Basic BC

[SangP]

Well, I nearly died or wanted to when I first tried on a regular bcd during my OW LOL!

There's some differences between a regular jacket and a back inflate in that the back inflate has a sort of a wing or an air cell at the back of the bc rather than having an air cell that extends from the back to the front of the bcd.

Personally I don't like a bcd that feels like it's squeezing me when I inflate it on the surface so a bp/w or a bi is my choice.

A zeagle is a very good bc cus it's modular and allows you to replace some parts should they get worn out or is damange and because it's modular, you can mix and match parts for a better fit. You'll never be able to get a fit like a bp/w but for a regular bc it's pretty good.

It's your diving in warm and cold conditions that made me recommend a bp/w.

SangP

 

[undrwater]

Mike,

It sounds like you're looking for exactly what I was when I was in the purchasing position. You might check out my post on the DIY forum to check out what I got and what I did with it.

It's the thread "modified Dacor Falcon BCD"

Here's the link: http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=152111

 

[Mike126]

Hey guys thanks for the advice....

The BP/W has me intrigued. I guess it is the simplicity of the design that makes it so versitle. I was starting to read an article on ScubaDiving.com http://www.scubadiving.com/gear/buoyancy_compensators/backplate_buoyancy_systems/ they basically start out with BP/W are not for beginners. Why is that?

So shifting gears for a moment, what are some of the better (not over the top) companies of BP/W components? Any adice on assembling a BP/W package? I'll go do some searches on the forum.

Mike

 

[undrwater]

Everyone's got their opinions, and mine is saying BP/W is not for beginners is like saying scuba is not for beginners. It's a tool to get the job done...you learn how to use that tool...plain and simple.

See if you can find someone in your area who is using this setup...it's possible someone has a unit they can loan to you (and hopefully help adjust for you), and dive with it. In the great big scheme of things, it's not a big deal...just a bit different than a jacket BC. If the differences are not obvious, having someone help you out with questions and things like trim is really useful.

If ya got nobody...there's always Scubaboard. There's no guarantee you'll like the BP/W better, but based on many, many responses of switchers, the probabilities are high.

You are of course, right. Do much research, there aren't many major variations, but there are some feature differences between manufacturers.

Have fun!

 

[divnamite]

undrwater, i like what you did to that Dacor BCD. How do you like it? I didn't hear good review about the Dacor Falcon. It seems a cheap way to have your back-inflated BCD. I would love to try it out. More detail and pictures please

Mike126, as for your question. It's really simple. Majority of divers are vacational divers, they are "magazine's beginners group". These group of divers will not spend that much time to familiarize themselves with gears such as BP/W. When was the last time you see "vacational divers" diving with primary/backup lights or SMB or not-overweighted?

 

[Weddas]

I have got a "Aquatec Atlas" off ebay...
Its great came with the low pressure inflator with a inbilt under water horn. and intergrated wates. 4x D rings, 2x deep large pockets.
and guess what

all for 180.00
Beat that for a deal!!

 

[SangP]

Hey guys thanks for the advice....

The BP/W has me intrigued. I guess it is the simplicity of the design that makes it so versitle. I was starting to read an article on ScubaDiving.com http://www.scubadiving.com/gear/buoyancy_compensators/backplate_buoyancy_systems/ they basically start out with BP/W are not for beginners. Why is that?

So shifting gears for a moment, what are some of the better (not over the top) companies of BP/W components? Any adice on assembling a BP/W package? I'll go do some searches on the forum.

Mike

To answer your first question, a lot of instructors and schools believe that a bp/w is a tech rig and SHOULD be more complicated for the regular rec divers. That's the general school of thought for the use of BP/W for most divers.

As for not over the top type of gear I can say there are a lot of gear out there that is resonable like Oxycheq, Golem, DSS.

Basically, the choices are more to do with what type of diving you do like warm or cold water diving which would mean either a ss or an alu plate. A donut or horseshoe wing, a couple of weight pouches and maybe a large pouch for your spare mask and smb and you are set. KISS... that'w what I like bout a bp/w

SangP

 

[SparticleBrane]

Basic BC!

 

[Mike126]

Hey guys I appreciate all of the feedback.

This weekend I was doing my refresher course with my vintage BC (20 year old Sherwood jacket). Another diver was in the water and checking out some new equipment from the same LDS. She had a Seaquest Balance BC. It looked pretty clean.

I was talking with my instructor about BCs. He suggested trying the Balance. He was not too keen on the BP/W idea mostly due to the overall cost being slightly higher (once I added weight pockets etc.) and the travel weight. But he's also looking at it from the LDS cost versus through DSS or similar.

In a couple of weeks I'm doing a dive at the quarry. Hopefully I can hook up with other divers of BP/W and get some feedback and maybe even a quick dive if I'm really lucky.

My one concern is that I'd like to get a BC that will perform well in cold and warm water dives. When I spoke with DSS they seemed to think that a BP/W would require 2 wings (30 + for cold and 18 for warm) to work well in both conditions. Anyone have a setup that works in cold and warm using the same wing?

Mike

 

[SparticleBrane]

I dive my Eclipse 30lbs wing in both cold and warm water, although a smaller wing would probably work better for warmer water.
While an 18lbs wing would be great for warm water, I'd go with the 30lbs if you're planning on doing both. Like I said, I have 0 issues using my 30lbs wing in both warm and cold. Of course if you have the money you could always get both...