Chest strap for backplate/harness setup?

[fatgeorge]

Thanks everyone, I've made a chest strap and added it to my BP/W setup.

 

[johndiver999]

Try it.
The only thing I can yell you is some people claim that chest straps inhibit their free breathing and can put pressure on your chest. But others say you should be breathing from your lower diaphragm anyway and not stretching your chest upper rib cage to breathe.
With those doubles style plates the shoulder straps can sometimes feel like they want to wander off your shoulders so a chest strap would help with keeping them in place.
I use a different plate that the shoulder straps come out of a single point/slot so the straps fit over the shoulders more snug. With that plate I don't need a chest strap.
But I just recently fired up an old OMS doubles style plate (for a new set of doubles) and I'm wondering about the same issue being that I'll be using it for high action diving collecting purple urchins for a kelp restoration project.
But please don't let the fanatics around here influence your decision, try one for yourself.

If a diver is working underwater and using their arms a lot, having the shoulder straps slide out into the crease between the pectoral and deltoid muscles can quickly become very uncomfortable. It is much easier to withstand the pressure being applied across the middle of the pectoral muscle rather than the insertion. Simply pushing firmly on your chest in either of those places validates that idea, for me anyway.

Loading a spear gun for example is one particular activity where a lot of muscles are being used where the chest strap is beneficial.

I was observing a commercial boat bottom cleaner come out of the water several years ago and he was using a basic plastic back pack, but had added a simple cross chest strap formed by a double ender on his most primitive and beat up harness. It was very obvious to me that his rig had been developed for functionality and comfort. That one observation of the commercial diver, really hit home for me about the potential benefits of the device for someone who is working with their arms underwater.

 

[MacDuyver]

I'm building my first ever BP/W setup - got carbon backplate and single webbing harness+hardware from Aliexpress and a wing from a fellow Scubaboarder. Been watching some assembly videos for the harness and it seem like none of them use a chest strap, only crotch strap. And the chest strap isn't included. I'm inclined to add one - it's easy to make - so my questions would be:

- Is a chest strap useful in BP/W setup?
- Are there reasons why a chest strap should NOT be used in BP/W setup?

Thank you in advance!

1. I built a chest strap using dog bones and some 1” nylon web and buckles from Ali express
2. It was pretty useless since I was held into the rig with a full on belt.
3. I got rid of it and installed 2 of these so I can adjust my shoulder straps easier:

DGX S/S Loop Adjustment Ring

The DGX Loop Adjustment Ring (LAR) is a simple device that allows the left shoulder strap of any 2-inch continuous webbing harness to be freely adjustable, making your harness much easier to doff and don.

www.divegearexpress.com