Anyone travel to the Carribean or Antarctic with a Backplate/wing?

[Offshore]

I am shopping for my first BC, and out of all the ones I've tried, the hands down best one I've tried is a Dive-Rite steel bp/w that my buddy let me try at Dutch Springs. Based on the advice I've heard from him and other experienced divers (around here and on SB), it seems like a bp/w is a no-brainer set-up, especially since I've tried it and know I prefer the stability and simplicity.

Problem is, my LDS (who was also my instructor for my drysuit course) is very reluctant to sell me a bp/w as my first bp/w, saying "they're great for technical diving in a drysuit to the Andrea Doria, but not the best for a first BC, and you certainly wouldn't want to travel with one or wear it with a wetsuit in the Carribean ... it wouldn't even be practical to take one to South Africa or the Antarctic (both places I plan to travel to and dive in the next two years)".

Despite the fact that all my local diving will be quite insensitive to weight (I'll be driving, and besides, I'm a fairly strong guy), the fact that 10% of my dives might involve plane travel has been enough to discourage me from getting a crushed neoprene or vulcanized rubber drysuit (haven't decided for sure, but am leaning towards a Whites QuadFlex), but is the travel factor really so significant that I should consider a bulky jacket BC as opposed to the more "timeless" bp/w setup? One other confession: I live in Manhattan, so it definitely is more convinient for me to rent tanks on demand than to buy them, and I am told bp/w should be attached to tanks semi-permanently and are not for tank renters. Am I missing anything?

 

[GreenDiverDown]

Wierd... most BP/wing combos weigh no more than a standard BC... some weigh less... and they can pack up smaller, too.

... attaching semi-permanently? That's just crazy talk.

 

[Ghost Diver]

I just returned from Utila, Bay Islands, Honduras, I took my Dive-Rite SS bp/w with Halcyon Single-tank adapter (another 6lbs)
From Rochester, NY to Houston, TX to San Pedro Sula, Honduras..then a puddle jumper to La Ceiba, Honduras then out to the Island it was no more of an inconveiance than a BC or Back inflate. I just make sure I have good insurance on my equipment and check everything.

 

[Henryville]

I travel back and forth to Japan where I dive about 12 weekends a year, plus a couple of other fly-in dive trips a year. Some dry, some wet. I take a backplate and wing plus STA every time. I certainly don't travel with tanks.

Your LDS is shining you on for some reason, either seeing the opportunity to sell you both a jacket bc now and a bp/w later, or maybe just not seeing the same margin on the bp/w. On the basis of this "advice," I'd look for another LDS and trainer. For fun, you might want to ask him what it is about a bp/w that makes it inappropriate for a first bc, or what makes a jacket bc "better" for a newer diver.

 

[David P]

hmm lets see a stainless steel back plate 5lbs, max of 6 drings (sholders, hips, front and back of crotch strap) and keepers 1lb, webbing and belt buckle another pound. Ok and a wing....5lbs? total weight 12 lbs. Actually I just looked up... I weighed my Dive Rite back plate with a Rec wing, strips of interubes, two back up flashlights, safety sausage, piece of shock chord to keep my inflator hose in place, AND a scuba alert (whaddya call it? that air powered siren thingy that attatches to your inflator...) everything ready to jump in the ocean weighed in at 14.5 lbs! I guarantee it folds up smaller than a jacket bc too!
just incase you are interested
14 lbs...DUI TLS 350 drysuit w rock boots (Im 6'4 about 270 with size 15 rock boots so its big!), gators, and DUI carring bag
3 lbs for fleece undies
6.5 lbs turtle fins (size 15 rock boots doesn't leave much choice in fins)
4.5 lbs Mk25/S600 din with octo, brass SPG, inflator hose, and drysuit inflator hose

 

[djanni]

I traveled to Cozumel with a bp/w by DSS, a single rig, and it packs so compactly you would hardly know it's there.

Not my favorite type or style of BC, but for travel... hard to beat.

 

[Halthron]

Depending on the temp, we have people here that dive them with just swim trunks.

I used a lot of rental BCs (mostly jackets) before finally buying a BP/w as my first BC. Haven't regretted it. I'd guess that an aluminium BP with a small travel wing would pack up a lot smaller than most jacket type BCs.

 

[SparticleBrane]

I don't understand so many people's aversion to the BP/W system. I actually learned to dive on a Halcyon Eclipse 40lbs wing and didn't know anything else existed until I had to rent gear for my certification dives (was certified at NCSU--we used the Eclipse BCs in the pool but had to rent our own gear for the quarry dives). The jacket style BC I used, and a few I used last summer working at a dive shop made me want to commit seppuku.

 

[djanni]

I don't understand so many people's aversion to the BP/W system. I actually learned to dive on a Halcyon Eclipse 40lbs wing and didn't know anything else existed until I had to rent gear for my certification dives (was certified at NCSU--we used the Eclipse BCs in the pool but had to rent our own gear for the quarry dives). The jacket style BC I used, and a few I used last summer working at a dive shop made me want to commit seppuku.

I don't imagine anyone around here (well, perhaps a few) wants to see you spill your guts all over the place.

I'm a warm water, singles tank recreational diver and perfer BC's to bp/w's. Speaking for myself, I have no aversion to bp/w's. I'm simply convienced that for the type of diving I do there are BC styles much better than a bp/w.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Problem is, my LDS (who was also my instructor for my drysuit course) is very reluctant to sell me a bp/w as my first bp/w, saying "they're great for technical diving in a drysuit to the Andrea Doria, but not the best for a first BC, and you certainly wouldn't want to travel with one or wear it with a wetsuit in the Carribean ... it wouldn't even be practical to take one to South Africa or the Antarctic (both places I plan to travel to and dive in the next two years)".

Either he's speaking out of ignorance or he's trying to sell you something he already carries.

I travel everywhere with my backplate ... and since my traveling companion also uses one, we always have two of them in our luggage. Weight-wise, they're no different than a BCD. Bulk-wise, they're a lot more compact.

... Bob (Grateful diver)