A *different* lift question

[CuriousRambler]

I hate to do it to you guys, but I couldn't turn up an answer through searching, so I've got another question about lift capacity. (Hey, at least this one's a little different :14

I understand how to determine what lift capacity will be required in a wing, but I'm not sure where I'll be diving.

I'm leaving for boot camp in a few weeks here, and while I'm in San Diego I hope to take advantage of the number of dive shops and actually be able to examine what I'm going to buy rather than buying off the internet. The problem is I don't know where I'm going to end up being stationed, and therefore don't know what I'll be wearing for exposure protection.

For now I'm diving AL80's, but if I get stationed in the states I'll probably buy my own tanks, which will be steel, probably 112's at the largest.

Anyway, my question to you, what do you guys think would be a good "all around" wing that could function in a fairly broad range of diving environments? I'm leaning toward buying a 40# simply because it's enough capacity for me in cold water and I'd rather have more than enough than not enough. I just thought I'd ask the experts before I spend my money

Thanks guys and gals!

Edit: I was proofreading this for errors and realized the way I worded it could throw you off...I only dive a single tank at this point, no doubles yet.

 

[cool_hardware52]

I hate to do it to you guys, but I couldn't turn up an answer through searching, so I've got another question about lift capacity. (Hey, at least this one's a little different :14

I understand how to determine what lift capacity will be required in a wing, but I'm not sure where I'll be diving.

I'm leaving for boot camp in a few weeks here, and while I'm in San Diego I hope to take advantage of the number of dive shops and actually be able to examine what I'm going to buy rather than buying off the internet. The problem is I don't know where I'm going to end up being stationed, and therefore don't know what I'll be wearing for exposure protection.

For now I'm diving AL80's, but if I get stationed in the states I'll probably buy my own tanks, which will be steel, probably 112's at the largest.



Anyway, my question to you, what do you guys think would be a good "all around" wing that could function in a fairly broad range of diving environments? I'm leaning toward buying a 40# simply because it's enough capacity for me in cold water and I'd rather have more than enough than not enough. I just thought I'd ask the experts before I spend my money

Thanks guys and gals!

Edit: I was proofreading this for errors and realized the way I worded it could throw you off...I only dive a single tank at this point, no doubles yet.

Cheeta,

Thank you for your service, our freedom depend on it.

If I can rephrase your question; What are the downsides to using a wing that's larger than required?

First is the issue of drag, bigger wings add drag. Is is significant between say a 30 and a 40? Not a huge deal, but it's there.

Second is the issue of stabilty. In normal use your wing will be filled a fraction of it's capacity. Lets say your wetsuit is 20 lbs buoyant, and you are diving at ~40 ft. How much has your suit compressed? Maybe 10lb. That's about how much air you will have in your wing. A 20 lbs wing will be 50% full, a 30 will be 33%, a 40 will be 25% etc. Why should you care? 10 lbs of gas in a 40 lbs wing can travel around in the wing quite a bit, less so ina 30, hardly at all in a 20. Less free space contributes to stabilty.

Would it ruin my day to use a 40 when a 20 would do? No, but it would be more work.

Tobin

 

[spectrum]

BCs with lift in the 30 to low 30s range seem to serve divers well for the diving you describe.

A buddy got a 40LB wing to use for singles & doubles. Coming from a Knighthawk he immediately recognized the excess drag while diving singles and sprung for a 30LB dedicated singles wing.

Pete

 

[SparticleBrane]

San Diego, hm?
Heading here?

 

[CuriousRambler]

That I am Sparticle, thirteen weeks of fun!

Thanks for the tips guys, as I said I was leaning toward a 40# but now I'm thinking more like a 27-30. Maybe I'll just wait a few months and get an idea of where I'm headed before I actually make the decision..