Giant Bladder (BP/W)?

[kommisarrex]

Got the single wing from DGX, which is supposedly 25lbs of lift. It felt like it never fully vented under water, so for the first time I pulled the bladder out and wow, is it big. See the pic. is this normal for wing design?

I also found a previously undiscovered pinhole leak on the side of the inner bladder. How do I repair that? Aquaseal? It's really tiny and I didn't even notice it before. Maybe the big size helped cover it up while inside the outer wing!

 

[stuartv]

Wow! The bladder is supposed to be a little bigger than the shell, but that seems quite excessive.

Anyway, DGX's return policy is simply the best there is. Since you have a leak, I would just call them up and arrange for an exchange for a new one. If you get a new one, please post back and let us know if the bladder in the new one is also that big.

 

[snowdog61]

Maybe they control the amount of lift just using the case size. There's only 1 bladder to stock so that saves them some $. Size does seem excessive though and it seems it wouldn't be too hard to have a fold trap an air pocket in the excess

 

[kommisarrex]

Spoke with DGX today. The bladder size is correct and is the same as another major manufacturer used for the same size wing (it's made by them for DGX). I have half a dozen dives already, so the small hole could be my fault. Official recommendation is to replace (and pay) for a new bladder. Unofficially, sounds like aquaseal may work, but I'm unclear on if others have done this.

They were very nice and helpful with another issue I had, to their credit. So, thumbs up for DGX as a whole. Still, it is a very big bladder, editor something marketed as a travel wing. I'm also not convinced I caused the hole, but can't be sure.

Any other experience with how big the bladders are On other brand name wings? I may just bite the bullet and get something different...

 

[stuartv]

I got a pinch flat in the DSS LCD 30 wing I used to have. It had 3 holes in it from (apparently) one accidental drop of my BP.

I fixed it using Aquaseal and some pieces of bicycle inner tube. But, that bladder was some kind of translucent PVC-looking material. It didn't look like the material on yours. For yours, I would use Aquaseal and a patch. I patched a hole in my tri-lam dry suit (which looks closer to your wing bladder) also using Aquaseal and a piece of patch material I got from my LDS. They had some tri-lam drysuit scraps laying around and they gave me a couple. Just trim it to be round (so it doesn't have any pointy corners) and glue it on.

It's not like it has to withstand huge pressures. And, if it fails, you are back to having a pinhole leak.....

 

[claymore]

Manufacturers use a bladder that is bigger than the wing its self, saves stress on the blade when fully inflated. That bladder does seem to be excessively large though. it could create creases and folds that would trap air.
I have a Zeagle 44# lift wing and it also can be difficult to get all the air out of it. I believe the inner bladder is trapping air at times.

 

[Aqua-Andy]

I can't believe they didn't warranty it for you. Do they'd offer any warranty at all?

 

[cool_hardware52]

I got a pinch flat in the DSS LCD 30 wing I used to have. It had 3 holes in it from (apparently) one accidental drop of my BP.

I fixed it using Aquaseal and some pieces of bicycle inner tube. But, that bladder was some kind of translucent PVC-looking material.

Stuart, as you know the 8-10 year old DSS wing you purchased used was one of few we made using commercially available 12 mil urethane. Long ago we switched to 30 mil custom made urethane.

Flexible PVC film (think beach ball) requires plasticizers that dry out (think old beach ball) and leave a brittle film.

DSS has *never* used PVC. I am unaware of any wing manufacturer that has ever used PVC for bladders.

Films blown using "natural" urethane will be translucent, films blown using colored resin will be colored. Black is quite common.

BTW, Aquaseal is a moisture curing *urethane* adhesive.......

Tobin

 

[kommisarrex]

Umm. So, Aquaseal will or will not work on the bladder? It's literally a tiny pinhole. I read that the bladder material is 210 denier nylon-laminated--don't know what that means compared to the DSS 30mil urethane. I'm rechecking on warranty and bladder replacement costs.

Tobin, I may just come your way next time... Do your wings fit most back plates?

 

[cool_hardware52]

Umm. So, Aquaseal will or will not work on the bladder? It's literally a tiny pinhole. I read that the bladder material is 210 denier nylon-laminated--don't know what that means compared to the DSS 30mil urethane. I'm rechecking on warranty and bladder replacement costs.

Tobin, I may just come your way next time... Do your wings fit most back plates?

I would assume your bladder is a urethane laminate, nearly all laminates used for scuba inflatables are a thin layer of urethane adhesive bonded to a fabric layer. While we do not recommend any adhesive repairs to any bladders, the adhesive of choice for urethanes is an urethane adhesive......

The real problem with laminates is the urethane is on the *inside* and it can be difficult to get the glue / patch inside.

The question concerning compatibility between various plates and wings will take this thread off topic.

Happy to address that elsewhere or by phone.

Tobin