Cold water diving is a PITA

[billt4sf]

Bill:

When I switched from a Zeagle BCD to a steel BP/W, I lost ten pounds of lead.

You lost 10 lbs of lead weights that you had to carry -- but how much lighter was your rig in total? Is the BP/W 10 lbs less buoyancy?

 

[alewar]

Don't you have a diving club that you can join nearby? Here in Germany there are tons of them. They don't cost much (mine is like $15 per month) and you can use the club's gear for free (old stuff, but well maintained), besides they also organize weekly diving tours here and there that are much more fun than diving alone with your buddy.

 

[fisheater]

You lost 10 lbs of lead weights that you had to carry -- but how much lighter was your rig in total? Is the BP/W 10 lbs less buoyancy?

The backplate weighed five pounds and I didn't have to use an extra five pounds to sink the foam on the Zeagle BC. Each of these effects added up to ten less pounds on my weight belt.

(Now, I've added eight pounds of weight plates to my backplate for even more savings on my weight belt.)

BTW, no I can't get up with all my gear on (including a HP130) when I get thrown to my knees. At that point, unless I get help from someone standing next to me, my options are to crawl up onto the dry sand and take my gear off while on my knees or to swim out to deeper water and regain my control and posture.

 

[alewar]

You lost 10 lbs of lead weights that you had to carry -- but how much lighter was your rig in total? Is the BP/W 10 lbs less buoyancy?

what you do is to transfer weight from your belt into your BP. There are different kinds of BP with different weights as well as individual weights that you can attach to the BP. At the end of the day your rig weights the same but the weight is better distributed giving you a better trim.

 

[jIM STEELE]

I see that you live in sf the rec dept has great scuba program with incred. pools they have lockers full of scuba gear for your use you can bring your gear to the pool also and find with help from city staff to find your proper wt and balance (just add 3% of total displacement for sea h2o) and just enjoy the clear worm water as you practice your skills just contact rex at the city parks dept. the use fee will impress you thank your tax money and get some use from them we are at rossi pool on monday nights from 630 to10

 

[Ben_ca]

what you do is to transfer weight from your belt into your BP. There are different kinds of BP with different weights as well as individual weights that you can attach to the BP. At the end of the day your rig weights the same but the weight is better distributed giving you a better trim.

You also have the fact that most traditional BC's are inherently buoyant from all the padding and material etc. So you need weight already just to sink an empty BC. Why choose stuff that you'll have to offset later with lead? The AL80 and the traditional BC are prime examples. If you have to bring weight might as well make it worthwhile and useful like a the weight of a steel tank or a BP&W.

 

[jIM STEELE]

Don't you have a diving club that you can join nearby? Here in Germany there are tons of them. They don't cost much (mine is like $15 per month) and you can use the club's gear for free (old stuff, but well maintained), besides they also organize are weekly diving tours here and there that are much more fun than diving alone with your buddy.

dive clubs are the best way to go last weekend most clubs canceld because of the high surf its good to tap into there experience in sf check out sf reef divers also aquatutus and alacosta divers the cal dive news has a list of more clubs for dive cond. go to ba_ divers

---------- Post added March 3rd, 2013 at 01:26 PM ----------

I see that you live in sf the rec dept has great scuba program with incred. pools they have lockers full of scuba gear for your use you can bring your gear to the pool also and find with help from city staff to find your proper wt and balance (just add 3% of total displacement for sea h2o) and just enjoy the clear worm water as you practice your skills just contact rex at the city parks dept. the use fee will impress you thank your tax money and get some use from them we are at rossi pool on monday nights from 630 to10

 

[Bob DBF]

Well yeah, but it's fun once you get over the grief.

I dive wet, using a 7mm farmer john with a step in jacket and have done multiple dives in 47 degree water, I would hesitate to do the same in much colder water, but who knows. Aside from the cost of the dry suit, I wouldn't switch unless I was going to make much longer dives where the cold would become a large factor.


Bob
--------------------
I may be old, but I'm not dead yet.

 

[g1138]

I wouldn't expect everyone to drop 10lbs when switching. It depends greatly on your size and experience. New divers switching to a Bp/W will find they may often drop a lot of weight, partly due to the fact that they were never correctly weighted in the first place.

Large divers will have to drop more weight than small divers, because stock XL BC's trap a lot more air in their fabric than XS BC's.
YMMV

I only got to drop 2lbs when I made the switch.
And even now, when I go back to diving my stock BC I don't re-add those 2 pounds. I just back kick on my descent a bit until compression vents the air trapped on my BC fabric. Then it's not a problem for the rest of the dive day.

 

[billt4sf]

You also have the fact that most traditional BC's are inherently buoyant from all the padding and material etc. So you need weight already just to sink an empty BC. Why choose stuff that you'll have to offset later with lead? The AL80 and the traditional BC are prime examples. If you have to bring weight might as well make it worthwhile and useful like a the weight of a steel tank or a BP&W.

That's what I am trying to get at, Ben. How much less does my total rig weigh (dry) when I am walking out to the surf (or in from the surf) if I go Steel instead of AL and BP/W instead of BCD? Assume XL BCD and same size Steel and AL (so as to compare apples with apples).

If I thought I might lose a total weight of 12 lbs in my overall rig weight, that would make a very significant difference. 6 lbs, not so much.

I'm sorry if I don't know exactly how to ask the question.

- Bill