OP
Thank you all for your input.
I eventually bought Christine both a Zeagle Zena and a DiveRite Hydro-Lite since time was short before our bucket list trip to Raja Ampat, and her old Hera was just wrong for her. Too big, and heavy for travel, though comfy.
She tried both bcds, over and over. While she loved the look of the Zena (especially the purple zippered front panel), it didn't fit her frame the way she wanted.
She finally chose, and took the Hydro-Lite to Indonesia and LOVED IT! It fit perfectly and kept her tank close in. We added a couple of trim pockets, and switched to a second tank band in lieu of the lower Velcro strap. Her trim was great! 30# lift was more than she needed in a 3mil, but the narrow oval shape of the bladder had no taco'ing.
Anyway, thank you for all your suggestions! Everyone has a bit of a different fit, and the Hydro-Lite turned out to be a great bcd, and SO LIGHT for travel! She worked it hard - four dives a day for 10 days straight, and it performed perfectly.
Thank you to @Tracy for getting it shipped so quickly! After the Zena turned out to be "not quite perfect" for her, he got it to us quickly so she could compare before we had to leave.
I guess you can expect a new, "never wet" Zeagle Zena (Size S) with a purple front panel, an extra black front panel in case the zipper ever fails (a "never" occurrence), an extra corrugated hose elbow and an expandable pocket to appear in the Classifieds shortly.
I tried to get Christine to join SB to post a review, but she demurred. So from me, thanks again for everyone's input!
Five stars!
I eventually bought Christine both a Zeagle Zena and a DiveRite Hydro-Lite since time was short before our bucket list trip to Raja Ampat, and her old Hera was just wrong for her. Too big, and heavy for travel, though comfy.
She tried both bcds, over and over. While she loved the look of the Zena (especially the purple zippered front panel), it didn't fit her frame the way she wanted.
She finally chose, and took the Hydro-Lite to Indonesia and LOVED IT! It fit perfectly and kept her tank close in. We added a couple of trim pockets, and switched to a second tank band in lieu of the lower Velcro strap. Her trim was great! 30# lift was more than she needed in a 3mil, but the narrow oval shape of the bladder had no taco'ing.
Anyway, thank you for all your suggestions! Everyone has a bit of a different fit, and the Hydro-Lite turned out to be a great bcd, and SO LIGHT for travel! She worked it hard - four dives a day for 10 days straight, and it performed perfectly.
Thank you to @Tracy for getting it shipped so quickly! After the Zena turned out to be "not quite perfect" for her, he got it to us quickly so she could compare before we had to leave.
I guess you can expect a new, "never wet" Zeagle Zena (Size S) with a purple front panel, an extra black front panel in case the zipper ever fails (a "never" occurrence), an extra corrugated hose elbow and an expandable pocket to appear in the Classifieds shortly.
I tried to get Christine to join SB to post a review, but she demurred. So from me, thanks again for everyone's input!
Five stars!
