Dive Rite Transpac II

[carldarl]

Any body familiar with them> Looks good hanging...

 

[ONESPEED]

I have one and love it. If you do a search here you will find plenty of info. Extremely comfortable, very easy to customize and travels very well.

 

[bradshsi]

I got one based on the opinions and comments here. So far I'm quite happy with the performance (I upgraded from a jacket type BCD). However it must be said that I'm a relative novice, so don't read too much into my recommendation.

On the other hand, this comment by Uncle Ricky might help you:

http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=1296034&postcount=11

 

[RICHinNC]

Works ok with singles....never met anyone that was totally happy when they tried doubles with it. The teccies will hate it because of failure points and if you plan to hang thirty bottle off of you...I would agree.

I went with the transplate and felt it was a better decision for later expansion or addiing additional dive styles.

 

[ProfessorAronnax]

It's fine. Don't get to caught up in the whole "failure point" thing. eace2:

 

[ScubaCrow]

Its a adaptable, solid BCD with enough steel D rings for most people. Most of the DM's and instructors in our LDS use them as our personal BCD's. They can handle any normal recreational profile dive you want. I agree the point of failure critique is nothing to worry about in normal diving. It would be a little too soft for doubles if that is the way you want to go.

 

[plongeursousmarin]

It's fine. Don't get to caught up in the whole "failure point" thing. eace2:

I totally agree with that statement. I'm sick of hearing this failure point stuff. Like how many quick release buckles have really broken on people while underwater? I may not be experienced enough to hang several bottles off of me but come on. Those quick release buckles are used on moutaineering backpacks in far more extreme conditions than even the most demanding tech dive (no gravity, remember), and yet no one on Mt Everest or Makalu or whatever has ever blamed an accident on a backpack failure point. Marketing.

 

[Mandy3206]

DR TPII is a great rig not as good as a BP, but very good indeed.

I use the TPII for travel 'cause the ease of packing, it won't be as stable as a BP, but stable enough to dive while on vacation, another point that usually gets reported is that due to the proximity of the tank to your body, some divers (including me) experience hitting the 1st stage with the head.

The QRs are good and will last a lifetime, I use QRs all the time in Fannypacks, Backpacks, and in my BP harness, and the only 2 times I've broken one is when I've closed the truck door with the fannypack on the seat and the QR is in the way.
I won't trust them for skydiving, but for anything else in my opinion they work OK.
Of course, you may find cheap flimsy QRs here and there, but I haven't seen one used on dive gear.

 

[bradshsi]

I totally agree with that statement. I'm sick of hearing this failure point stuff. Like how many quick release buckles have really broken on people while underwater?

Not that many I suspect.

In theory a quick release is a failure point, but then in theory (quantum physics), all the atoms in your Transpac could jump 3 ft to the left. Both are potential failure points but IMO neither is statistically significant.

I've never seen any published data that shows otherwise.

 

[MSilvia]

I owned a TPII for several years, and my impression of it is that it's a great step in the right direction for anyone using a jacket BC, but it had a number of shortcomings that I was never very happy about. Those that come to my head first are:

• I think the shoulder D-rings are too low, and I don't like that they can't be moved.
• If you wear a drysuit like mine, the chest strap on the TPII crosses directly over the inflation valve, which is uncomfortable and unnecessarily complicates using the inflator.
• The shoulder straps are connected with velcro. IMHO, that's not very secure, and I had a problem with one of them pulling out once.
• All the plastic buckles and stuff CAN fail, and while I don't think it's likely, I do know someone it happened to... 2,500 feet back in a cave, and for no apparent reason. When she limped home in it, she was so dissatisfied with it's performance she gave it a good jumping on and then set fire to it. While I don't think it's a likely problem, I know it's a possible problem, and I can't think of a good justification for it given that when I tried a harness without quick-releases it was still comfortable and easy to get in and out of.
• When I put doubles on it, they weren't particularly stable, and the RecWing I got with it was too big for a single tank, and too small for doubles.
• The metal pieces that guide the lower angle of the harness take up real estate on the waistband... even their weight pockets had to be designed to work around them.
• While it's nice on land, the backpad doesn't really add any comfort while diving, but it does do an excellent job of soaking up a ton of water and taking a long time to dry. If I was hiking in it, I'd probably want one, but since I don't, I took it out and sold it on eBAY.

It's not a bad system for all it's shortcomings, and I was much happier with it than I was in my SeaQuest Jacket, but I still wish I'd listened to my LDS and just gotten a BP/W in the first place. It has everything I like about the TPII, with none of the things I don't.

My wife (who dives once or twice a year) likes hers, but says she'll probably switch to BP/W if she ever starts diving enough to warrant spending money on better gear.