BP/W users: Which side for waist buckle and why?

[Instructor_Tom]

The buckle is on the left side and stays left of the crotch strap and here is why. When wearing doubles and you have to perform an emergency valve shutdown. If the buckle is under the crotch strap or to the right you will have problems dropping the crotch strap or loosening the belt enough to be able to pull the tank up to do a fast shutdown. Im a big guy and my valves set low on my back.

I actually had a primary second stage failure and had i not made that adjustment just 2 dives earlier i would not have been able to get to my valves.

As for all the excuses for why people end up running with the buckle on the right of the crotch strap for holding their light canister in place, there are a couple of simple solutions which does not require a compromise on your safety.

1 use a second buckle as a slide lock to hold the canister
2 use a grimlock to hold the canister in place
3 use the dive rite canister bungee and place it behind the right side D ring (personal favorite)


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[Nemrod]

While I am not DIR or GUE, I am pretty sure what I described is typical Hogarthian which is the style of rigging used by GUE/DIR adherents using either doubles or a single. I am not saying it is right or wrong, simply stating that I think some confusion is occurring with the wording not matching what many divers are actually doing.

I am neutral on the subject as there is logic either way.


When needing to raise a tank to manipulate a valve (double shoulder separations) I find it best to rig as I described, the crotch strap is retained by the buckle, buckle when tight is to the right. Loosening the waist band buckle allows me more than enough reach and can raise the tank very high. If the buckle is worn on the left side of the crotch strap, if the waist buckle is loosened the waist strap will possibly fully come free of the buckle, the crotch strap will fall away and successfully resist any attempt to relocate it for reattachment. Divers, in the Hog world, generally wear a weight belt and that weight belt is worn UNDER the crotch strap. Again here I am neutral, this is not how I was taught. But, if so worn, the diver must release both the waist strap and the weight belt to dump the belt. But, it retains the weight belt during accidental release. Again, neutral, as I can see logic both ways.

N

 

[Centrals]

I think something is being misunderstood in the wording people are using. When most people, myself included, say the buckle is on the left, at least some of them mean that the buckle is on the left strap, HOWEVER, in use, the buckle passes through the crotch strap loop and is actually on the right side, way too the right in fact. Some divers use the buckle to restrain the can light which is also on the right side. I do not not put my can light on my waist strap but I still set the buckle so that when properly tight, the buckle is nearly fully right on the waist.

I should had made it so clear in the first place.
Buckle is attached to the left strap. When in use it is pass through the crotch strap loop and couple with the right strap. So the buckle is on the right side(just slightly off the center).

 

[Dr. Lecter]

The buckle is on the left side and stays left of the crotch strap and here is why. When wearing doubles and you have to perform an emergency valve shutdown. If the buckle is under the crotch strap or to the right you will have problems dropping the crotch strap or loosening the belt enough to be able to pull the tank up to do a fast shutdown. Im a big guy and my valves set low on my back.

Set your tanks properly and you won't have to do screwy things with your buckle placement -- I can't even imagine how far down I'd have to set my tanks to need to remove the crotch strap just to work the valves. If you have some kind of personal mobility issue, perhaps it's a fine compromise -- but don't describe it as optimal, much less necessary for safety, as a general rule.

Separately, if you can't drop your crotch strap cleanly because the buckle has to pass through it, you're panicked/rushing. Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

 

[52brandon]

Slow is smooth, smooth is fast.

I live by that

 

[kelemvor]

I dive bp/w. I've got 3 plates and 2 harnesses. One has a crotch strap with a "loop". In that config the buckle is on the left. I thread the webbing from the right through the crotch strap loop and into the buckle. This way it's super simple to remove everything when needed, and easy to put it back on.

My second harness has a "clip on" crotch strap. I dislike it compared to the other setup. In this setup the buckle is on the left and the female end of the crotch strap clip is left of the buckle. This is because the clip will fall off and sink to the bottom if it's on the right side. I prefer the first setup, which is a "diverite" deluxe harness vs the latter harness which is some standard "DIR" type webbing. I should be up front in that I'm not a dir diver. I'll leave that title to those who have earned it.

 

[lowviz]

The common convention is for weight belts to be "right pull". My waist belt is, therefore, "left pull". This allows snugging up either without looking and without annoying mistakes.

 

[NAM001]

my buckle is on the left strap. It slides through the crotch strap and resides on the right side and restrains the can lights movement. That being such it leaves room on the left side space for a belt pocket (place for notes cutter and small stuff)

 

[undrwater]

I made my own crotch strap and created a loop that the right hand harness strap passes through (the loop is just larger than the webbing) then gets buckled with the left harness strap. This leaves the buckle just left of the crotch strap. I thread a DIY (made with 2" webbing) knife holder with a similar loop that provides just enough friction to hold the can light in place. I can unbuckle the webbing, and won't lose the crotch strap until I glide it out of the loop. The can light will not fall either.

Weight belt has velcro pockets, so I don't worry about having to release it, though I could if needed.