Any ladies try AquaLung Lotus i3 or Soul i3?

[ThePetiteRunner]

So I'm in the market for a BCD. It'll be my first, and I've been practicing in the jacket style one from AquaLung, which I just don't think fits me all that well. Not to mention that whenever I surface, the thing rides up and I always feel choked by it.

I tried on the Lotus i3 at my local store and I've seen the Soul i3 online, but I wasn't sure how people enjoy it. I think the sizing would be good for me (I'm pretty small, 5'0" and about 105 lbs), and I like that it has some pockets but isn't overly bulky and too complicated. The back padding / wraparound style is also super comfy.

Has anyone tried it and what are your thoughts? Also, how do you feel about the non-corrugated tube for inflating the BCD? I think the i3s use a lever.

Thanks so much!

Cheers,

Cathy

 

[Imla]

If you have issues with the bcd riding up and "choking" you make sure you get a bcd with a crotch strap. It will prevent the bcd riding up on the surface, and providing support and stability while under water. Crotchstrap sounds uncomfortable, but it is a matter of habit. After a couple of dives you won't even notice it is there.

Personally I like to keep things simple. A standard inflator on a standard hose will ensure that you are less reliant on having a AquaLung service senter if anything should happen to your bcd.

With the simple thought in mind, I like my bcd clean. I really dislike the feeling of a jacket squeesing my torso. For me a back inflate/BPW bcd was the thing.

Good luck on your bcd-hunt

 

[TSandM]

I haven't tried those BCs, I will admit, but we have had several students buy i3 BCs, and all of them have switched back to something more standard.

It is not easy to find a BC that really fits and is stable on someone your size. I know, because I'm not much bigger than you are. A crotch strap definitely helps, and I don't know of any standard or jacket BC that has one. Make sure whatever you buy has a rigid component to the part of the BC that is holding the tank, because something made entirely of fabric is going to be much more likely to slop from side to side.

I will say it, because somebody eventually will, but for someone your size, a backplate and simple harness permits infinite adjustability and perfect fit.

 

[Keith.M]

I would stay away from any different type of inflator. Too many things to go wrong and it was an invention that solved a non existent problem.

And yes, there will be a whole group of people that recommend a backplate and wing. I am now certainly one of them as well.

But the reason they do, is because the fit and stability of it really can't be beat by any other type of BC.

Once you have it configured, it really feels like a part of you, effortless.

And it might not look as pretty to you, but you can get any color of webbing you want and many wings can be ordered in different colors as well.

My first major purchase was a very nice, Oceanic Excursion II. It was not cheap and yet there it hangs in my garage having not been used in the past 70 dives or so.

I recommend buying your second set of gear first. It tends to save you money.

 

[rivers]

From one vertically challenged and tiny diver to another, I second TSandM's suggestion of a backplate and wing with a simple one piece harness.

 

[morecowbells]

The first two years of diving I rented BCD's. I would encounter the same issue with it riding up my torso, up to my neck. Not sure why I waited so long before purchasing my own BCD. I have what my mom would kindly refer to as "childbearing hips" along with a small torso. I tried an endless amount of BCD's and so many of them had a boxy fit. The TUSA Selene Wing won hands down. The BCD is contoured to a female figure. In addition to the cummerbund, it also has a sternum strap. I never have an issue with it riding up or shifting to the side.

I plan on keeping my BCD until it's grim death. After that, I will check out a back plate system due to the benefit of demanding less weight. Not a big deal when boat diving, but with shore diving, and dealing with rough entries, less weight would be a huge bonus.

 

[Svantje Treumann]

Hey, I just bought a soul i3 and I really like it. The i3 system is fantastic and super easy to use (especially for people with short arms as I have had problems lifting the hose up high enough to let air out propley). I'm 157 cm and 45 kg and it fits perfectly in size xxs. You don't want to be much smaller for a good fit i think. Its nice to have a lot of pockets, but it is a little bulky around the hips I gotta say. Controlling the bouancy is easy and its super easy to connect the tank to it. All in all I think its abreally nice BCD, the only downside it that it is quiete heavy but I do love the i3 system. I think you can even connect a hose to it if you ever need or want to.

 

[mikeycanuk]

My wife had a Pearl I3 and used it about 12 times over 3 years. She hated the location of the I3 as she could never find it and it would inflate by accident if she bumped something or someone. It was HEAVY, when I shipped it after I sold it on eBay it cost a fortune! She was glad to see it gone.

There are costly issues some have had here if the release value breaks, it's not a cheap simple fix.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[swimmingsheep]

I bought the Soul i3 with the airsource after completing my open water against recommendations from my instructor to have a regular octopus. I love it. It is much easier to maintain buoyancy and you can literally dump air while hanging upside down in the water without flipping around. I don't find it rides up at all, and it is really designed to fit a woman's figure. The only issues I've found with my Soul is that the pockets and the i3 add a lot of bulk to the part that wraps around your hips or waist. I also find that there isn't enough room for all the weight I need to fully integrate so I wear a weight belt "under" my BCD. During my open water dives I had a lot of trouble with buoyancy and trim, and my first dive after open water with my Soul trim was perfect and buoyancy was much easier to manage with a tap of the lever. The weight pockets are positioned where they should be to keep a woman trim. When I was shopping for my BC I had a lengthy conversation with the shop owner about the Lotus versus the Soul. She owns and frequently dives the Lotus. Here in the cold Pacific Northwest, we dive dry as soon as we are able. When you're wearing a drysuit you get an air bubble in your chest that at the surface wants you to kind of tip backwards, and since the Lotus is a back inflate it tends to balance you out. However in a wetsuit you can expect that you'll have to work harder to stay upright at the surface. The Soul is a hybrid. It has a back inflate chamber and wraparound chambers so it is more balanced. I haven't had any trouble wet or dry trying to keep upright in my Soul at the surface. Another thing lots of divers rarely consider when they are shopping for a BC right off is the number of D rings and clips available for accessories. I didn't think I would need them but my buddy insisted that was a selling feature for it. He was right. I have uses for all of the clips on my BCD depending on what I'm doing.

Going through the Padi Search and Recovery specialty was interesting with the airsource. I played a little game of juggle the octopus when it came time to fill my lift bag. However I love having the alternate right there. With no clips or snaps or those little rubber things to lose or break. Plus I'm more streamlined without that long hose trailing beside/behind me.

As far as the safety check goes I haven't yet had a buddy that hadn't seen or heard of the i3 before. Its fairly easy to understand up means fill down means dump. During the safety check with a new buddy I demonstrate and have them show me how to use it.

All in all, I highly recommend it. My only regret buying it is that I didn't wait a year to get one with pink accents instead of purple. Manufacturers make more things in pink than they do purple.

 

[toddy352001]

I've been diving with the previous version the Pearl 3i since I did my AOW 8 years ago. I haven't had a single problem, it's very comfortable fit and has great pockets & several D-rings. It doesn't ride up BUT it is heavy if you travel a lot but that's a compromise I've been happy to make. I've had mine serviced every year and it looks brand new.
I don't have a regular buddy so dive with someone different each time, in Egypt, Indonesia, Maldives - everyone has understood how it operates and I've rarely been the only diver using one.