Petite female bcd..From Back inflate to ?

[a492levy]

I know this is a major rabbit hole but here goes. I switched from jacket, wt integrated BC to a back inflate (aqualung libra) few yrs ago. I mostly (travel to) dive FL and caribbean, recreational. I am petite, female. I do dive in an aquarium as volunteer all year round, cold water 1-2x month but I use other BCs for that. My last 2 trips with this bc I feel like air gets trapped, after I descended and it is hard to deflate sometimes, I have to roll around. Then the (earlier recalled) weight pocket broke, and I need to replace them. Considering bp/w -- should I? fit is major of course and I like simplicity, streamlining. I am into underwater photog but not extremely. Would like to also do occaional local (cold) dives. Some petite females on the board have me swaying to bp /wing, i wish I could demo one (!) and will try to soon, but give me thoughts if possible.

 

[aquacat8]

I am a petite female too. I don’t have a BP/W yet but I asked about them as a petite female and got great advice and I do want to try one. (Right now I dive a kind of soft version.) One thing to be aware of is that if you are short you may want a short backplate and only a few companies make them... Deep Sea Supply is one.

 

[The Chairman]

You might want to try the Express Tech by Zeagle. It's a hybrid, meaning that it's a back plate and wing, but the backplate is made out of a hard fabric/plastic. I use them personally and for all my students, including a number of very petite cheer leaders.

 

[SeaDreaming]

Petite diver here. Not a bp/w, but I'm in love with my Zeagle Zena XS.

 

[scubadada]

My daughter is quite petite, about 5'1", 110 lbs. She loves her small Scubapro Ladyhawk. Thus far has only dived a 3 and 5mm wetsuit

 

[tbone1004]

@a492levy try to justify a trip down to the philly area and go visit John at Northeast Scuba Supply. He will be able to help you out. Deep Sea Supply short plate is really the best option for short women though, especially if you are diving locally as the weight plates are super slick

 

[ams511]

Considering bp/w -- should I?

There was a recent thread about a person who went from a back inflate BC to a Halcyon BP/W and was not too impressed. I went from an ill fitting jacket BC to a BP/W and am happy. My advice is to try it first, if possible.

Now to your venting problem, I looked at the AL Libra online and made two observations. The first, is that the lift capacity is high for warm water diving. The small has 30 lb lift which is not too bad while the medium and above have 40 lbs which is way too much. For warm water diving an 18 to 25 lb wing is best. Smaller wings have less drag and are usually easier to vent. The second, is that the air cell or bladder appears to be of a horseshoe variety which can trap air. Remember air flows to the highest point so when you vent on decent you need to make sure when you vent the valve is the highest point. You may need to work the air bubble by shifting your body so the bubble is at the dump valve and the dump valve is the highest point on the wing. This is what you appear to be doing now, the question is will a BP/W fix it.

Horseshoe wings are not as popular as they one were. The only single tank wings I am aware of that still use a horseshoe design are DSS LCD wings and the Zeagle 25 lb wing on the Express Tech. All other manufacturers that I am aware of use a oval design that allows the air to travel around the wing. Having an oval air cell may eliminate the venting problem you have. The rigid backplate may help with tank stability (if that is a problem) or if you want to move some weight off your waist and onto your back.

 

[a492levy]

My daughter is quite petite, about 5'1", 110 lbs. She loves her small Scubapro Ladyhawk. Thus far has only dived a 3 and 5mm wetsuit

Yes looks great, and interested but scubapro is always a bit $$$$

 

[a492levy]

There was a recent thread about a person who went from a back inflate BC to a Halcyon BP/W and was not too impressed. I went from an ill fitting jacket BC to a BP/W and am happy. My advice is to try it first, if possible.

Now to your venting problem, I looked at the AL Libra online and made two observations. The first, is that the lift capacity is high for warm water diving. The small has 30 lb lift which is not too bad while the medium and above have 40 lbs which is way too much. For warm water diving an 18 to 25 lb wing is best. Smaller wings have less drag and are usually easier to vent. The second, is that the air cell or bladder appears to be of a horseshoe variety which can trap air. Remember air flows to the highest point so when you vent on decent you need to make sure when you vent the valve is the highest point. You may need to work the air bubble by shifting your body so the bubble is at the dump valve and the dump valve is the highest point on the wing. This is what you appear to be doing now, the question is will a BP/W fix it.

Horseshoe wings are not as popular as they one were. The only single tank wings I am aware of that still use a horseshoe design are DSS LCD wings and the Zeagle 25 lb wing on the Express Tech. All other manufacturers that I am aware of use a oval design that allows the air to travel around the wing. Having an oval air cell may eliminate the venting problem you have. The rigid backplate may help with tank stability (if that is a problem) or if you want to move some weight off your waist and onto your back.

Thank you. I admit I get a little confused with the whole lift equation, I guess my main goals are to be more streamlined and get rid of annoying air without getting into a too technical bcd that will end up frustrating. When I started at the aquarium a bunch of the volunteer divers got the Halcyon and they all ended up hating and getting rid of it, kind of made me gun shy about these more technical ones, but now I am back lol !

 

[aquacat8]

Curious: what didn’t they like about the Halcyon?