Best BCD, and Regulator for women
- Thread starter Morgan_5
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ashleymurphy03
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I’m in Atlanta too! If you haven’t already, check out Dive Georgia. Incredibly knowledgeable and friendly shop, no high-pressure sales pitches, and tons of different brands/selections. Would absolutely recommend them!
Dive Georgia - Atlanta Metro Scuba, Snorkel, Travel, and Training!
Right you are, my bad. I was thinking of a completely different item. The Lotus is back inflation, the women’s version of the Dimension. I forgot all about that until you corrected me.
ashleymurphy03
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Ayisha
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If you thought the Brut was decent, I love my Sherwood Blizzard. It is of course, balanced and environmentally sealed, so you can use it anywhere. Like the Brut, it's a workhorse. I prefer fewer moving parts in regs like the Brut and Blizzard for reliability.
I recommend that you try a backplate and wing, which is infinitely adjustable to any body type or height. If you gain or lose weight, no worries, loosen or tighten the harness. Your tank will be more stable cushioned by the wing and it will make it easier to maintain trim while diving. A women's back-inflate BC has some similarities, but it will not support the tank any more than any other jacket; it likely has floaty neoprene sround you that you have to wear more weight for; jackets tend to trap more air between them and your body that is harder to release; and jackets are harder to vent fully, all potentially leading to wearing more weight to compensate. There are many good reasons to choose a bp/w over a jacket.
dive1bb
Contributor
Another +1 for BP/W. I think it's great for anyone whatever shape, size or gender you may be!
I used to rent jacket BCs when I started diving back in September. It always felt like I was getting an awkward hug walking to the shore and I had a lot of trouble with my buoyancy using it under water. It may not be for everyone, same with BP/W, but I love my Dive Rite BP/W setup! Like @LandonL and @Ayisha said, the customization is key. I love that it's as simple as some webbing, a stainless steel plate, and a wing. You can always trim or re-web it if need be. Here's what it looks like from the front:
It's amazing how freeing it is to simply clip things off to my D rings like my light and SPG. Additionally, I love the fact that I was able to easily remove 5lbs of lead just by getting the stainless steel backplate. ** I don't know about you, but the less lead the better in my opinion. It took me around 5-10 dives to dial everything in and feel comfortable enough to start trimming the webbing as needed. 100% worth it.
As for the reg, I have the Atomic M1 and love it. Not specific for any diver - I just liked the build quality and that it only requires service every 2 years/300 dives. I found it breathes better for me personally than other regs I rented in the past.
Hope this helps. let me know if you have any questions Good luck in your search
** edit: to be clear, I shed 5lbs of lead off my waist/cam band by switching to a SS backplate. I still carry the 5lbs, however, it’s evenly distributed on my SS plate and I barely notice it.
I used to rent jacket BCs when I started diving back in September. It always felt like I was getting an awkward hug walking to the shore and I had a lot of trouble with my buoyancy using it under water. It may not be for everyone, same with BP/W, but I love my Dive Rite BP/W setup! Like @LandonL and @Ayisha said, the customization is key. I love that it's as simple as some webbing, a stainless steel plate, and a wing. You can always trim or re-web it if need be. Here's what it looks like from the front:
It's amazing how freeing it is to simply clip things off to my D rings like my light and SPG. Additionally, I love the fact that I was able to easily remove 5lbs of lead just by getting the stainless steel backplate. ** I don't know about you, but the less lead the better in my opinion. It took me around 5-10 dives to dial everything in and feel comfortable enough to start trimming the webbing as needed. 100% worth it.
As for the reg, I have the Atomic M1 and love it. Not specific for any diver - I just liked the build quality and that it only requires service every 2 years/300 dives. I found it breathes better for me personally than other regs I rented in the past.
Hope this helps. let me know if you have any questions
Good luck in your search** edit: to be clear, I shed 5lbs of lead off my waist/cam band by switching to a SS backplate. I still carry the 5lbs, however, it’s evenly distributed on my SS plate and I barely notice it.
eelnoraa
Contributor
Guys, let's me more objective. Bp/w does NOT automatically make trim and bouyancy better. It does hold tank more secured and hold the rig onto the diver more secured.
It also does not make you carry less weight, it just shift 5lb from lead to the SS plate.
It is more customizable, sure. Infinitely adjustable, sure. But it isn't one size fit all. For shorter and taller divers, different size plates will still be more suitable.
As with everything else, there are advantages and disadvantages. Personally, I am a bp/w diver since 2009. I would recommend whole heartly. But I also know more than several people who started with bp/w and ended up with something else which fits their diving better.
It also does not make you carry less weight, it just shift 5lb from lead to the SS plate.
It is more customizable, sure. Infinitely adjustable, sure. But it isn't one size fit all. For shorter and taller divers, different size plates will still be more suitable.
As with everything else, there are advantages and disadvantages. Personally, I am a bp/w diver since 2009. I would recommend whole heartly. But I also know more than several people who started with bp/w and ended up with something else which fits their diving better.
dive1bb
Contributor
I apologize for any confusion! To clarify — I rather wear 5lbs of weight evenly distributed on a SS plate than an extra 5lbs on my waist or cam band. I felt much heavier with that weight pre-BP/W even though I was diving the exact same weight. May not be the case with everyone — just my experience with it.
For trim, it wasn’t automatically fixed like changing any dive equipment, yet it was significantly easier for me once I made the switch. I don’t see myself switching back to a jacket anytime soon.
I'm thinking that the Scubapro Hydros Pro BCD is looking very good to me. Ah, except for the price.
I've been diving a Scubapro Ladyhawk for a number of years after rejecting backplate and wing for my own diving. I've been very happy with it save some very minor items that should just be considered a tradeoff no matter which bcd system one ends up with.
I've been diving a Scubapro Ladyhawk for a number of years after rejecting backplate and wing for my own diving. I've been very happy with it save some very minor items that should just be considered a tradeoff no matter which bcd system one ends up with.
OP
Morgan_5
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Thank you for the suggestions everyone! I ended up trying about a dozen on and I went with the ScubaPro Ladyhawk. My boyfriend however went with the BP&W, he really like the way it felt and how simple it was. Now I just have to get use to diving with a back inflate, in the past I've only wore jackets. I think I'll play with it in the pool for a few days before taking it to the boat.
As for the regulator I ended up going with the SP S560/MK 21 combination. I think that was the hardest choice out of everything lol.
As for the regulator I ended up going with the SP S560/MK 21 combination. I think that was the hardest choice out of everything lol.
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