mfalco
Contributor
Are wings all designed to be used mainly for either doubles or a single tank?
Is there a wing that is equally good for both?
Is there a wing that is equally good for both?
Am I wrong? BP/W question
- Thread starter mfalco
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Yes.
No.
Something designed to do two things does neither very well. Trying to use a wing made for both will result in less enjoyable diving.
No.
Something designed to do two things does neither very well. Trying to use a wing made for both will result in less enjoyable diving.
Rainer
Contributor
Questions answered above.
As Gator suggested, such a dual-purpose wing is probably not ideal for either. Supposedly, you can use a Dive Rite RecWing for both, for example. I have used it diving a single 120 steel, and really like it. Some on SB would say that the 51lbs of lift is way too much for a single, even a steel. Nonetheless, I really like the feel. I have also used it for double steel 120s and it seems to be barely adequate in fresh water. Possibly my imagination. I am going to try it again this week with double AL80s, to see if it is the doubles, or the weight of double steels, that was the problem. I doubt that the lift was the issue, though, as I have used a 50lb Oxycheq with my double steels and it worked fine.mfalco:
cool_hardware52
Contributor
There are two issues with "dual purpose" wings, one is lift, the other is shape.
A wing designed for double tanks will need to have a "center panel" i.e. the portion of the wing that does not inflate, that is at least as wide as the center to center spacing of the tanks. Today that means about 9 inches wide.
A doubles wing will also likely be of higher capacity than most singles wings. That will also require the inflatable portion of the wing be bigger (wider)
No problem when you have a set of doubles mounted.
Not so good when you are using a single tank. Having a wide center panel, 50+ lift wing wrapping up around a 7-8" diameter single tank results in the dreaded Taco Effect.
Picture a diver horizontal in the water with a partially inflated wing. Where is the gas going to be? In a two bubbles running down either side of the tank. If the diver is using an oversized, wide center panel wing with a single tank the tops of these two bubbles will well above the top of the cylinder. That requires the diver to be near vertical in the water to vent his wing, no fun.
OTOH if the diver was using a dedicated singles wing with a narrow center panel, and an appropriate amount of lift the two bubbles will be right along side the tank, and venting will be much easier.
Keep in mind that the move from singles to doubles is very expensive. You need a couple sets of doubles, and more regs, and a drysuit, and deco bottles, and training and a can light etc. The added cost of a real doubles wing at that point is a very small part of the total.
To buy a dual purpose wing now, that will reduce much of the advantage of a BP&W to potentially save a few bucks in the future is not a real value.
In addition without knowing what tanks you might be using for doubles, and what you might be using for an exposure suit you cannot really make an informed decision about a doubles wing now anyway....
Tobin
