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I was hoping to get advice on buying a BC. I would like to spend around $400 and I am a small/medium woman. As the title states I am new to diving and have no idea what to look for and what brands are good. Thanks in advance for the advice.
Thresa
I'm new too, so what do I know ... except I have an Oceanic Isla and I LOVE it.
I am a warm water only, fair weather girl. I would do your research, depends on how much weight you wear, where you're gonna use it etc - mine doesn't have a whole lotta lift but it works great for what I use it for ... packs great, nice and light. I think the women's fit on my BC makes a huge difference in how comfortable I am/it is. I did a bunch of research, narrowed down to a few options in price range and found where they were carried and tried some on. My experience was that the LDSs will want to sell you what they have (of course, they are after all in business) but that also, if they don't have waht you want (mostly male) sales people will try to tell you a small size men's BC is just as comfie and with my figure it wasn't much of a contest.
I was in your position not too long ago. My advice would to first
see what your local dive shop has. If you have a problem down the road
it is easier to bring it in for a repair then mail it somewhere. Also
you may also get the benefit of getting a loaner if you need a big repair.
Try as many different BCs as you can and see which works for you.
I narrowed my choices to a Zeagle, Seaquest, or back plate wings. I ended up choosing a Seaquest and am happy with it.
I'd strongly encourage you to try as many different BCs as possible before making your decision. I'd also strongly encourage you to make the Zeagle Zena one of those that you try...in addition to any other Zeagle BC you can get your hands on. Zeagles are totally modular in design so you can get a custom fit by mixing and matching the sizes of the different pieces. Not only that, but they are made in the USA, have a lifetime guarantee, and ScottZeagle is available on this board for extra help and advice whenever you might want or need it.
Heck, if you can get to ScubaToys in the Dallas area, that would be even better...talk about a huge shop with tons of gear!
Thresa, I'm also a small woman, and the one big piece of advice I have for you is to make sure you buy something that fits you well. If the BC is sloppy in its fit, the tank will shift around on your back, and especially as a new diver, that makes diving uncomfortable. (I perfected the one-elbow tank shove with my first BC.) Don't let anybody tell you, "It's good enough." And see if you can either demo what you are thinking of buying, or get something with an option to return it if you end up not liking it in the water. My original Libra is still hanging in my closet . . .
Fit is the most important consideration and that is why I started diving a backplate with a wing. This is a modular system that can be custom fitted to your body. In addition, it puts weight over your lungs and allows you to take weight off the belt. Many divers report an immediate improvement in trim. You'll find many dicussions here on the benefits of BP/W.
I am a huge backplate fan. I am went through three bc's in my diving career before switching to a backplate, now I try to tell everyone the benefits of it. My first BC was a aqualung calypso. It was a jacket style and I never really liked it. I ddin't like the squeeze when inflated and it leaked. I bought it used and sold it to another diver.
I then used a scuba pro double black or something. Same situation overall.
I bought a zeagle ranger and used it for a few years. Pockets were hard to get to and it was a big BC. It was pretty good but I started readying about backplates and wanted to try them.
I was also issued an abyss rec to tec at work. It was ok but big and cumbersome in the configuration we had it. It had straps and buckles everywhere and was hard to get in and out off.
I eventually bought a backplate system and now I will never need another BC, and it fits everyone and really won't wear out.
B
It is completely modular.
TheRedHead:
Fit is the most important consideration and that is why I started diving a backplate with a wing. This is a modular system that can be custom fitted to your body. In addition, it puts weight over your lungs and allows you to take weight off the belt. Many divers report an immediate improvement in trim. You'll find many dicussions here on the benefits of BP/W.
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