back inflation

[coldwaterkid]

I recently got certified and am now shopping for gear, i am looking at the mares v1000 and the jubilee BC's. what I would like to know is what the differences and advantages of a back mounted and jacket style bc are.

 

[ShakaZulu]

Dood, there is a ton of info on this site, search my friend.

 

[ae3753]

Here's a recent thread on this topic. Many more out there, I just grabbed this one cause it was one of the more recent ones.

btw, congrats on your OW.

 

[ScubaDadMiami]

The jacket style you will end out throwing out when you buy your wings. The wings you won't have to throw out as a poor equipment decision. That is the difference.

 

[wolf eel]

Ah yes here we again


Wings work jacket does not unless you only dive in warm water with no weight and play at thirty feet.

Cheers
Foaming at the mouth :yinyang:

 

[Chad_Ordelheide]

Why are you against the jacket style so much. It seams both have their place. I guess I haven't heard that wings are always the answer either!!

 

[SDAnderson]

Why are you against the jacket style so much. It seams both have their place. I guess I haven't heard that wings are always the answer either!!

Your question implies that a jacket would be preferable to a BPW in some circumstances. Can you provide examples? I can only think of two possibles...

Travel: a minimalist jacket might be marginally lighter (and thus less expensive) than one of the heavier BPW to travel with. There are some pretty heavy jackets out there, however, as well as some pretty light BPW's, so this isn't a universal benefit for jackets.

Surface: divers uncomfortable with their face in the water might prefer a jacket for it's ability to lift more of your head out of the water without tending to pitch your head forward. In all but the most hydrophobic of divers, a little experience and some weight adjustment will resolve this issue.​

On the other hand:

Jackets tend to float you vertically in the water, wings tend to float you horizontally. Horizontal means less energy expenditure/air consumption and less foot dragging/bottom stirring.

Jackets tend to constrict the abdomen and interfere with breathing when inflated, wings don't.

Jackets are designed for a one-situation-fits all. Backplates and wings allow you to mix and match to meet the needs of a variety of situations.​

Jackets are okay for many recreational divers - they meet their needs and that's what it's all about. I'll argue that a BPW is better, even for shallow warm water diving recreational diving, but a jacket is typically good enough. On the other hand, if you ever intend to do anything beyond 60 foot reef diving, you should at least consider the design benefits and inherent adaptability of a backplate and wing. If nothing else, new divers should look long and hard at the soft-pack back-inflate designs such as the TransPac or Ranger before making any purchasing decisions. Technical diving (which most divers should ignore) pretty much requires a BPW.

 

[StSomewhere]

Just an observation, but I think if you reread coldwaterkid's original post he didn't ask anything about a BP/W. He specifically asked about the difference between a backinflate BCD and a jacket style BCD.

 

[Chad_Ordelheide]

I recently got certified and am now shopping for gear, i am looking at the mares v1000 and the jubilee BC's. what I would like to know is what the differences and advantages of a back mounted and jacket style bc are.

Well CWK,
I'm not some crazy dive pro, tech, mix 20 gasses at once diver. I just got the V1000 and its quite comfortable. At the LDS, many of the instructors use them. In fact one instructor had just traded a Back Inflate for it, and loved it. I'm sure the other guys posting will have something to say about that. At the shop they did sell Dive Rite Wings and the guys did use them for tech diving. Anyway, back tothe V1000. Large pockets with easy access, good rings to hang stuff on, and the integrated weights are nice. No more slipping of my waist. When inflated the squeeze is almost noexistance because the front slides back on waist clips (Unless you really pump it up). If you are weighted right, you don't have much air in the BC so you shouldn't get much tilt upwards. Thus if you do it right you really don't need wings to float correctly. Anyway, there are my 2 cents. I've never dove with wings so maybe I'm just ignorant, so don't hate me "wingers" . Maybe I'll be one too some day!!

Good luck choosing!!

 

[wunat]

As you may have already got some idea regarding the advantages/disadvantage of wing or back-inflation BCD from the above discussion. Since you are considering back-inflation BCD, you might in fact consider backplate+wing setup.

Personally, I enjoyed my BP+Wing setup much more than BCD jacket (which I have decided to resell it to other divers). But I know some out there who don't enjoy it. I would suggest you give it some consideration and try it out if you can. Who knows, you might just love it.

ciao