Coming back after many yrs. BP/W? Well I'll be a...

[airsix]

I'm a cold water (dry) diver who's been out of the water for a few years. I'm getting prepped to get back into the sport and want to make some gear changes. The biggest surprise was to find that the BP/W configuration is now the big deal. It's what I've always wanted (since about 1986) and was always told to stay away from. Funny how things change. Well my past few weeks reading (here and elsewhere) is enough to convince me that I'm never wearing a vest BC again. The thought of a BP/W with Horgarthian harness and no extra bulk gives me goosebumps. The thought of no longer carying 25# of lead on my hips gets me even more excited.

I'm looking at the NSS special that's been previously mentioned here. When using my old rig: vest BC, AL80, and drysuit, I needed between 20-25# of lead depending on level of dry insulation. If I go to BP/W with a steel plate what do you recommend for the rest of the weight setup? When you integrate weight on the BP/W setup where do the pouches go? I've also heard of STA weights (single-tank adaptor weights?) Do I need to keep some lead on a belt? (I hope not.) I'll be using my AL80 for now. Should I plan on moving to a steel tank in the future? Any recommendations are appreciated. This site is GREAT. Thank you all.

-Ben

 

[RICHinNC]

You can talk to John there and he can make suggestions. The weight pouches are part of the deal. If you go with the wrong size and have to move up....or down....size wise call John and see if he will switch....because....if he wont, DR weight pouches are so ungodly over priced it will give you a heart attack. I went with Zeagle pouches for my smaller second set because they were have the price. ( I didnt ask for a switch as I figured I might someday need the larger pouches....but didnt want to spend $100...when I could spend $44)

Im lucky...or not....depends....to be very neg bouyant. I need no weight at all in my 6mm John Boy in fresh water. So I used the smaller Zeagle pouches and go with 6 pounds heavy. When I go to the ocean I go to a 3mm and keep the 6 pounds and it works out fine. I did a LOT of pool and ocean trials in diff suit configurations as my bcd stays the same no matter what.

NSS put my rig together and all I had to do was tweek the weight pouches. Which for me meant moving them to the very rear of the belt right up next to the plate. Now the trim is fine.

I know that doesnt answer all your questions but maybe a few.
Take care and enjoy the rig...I did !!

Which harness are you going with.....adjustable....one piece?

 

[DA Aquamaster]

I took my OW and AOW classes in 1984 and 1985 with a used Scuabpro back inflate that was essentially a wing attached to a old style plastic hard pack. It was decade old technlogy at that time and considered obsolete but was super streamlined and a pleasure to dive. I also filled the pack with lead shot and got the same weighted backplate effect as the current stainless steel plates offer. Following a seam leak in the wing, and some inflator problems in an equally old and "obsolete" AtPac, I eventually caved to peer pressure and regressed by going with an SP stab Jacket and dove it for over a decade until back inflates and BP/wings became readily available again.

A stainless steel backplate will weigh about 6 lbs (2 lbs for an AL plate) and the average stainless steel STA will weigh 1.5 to 2 lbs so that amount can be subtracted from your lead weight requirement.

I use dive rite pouches as I like the way they thread through both the waist and shoulder straps and stay tucked back against the plate. This really helps your trim on the surface and with a steel tank you will stay upright even with the wing nearly fully inflated. The OMS pouches are in my opinion too bulky and I tried a set of Halcyon pouches but they carry the weight way too far forward so you roll face first on the surface.

Switching to steel tanks is not neccesary as you will be abel tyo find puches with more than enough capacity for the 18-23 or so pounds you would need to carry even with an aluminum backplate and no STA. But you will be able to take a good deal of weight off when you switch to steel tanks and depending on the tank that can be anywhere from 4 to 15 pounds compared to the lead required for an AL 80.

 

[airsix]

Thanks for the tips guys. I'm taking notes...

-Ben

 

[kidspot]

You can also find heavier plates (FredT makes plates from 2#-24#) When I asked about ditchable weight it was suggested that I keep enough on my belt in case I needed to swim my rig up at the beginning of a dive - so the amount of air in my tank (5-8lbs for an AL80 approx.)

Aloha, Tim

 

[ChickenBone]

FWIW, NESS also sells a 6 lb. STA, which helps out a little more with the weight distribution. I bought their DR Transplate special last year (great deal, by the way), and added the heavy STA - the combination works perfectly for me.

They also have a 12lb. plate available, but I don't think that it's part of a package deal, though. just a thought.

 

[Tanked Monkey]

If I go to BP/W with a steel plate what do you recommend for the rest of the weight setup? When you integrate weight on the BP/W setup where do the pouches go?

For non-ditchable weight, you can use these small pouches from XS Scuba ($8 each). http://www.leisurepro.com/Prod/XSSTWBK.html I slide them on my cam bands, and they can hold up to 6 lbs of soft weight each. If you use 2 on each cam band, that adds up to a max of 24lbs non-ditchable weight. Of course, I don't use that much non-ditchable weight, as I currently don't have a drysuit. I also cut off the XS Scuba label, 'cause they're not paying me for advertising.

Mike

 

[OE2X]

FWIW - I use 24#'s total weight. I have 16# between my BP and STA. The other 8# is on a belt that can be ditched. This will allow me to swim up a full steel 130 to the surface.