Continuous webbing vs adjustable harness for first BPW

[Badger7]

Im new to this, just got a Dive Rite HydroLite which has adjustable harness. I can't see the point of fixed harness. It seems harder to size initially and get in and out of. It won't work well with different wetsuit thickness (skin to 7mm) The only advantage I see is "points of failure". While in Cave diving I can see that as a major deal, for most recreational warm water diving, so what if a buckle opens up? I can simply reach over and clasp it back. I've had to open and tighten weight belts underwater before and it's never a big issue. So for recreational warm water diving, why would I use continuous webbing

I've never seen a fastex buckle break either, but the "quick adjust" harness feature isn't quite as helpful as it first seems, at least in my experience.

Benefit to everyone is consistency and simplicity. Yes, it does take some time to set initially, but then its set and you're done.

A properly fitted one piece harness has a decent amount of slack in the shoulder straps and not difficult at all to don. Then when the waist is cinched, pulling the crotch strap tight, it also pulls a lot of the of the slack out of the shoulder straps and your plate sits at a fixed position on your back. From there, you can fine tune position by adding a little extra length to the shoulder straps and tightening the crotch strap, and vice versa. Once you've got that set exactly where you like it, its pretty darn consistent from dive to dive. Your trim doesn't change based on variations in plate/tank position, and your valve and d-rings are always right where you expect them. It makes donning your gear a simple on/off operation and with no futzing around with harness length on a rocking boat.

Caveat - if I'm diving in cold water, I'm in a drysuit with a steel plate and harness length doesn't need to ever change. If I'm diving in the ocean wearing just a rashguard, i'm diving a different aluminum plate, and yes I do have the shoulder harness set slightly shorter on that one.

I don't think your life is going to change one way or the other, but a one-piece harness isn't just a safety thing for tech divers, to me it seems much simpler and easier and I'd recommend anyone with decent shoulder range of motion give it a try for a few dives before adding a bunch of unnecessary hardware to their rig.

 

[Zef]

The reality is the choice in either option doesn't really matter. Folks should pick whatever option appeals to their fancy and dive the crap out of their rig....if they don't like how it fits or functions then modify it.

Here are some common examples:
1. There are those that buy the adjustable harness and find that after a handful of dives they have things set and never really play around with the adjustments again....these folks often recommend going with a continuous webbing harness while noting the adjustable harness is kind of suplerfluous.

2. There are those who buy the continuous webbing harness and find their shoulder mobility reduced due to age or injury, so they switch to an adjustable harness to facilitate donning/doffing.

3. There are those who tech dive/cave dive (some but not all of them) that have seriously gotten drunk on the coolaide and militarily insist that the standards they have adopted are superior and should be applied by everyone otherwise the earth will stop spinning...they oftne over-inflate (no pun intended) things such as failure points, which in my opinion is often their way of rationalizing their choices.

Some might argue that if one is on a limited budget then getting this decision right is important....the reality is that if you have the money to purchase an adjustable harness (often overpriced for what they are) then its not an issue, and if you desire to make a change then the cost for a length of webbing to make a continuous harness is relatively small and most likely not an issue. If you start by purchasing a less expensive continuous webbing harness and find that functionally you need the adjustable one, you have not invested a tremendous amount of money in your initial purchase, so you just divert those saved funds to purchase an adjustable harness. The reality in this case is that if you are wrapped around the axle regarding the cost of a harness then you are participating in the wrong activity.

If you have an actual "need" for a specific type of harness, such as to accomodate an injury or an organizational or diving style standard (DIR, GUE, etc.) you will know and that "need" will guide your choice.

For the rest of us, it doesn't matter either way. If the thought of an adjustable harness appeals to you, and you are not turned off by the cost, then gas on it and purchase one. If budget is an issue or you are more attracted to the notion that a continuous webbing harness is simpler, then gas on that and purchase one of those...

...but again, if one has a specific need, they are probably not here asking for advice about which they should purchase, and for the rest of us it just doesn't matter.

Just get either and dive the crap out of it. When the time arrives that you need/want to replace your harness you will be doing so with some experience behind you and will most likely have participitated in a few discussion threads like this with what you have learned along the way...and after a few years more of waxing dogmatically about your choices and how you arrived at your current configuration, you too will realize that what type of harness one purchases when they start out just doesn't matter.

The correct answer to the question of "which harness should I go with?" is: YES!!!...Dive more, worry less.

-Z