First Steel Tank - Single LP85 or HP80

[Jeff_O]

…or you could just be me and people give you the crap for free.
Free stuff from my LDS: 3 steel 72’s, one LP 85, one DAAM, and two full sets of MK5/109’s with 109 octos, SPG’s, and more…
I’ll shut up now.

OP, get the LP85.
Don’t bother with those stupid little HP80’s, they call them bowling balls.
And keep looking for a PST E7100, those are the best overall tank ever made IMO.

Only maybe not a issue for OP, the weight for my Steel HP 80 is all I can work. Spine issue. The form factor is the same outer dimension of Aluminum 50. For deeper dives in the past Aluminum 92 I used but not anymore there way heavy.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

…or you could just be me and people give you the crap for free.
Free stuff from my LDS: 3 steel 72’s, one LP 85, one DAAM, and two full sets of MK5/109’s with 109 octos, SPG’s, and more…
I’ll shut up now.

OP, get the LP85.
Don’t bother with those stupid little HP80’s, they call them bowling balls.
And keep looking for a PST E7100, those are the best overall tank ever made IMO.

@Eric Sedletzky can I ask why? I thought the E7100 have 7/8" necks. More of a pain for the guy cleaning?

 

[kaylee_ann]

Based on the HP100 barely fitting me (as in, a little too tall) as a 5'4 person, I'd say don't bother with a shorter one.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

@Eric Sedletzky can I ask why? I thought the E7100 have 7/8" necks. More of a pain for the guy cleaning?

No, they are 3442 psi standard 3/4” 200 bar valve with DIN inserts. And there’s no + rating so 3442 IS 100 cf, not some mythical 10% over to get the advertised CF.

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Only maybe not a issue for OP, the weight for my Steel HP 80 is all I can work. Spine issue. The form factor is the same outer dimension of Aluminum 50. For deeper dives in the past Aluminum 92 I used but not anymore there way heavy.

You’d be better off using steel 72’s. At 3000 they become an 86

 

[rx7diver]

Only maybe not a issue for OP, the weight for my Steel HP 80 is all I can work. Spine issue. The form factor is the same outer dimension of Aluminum 50. For deeper dives in the past Aluminum 92 I used but not anymore there way heavy.

The form factor of my 3,500 psig HP80 is very similar to that of an Al 63. Both have OD = 7.25", but the 63 is a bit taller.

My HP80 weighs ~27# empty, similar to the weight of an old-school 72. But, the 72 is a skinnier and taller cylinder, and not nearly as negatively buoyant, and has a nicer balance (for me) when I am diving a thin or medium-thickness wetsuit.

The 72 just might be a nicer cylinder for sensitive backs. (Wear your weightbelt on your hips, and not on your waist!)

rx7diver

 

[bdatud4x4]

I'm 5'9" and have just gone to the HP100, the 80's are a little smaller and for the air capacity it's worth going to the bigger 100.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

I only dive LP steel cylinders because I don't have to worry about getting a full fill. HPs can be problematic in some locations because shops hot fill them and when they cool, they are not at rated capacity.
Some places also don't have the sharpest tools filling cylinders. I've had people look at my LP 75.5s and LP 85s and say these are just regular 3000 ps is fills right?Yep! If you say so and they take them up to 3200-3300 so they will cool down to 3000. Meaning my 85s are now filled with 96 cu ft. When I fill them myself I cool fill them to 3400. They are now 110s

 

[Jeff_O]

The form factor of my 3,500 psig HP80 is very similar to that of an Al 63. Both have OD = 7.25", but the 63 is a bit taller.

My HP80 weighs ~27# empty, similar to the weight of an old-school 72. But, the 72 is a skinnier and taller cylinder, and not nearly as negatively buoyant, and has a nicer balance (for me) when I am diving a thin or medium-thickness wetsuit.

The 72 just might be a nicer cylinder for sensitive backs. (Wear your weightbelt on your hips, and not on your waist!)

rx7diver

Oh yeah I meant HP 80 steel form factor of Aluminum 63. The Steel 72 hits back of neck and butt, at height 5'4".I drysuit dive and use integrated weights. The front diagonal zipper is concern to not use weight belt.

 

[Jim Lapenta]

Oh yeah I meant HP 80 steel form factor of Aluminum 63. The Steel 72 hits back of neck and butt, at height 5'4".I drysuit dive and use integrated weights. The front diagonal zipper is concern to not use weight belt.

With a rubber or silicone freediving belt, the zipper is not a problem.