

I am in the market for a new BCD to replace my warm water BCD with enough lift for cold water diving.
I am mainly looking at the zeagle stiletto and the aqualung dimension but tried a BP/W a few days ago.
The BP/W dove very nice (I felt like I was freediving) but I had several problems while walking to the water. The narrow shoulder straps dug painfully into my shoulders. The shoulder straps kept sliding further apart almost to the point of sliding off my shoulders. The backplate kept sliding down until it was almost on my butt instead of on my back.
What was wrong to cause this.

Have a look at the Xdeep Ghost. It's a travel BPW that comes with a deluxe version (that I have) with some padding for the shoulders and easy adjustable as well. I have it and would recommend it.
It is not DIR though, so if you plan on going tech, it not for that.

 

[UFOrb]

Have a look at the Xdeep Ghost. It's a travel BPW that comes with a deluxe version (that I have) with some padding for the shoulders and easy adjustable as well. I have it and would recommend it.
It is not DIR though, so if you plan on going tech, it not for that.

I also have an XDeep Ghost deluxe version and it works well for me too.
You can also get integrated weight pockets for it. I have the medium size pockets (max 3kg) which is sufficient for me (mostly holiday diving in warm water), although I've managed to get 4kg in each, with 2kg trim weight on my tank, when I needed the extra weight in the Red Sea. The larger weight pockets take 6kg each but would be much too big unless you need to fill them.
The rig weighs around 3kg including the weight pockets and packs pretty flat so great for travel.
As with BP/W generally, one of the things I like is that you can customise it to work for you, eg I've moved / added d-rings to suit my needs.

 

[spc751]

My LDS carries Xdeep as well as Hollis. I asked them several days ago about the Xdeep Zeos Deluxe and the Xdeep Zen Deluxe with stainless steel backplate but all they have provided is info on the Hollis (which I also requested).

 

[spc751]

Like most responses so far, I'd only consider buying a backplate and wing bc. But I'm not sure about the premise of your question. Are you looking for a new bc because your current jacket bcd doesn't have enough lift? I don't think I've ever seen a jacket bcd with insufficient lift. They're all hugely buoyant. This is especially true if you're diving a drysuit. Unlike thick wetsuits, drysuits don't compress at depth (well they do but you just add gas to fix that), so you don't need your bc to compensate for the buoyancy change with depth.

My current BCD will not float with a steel tank and 22 lbs in the integrated pockets and I don't want more weight on my weight belt.

 

[rjgiddings]

Found a great back plate/ wing with one piece webbing and a cutting tool... 35 lbs of lift. It was $ 350.00 That's kind of unheard of in the traditional BCD sense.

I like it, but previously I dove a DUI Delta BCD for years - and that thing was really comfortable.

 

[AGNZ]

If you are not going into wrecks or caves and money isn't a major factor I would recommend the Hydros Pro. All the benefits of a wing with the comforts of a light BCD and fits like a glove (literally).

I also own a DiveRite BP/W which is extremely durable and is good value for money but for everyday single tank diving the Hydros Pro gets taken off the shelf 90% of the time.

 

[Zef]

If you are not going into wrecks or caves and money isn't a major factor I would recommend the Hydros Pro. All the benefits of a wing with the comforts of a light BCD and fits like a glove (literally).

I also own a DiveRite BP/W which is extremely durable and is good value for money but for everyday single tank diving the Hydros Pro gets taken off the shelf 90% of the time.

The hydros pro seems like it is the latest and greatest fancy swag that lots of people are going for...it seems like a there are many people who, while they find the hydros pro very comfortable, are dissatisfied with its durability.

One of the reasons why folks on SB tend to recommend BP/W over and over again is that they are very durable...there is not much that can go wrong. BP/Ws are the analog of timex watches...."they take a licking but keep on ticking". BP/Ws are often not as fancy or pretty as a jacket BC, but backplates are deceptively comfortable, especially in the water. They are also completely modular and customizable.

-Z