Going from BP-wing to Jacket BCD ...

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dumpsterDiver:
Unless of course you make drastic changes in your exposure protection which varies from 7 to 5 to 3 to 1.6 mm thick wetsuits as the season progresses every year. I can drive 40 miles and be presented with water temperatures that are 15 degrees colder than at another location. so saturday in july i might wear a 1.5 mm suit and on Sunday I might choose a 7 mm suit for another dive site These kinds of drastic changes in exposure protection require repeated adjustments in the harness for optimal fit.
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How drastic is that really? That's a bit overly dramatic, no?

Is it so hard to pull an inch or two of webbing through two slots? It takes me less than 30 sec to adjust a hog rig to go from my thickest exposure protection (drysuit with two layers of undergarments) to my thinnest (3/2 wetsuit).

If someone is diving often enough to need to worry about that change with any meaningful frequency... but still thinks of "these kinds of drastic changes" then they're really doing something (many things, probably) wrong.
 
RJP:
Is it so hard to pull an inch or two of webbing through two slots? It takes me less than 30 sec to adjust a hog rig to go from my thickest exposure protection (drysuit with two layers of undergarments) to my thinnest (3/2 wetsuit).
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Me too. I swap between 3mm, 7mm and a very thick drysuit fairly often (three times in the last week). It takes about a minute...
 
I have never seen it take more than 5 minutes (and that's being generous) for a new diver to assemble and adjust a standard backpack or a Plate. Sometimes the tank bands take a little longer, but that's true for BCs also.
 
RJP:
How drastic is that really? That's a bit overly dramatic, no?
Is it so hard to pull an inch or two of webbing through two slots? It takes me less than 30 sec to adjust a hog rig to go from my thickest exposure protection (drysuit with two layers of undergarments) to my thinnest (3/2 wetsuit).

If someone is diving often enough to need to worry about that change with any meaningful frequency... but still thinks of "these kinds of drastic changes" then they're really doing something (many things, probably) wrong.
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I disagree. Going from a 7 mm suit that requires me to wear a 22 lb weight belt to a 1.5 mm suit that requires no weight belt is a pretty drastic change in configuration. I never said that changes in the exposure protection require huge modifications to the harness, but I think that if you use a non adjustable harness, then making these adjustments is necessary and tedious, not "set it and forget it" as TSM seemed to imply.

Adjusting a harness is not a huge issue, but it IS entirely avoidable if you use a standard jacket BC.
 
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dumpsterDiver:
Adjusting a harness is not a huge issue, but it IS entirely avoidable if you use a standard jacket BC.
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I had to tighten straps when switching between my drysuit and my wetsuit in my old BC (Scubapro Ladyhawk). There is quite a difference between the thickness of the two so I used to tighten it up when switching back to wetsuit.
 
dumpsterDiver:
I never said that changes in the exposure protection require huge modifications to the harness,
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No, you said the modifications needed were "drastic" not huge. Sorry for putting words in your mouth.

dumpsterDiver:
but I think that if you use a non adjustable harness, then making these adjustments is necessary and tedious,
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I'm not familiar with a "non-adjustable harness" can you provide an example?
 
RJP:
No, you said the modifications needed were "drastic" not huge. Sorry for putting words in your mouth.



I'm not familiar with a "non-adjustable harness" can you provide an example?
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I modified my BP/W harnesses to be instantly adjustable. For one i used plastic fastex clips similar to what is used on a typical BC and for another harness, I modified it so that the shoulder straps and waist strap slide back and forth over a fixed range allowing instant adjustability for different exposure suits. I guess a "non adjustable harness" is one that you can not adjust in less than 3 seconds. :shakehead:
 
Actually, I agree that the adjustments to go from thick cold water protection to little or no insulation can be substantial -- in fact, they can be substantial enough that a BC that fits ok in cold water is too loose to be useful in warm. At least a Hog harness CAN be adjusted!

But I'll admit I don't adjust mine. I have owned a cold water and warm water rig, although now that I'm diving dry in warm water, I really don't need that any more.
 
Yes, I have two BP harnesses for two exposure suits, one w/SS plate and the other a AL plate/harness. Nevertheless, the AL plate/harness needs to be adjusted transistioning from a 3mm to a skin for the summer and I mark the webbing for belt slide placements with a white magic marker for refrence saving time and hassle refitting...
 
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For me, the only time a jacket BCD "May" be a benefit is while providing instructions to students at the surface. I have been using a back inflate for OW both during instruction and during vacation for the past 15 years so guess I have been accustomed to it. Of course I use a BP during any technical dives but that’s a given.
Like was said before, if a jacket works for you and is safe than a jacket is what you should dive.
 
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