BP/W & Reg for Monterey + Travel

[NewScubaDude]

I’d like to purchase a BP/W that will work well in cold water like Monterey and Folsom, and also travel well to warm destinations like Hawaii or Florida. Is there such a beast?

I’m 5’9” 200lbs and have worn everything from board shorts to 7mm wetsuit w/hood, gloves…Is there a setup that will have sufficient lift for cold water that won’t be oversized for warm water or heavy for travel? Go aluminum on the plate? Am I going to need two setups to do this right without compromising too much?

Extra credit: Reg recommendations for these conditions. Something that will work well without going high end/fancy. Longer service intervals or self-serviceable is most appealing. MK25 w/A700 catches my eye, but not sure if there are better options. Are there brands that are easier to get serviced locally, ones to avoid?

I have about 30 dives, getting about 10 a year and hoping to increase. I’d like to be able to dive tropical locations and travel light plus hit the popular local spots including Lake Tahoe. Don’t have plans to get into a dry suit, but if future proofing is prudent don’t mind considering that.

Of course staying within a “reasonable” budget is also a factor. I don’t want to cheap out and be disappointed and can’t throw money at top tier everything.

 

[suricatasuricata]

- Just get an Al plate and a regular 30 lb lift wing. Why? You might need less weight or no weight in the tropics and you can always add an extra three lb in Monterey. However, this distinction between plates is almost irrelevant. The delta between an Al plate and a Steel plate is like three lb. If you think that three lb is what makes your packing harder for travel, you almost surely don't know how to pack right . The 3 lb is also not a deal breaker when it comes to kicking yourself up with a balanced reg. Oh yeah, if you want to get a Halcyon wing, that is fine. But a DGX or a Dive Rite setup should be AOK.



- Regs. I am a local diver to Monterey and with all due respect, there is nothing fancy needed for these conditions. An MK25 is totally fine, no need to get a special exotic "Cold water reg" or even an environmentally sealed reg. I use S600s and S620Tis but guess if you want go for the A700. IIRC, I didn't go that route cause I thought it was a bit more $$. More generally, Scuba Pro or Atomic should be easily serviceable at the several dive shops here. Just don't go hyperoptimize and get something like Dive rite regs. A pain to get serviced locally.


Honestly, just get OK regs, an OK BPW and start putting that money towards a quality drysuit. Diving Lake Tahoe in a wetsuit sounds like absolute misery to me.

 

[rongoodman]

I'd go with a SS plate and 30# wing. Deep 6 or Hog regulators should do you well.

 

[lostsheep]

Diving Lake Tahoe in a wetsuit sounds like absolute misery to me.

Most anywhere in Tahoe the OP would be diving will be similar temperatures to Monterey if not warmer.

ETA: Dive rite regs are fine and easy enough to get serviced, there are several reputable shops between East bay and Tahoe (guessing on location by the Folsom comment)

 

[lexvil]

An SS plate make more sense than aluminum, extra weight in the cold water and pretty close to ideal for tropical diving with aluminum 80’s. Something like the DGX (dive gear express) 30 should serve well for all of this since it’s very compact for its lift.

I mostly shore dive Monterey and prefer sealed first stages to keep the grit out, I no longer use the MK25 for this reason but they will go years before it matters and it is a good solid high performance reg. I would go s600 or g260 for the second stage but do the A700 if you like shiny.

 

[inquis]

If you think that three lb is what makes your packing harder for travel, you almost surely don't know how to pack right

That argument can also be used to justify a steel plate. Pair that with a 30 lb wing and you'd be golden for single-tank recreational diving, even in cold water.

Size the harness for cold water, and that will work for warm as well. The waist belt provides the stability, not the shoulder straps. Those *should* be loose.

 

[KenE]

I will second what lexvil said. DGX SS plate and 30# wing, Mk25 and twin G260s or twin S600s. Twin G260 is less money and you won't be able to tell the difference. I use twin G250s from Buddhasummer on one set and twin S600s on the other. I can't tell the difference.

 

[Badger7]

I'd go with a SS plate and 30# wing. Deep 6 or Hog regulators should do you well.

Me too. If I had to choose just one I'd go stainless. Less lead to wear when its cold, less lead to wear when its warm. The only time I'd go aluminum or CF is if I had ultralight travel requirements or I wanted to try to compensate for a pair of really heavy tanks. I can't think of a good reason to have a travel wing either, a good quality 30lb wing should work for any single tank diving scenario, and a "travel wing" doesn't magically pack up that much smaller or lighter than anything else.

Personally, I just use Apeks DST firsts and XTX50 seconds so I can have the local dive shop down the road do a full rebuild service every couple years.

 

[Chavodel8en]

Dive Gear Express BPW is good value. As stated above, their 30 lbs wing is nice and streamlined, and good lift for these waters.

I guess I pack too heavy, bc I have real concerns about packing a SS plate on vacation. But really like SS for these waters, so my solution was to get a SS BPW for here and a cheap travel BC.

You know your suitcase best, so ask yourself if you can pack a 5 lb SS plate when you travel. The other option would be to get an aluminum plate and add ballast for local diving.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

If you want self servicing on regs that legitimately leaves out Scubapro.
I’d look at the Dive Gear Express BP/W package (DGX Gears), and they also have reg sets both diaphragm and piston style which they sell parts to the end user.
You could go either aluminum or stainless on the plate. Aluminum would be better for travel but here you’d just have to add 4 lbs. on your weightbelt. Stainless would be better around here but heavier for travel and not good with anything less than a three mil. You could use it with an Aluminum 80 in Hawaii.
The other reg company would be Deep 6 which sells parts to the end user.
I’m test piloting another cool reg right now in our local cold Norcal waters. It’s an all 316 stainless Steel piston reg made by a company called Scuba Gaskets. The second stage is a nice smooth breather. They will sell parts to the end user and the reg is styled after one of the greatest piston regs of all time, the Scubapro MK10. It’s setup for DIN.