boring and stupid questions about diving in the UK

[Patoux01]

The wing is the same aircell with the same inflator and buttons and all, but it's located around the tank on your back. Which is why if you inflate it completely, it will indeed turn you backside-up .

Oh Neptune, here we go again.
This is just plain wrong. We used to routinely inflate our wings (all kind, even me with my Xdeep stealth, and god knows the inflation volume is low on the back on that one...) until the OPV burps, no-one ever faceplanted. We could all be vertical without trouble. For what it's worth anyway, no BCD is designed to keep your head up (except I think the Masterjacket from scubapro).

 

[Antmany2k]

@Patoux01 @dmaziuk

 

[Storker]

Do you find one type, neoprene/trilam, is better than the other in surface swimming at all?

Never thought about it, but generally, the snugger the suit, the better it is for swimming. Whether it's on the surface or underwater. And a neoprene suit can generally be fitted more snugly since it's somewhat elastic. A trilam isn't and has to be a little more loose-fitting to provide sufficient freedom of movement.

Disclaimer: IME only, others' MMV, etc. etc.

 

[Storker]

Which is why if you inflate it completely, it will indeed turn you backside-up. Unless you balance on top like on a car inner tube.

In all of my dives with a wing, I've never had a problem with that. I find it very relaxing to inflate my 40# wing completely (it has never tried to turn me upside-down), lean back and just chill. In a wing I get a lot higher in the water than if I do the same with a jacket BCD.

I guess I'm doing it wrong.

 

[rivers]

I've done somewhere in the region of 600+ dives in a bp/w. Never once have I been tipped face first with it completely inflated. if it does, you are not weighted correctly

 

[rivers]

@rivers thanks for the advice, Wrasbury is my local lake - i have heard good and bad things about it but it can't hurt to try it. i will look into the wing and backplate thing before i make a decision, may work out better for me. my local dive place use a rib apparently so i doubt that would have a lift. but if i could find a club that does have a boat with a lift that would definitely make things easier for me. and BSAC sports diver sounds like a great course to take for what i am looking to do. as for Scapa its something to build too, i wouldn't feel confident to do it yet.
@Centrals it is a very long drive so i would take a couple of days of work either side of a weekend and fly up

Wraysbury is okay, I've done many dives there. IMO, the best thing about that place has gone (Arthur, who ran the kitchen sadly passed away last year). Ribs won't have a lift, that's hardboat territory. However, Portland Harbour is a pretty good place for new divers to get their first sea dives in, where you and a buddy can just book onto a shuttle through Skindeep. UK hardboats run one of two ways. A charter, where a club or group of friends book a boat for a weekend. Or a shuttle, which will have a pre-determined dive site that you just book yourself onto an available space. I don't know of any ops down by Brighton that do shuttles, but I don't really dive that direction (Portland is my preferred destination to dive out of, followed by Plymouth and Swanage on the South coast). Any questions, just let me know

 

[Edward3c]

Oh Neptune, here we go again.
This is just plain wrong. We used to routinely inflate our wings (all kind, even me with my Xdeep stealth, and god knows the inflation volume is low on the back on that one...) until the OPV burps, no-one ever faceplanted. We could all be vertical without trouble. For what it's worth anyway, no BCD is designed to keep your head up (except I think the Masterjacket from scubapro).

Only horse collar type BCs will float an individual face up. Last Saturday I had a student with a wing whom was placed face down when they inflated it on the surface.

 

[rivers]

Only horse collar type BCs will float an individual face up. Last Saturday I had a student with a wing whom was placed face down when they inflated it on the surface.

And that was due to the student not being weighted correctly

 

[BoltSnap]

Never thought about it, but generally, the snugger the suit, the better it is for swimming. Whether it's on the surface or underwater.

I am not sure that is true, "too" snug and will be restrictive for fin kicks. Neoprene will have a "slimmer" fit but not snug AFAIK. I am curious about the material's flexibility for fin kicking.

 

[Patoux01]

Only horse collar type BCs will float an individual face up.

If I'm not mistaken, the Masterjacket is certified as life preserving equipment (rescue equipment? I don't know the correct name), but it's about the only one.



As for the materials of a suit, I'm a trilam kind of guy, should I take neoprene, I'd probably bite the cannonball (ie a very large bullet) and take a suit from SF-tech.