Going from BP-wing to Jacket BCD ...

[TechBlue]

Hello everyone -

Curious! scubaboard has always been a very pro-BP wing place. You really can not talk about BCDs without the BP wing recommendation popping up. I am a BP wing user myself but the anti jacket pro wing sentiment on here sometimes amazes me because it really does not represent the statistics I see on dive boats.

I am just curious how many people here have gone from BP wing to jacket or back inflate bcds.



Anyone?

I think it's more a learning curve than anything else. Very few shops offer OW students BP/wing setups so they all start out on BCD's most recreational Instructors teach using BCD's, but once you start diving with a BP I can't think of any reason why you would want to go back.

 

[Firefyter]

Why would anybody want to put training wheels back on their bicycle?

 

[Akimbo]

Good question. My opinion is there's a strong bias of dive shops and instructors favoring jacket BCs because the divers head floats much higher out of the water. That characteristic aids verbal communication on the surface and reduces apprehension of people who are less comfortable in that situation. All things considered, it is a valid choice for instruction and rentals given the unknowns of user competence and temperament.

I went from horse collar Bouée Fenzy to a wing even though jackets already dominated the market. I only wore the Fenzy when the dive profile made it prudent so I was more resistant to the extra bulk factor than those who learned in a poodle jacket. I had replaced the Fenzy bottle with an inflator for most of those dives though. I can see how going from wearing a Fenzy full time to a decent fitting jacket would not have been as onerous.

Warning: broad generalization here. In my view, jacket BCs totally changed how surface swims work. Instead of putting a tiny bit of air, if any, in your horse collar or wing the tendency was to fill them to bursting and swim on the back. That eliminated the time-consuming and less fun task of teaching people to be comfortable with a snorkel, which gave way to just using larger cylinders and breathing off the regulator.

It also made fine tuning for neutral buoyancy passé. The market switch to wetsuits with Neoprene blends with much greater compression characteristics and drysuits only exacerbated the trend.

As annoying as I as I find them, a poodle jacket would be a better choice if the boat forgets my solo butt 50 miles offshore. All things considered, jacket to wing transition makes more sense than the other way.

From my observations, the majority of casual infrequent divers are not prepared for the transition to a wing. These folks are less likely to spend time on Scubaboard so the population is skewed to people who are more comfortable in the water . The part I understand the least is how a personal preference has gotten up there with politics and religion.

 

[TechBlue]

Why would anybody want to put training wheels back on their bicycle?

Because it makes a more stable clothes rack?

 

[Kilili]

Most of the people you see diving aren't on this forum, and are therefore clueless.

First time I ever wore a bp/w marked the last time I ever wore a jacket.

 

[Nemrod]

Hello everyone -

Curious! scubaboard has always been a very pro-BP wing place. You really can not talk about BCDs without the BP wing recommendation popping up. I am a BP wing user myself but the anti jacket pro wing sentiment on here sometimes amazes me because it really does not represent the statistics I see on dive boats.

I am just curious how many people here have gone from BP wing to jacket or back inflate bcds.



Anyone?

Until a few days ago I had never used a "jacket" or what is often referred to as a Poodle Jacket despite my having been a diver since the late 60s. My progression went like this, 1966(no BC)----> 1972 (horsecollar BC) --------> 1976 (wing/plate) and never looked back. I have often wondered why people used the integrated jacket products but I have a phobia of sternum straps or anything in front of me. I like to do photography, past and present and figured having a clean front area gave my camera more room. But the story is I was on a "vintage dive rally" and brought only a horsecollar and a ill fitting harness, I left my wing at home. After struggling a bit with my new and expensive camera and the rough conditions I decided to rent a new Scuba Pro Equator as a test. I had been toying with the idea of buying one to reduce my travel package.

OK, so how did it work, well, I loved it. I did not have to tighten the sternum strap and the integrated weighting was very nice. I was able to get trimmed out by my second dive and not having to struggle with a weight belt (that also kept falling off since I have lost 35 pounds, lol) was very welcome.

The two big pockets had room for my reel and sausage and gloves and the whole rig balanced nicely and was very compact when folded up. I suspect the new AL Zuma would be similar.

But, I have decided not to buy one, well, I don't like the sternum strap and I just did not feel as streamlined and I think I integrate the weight into my Oxy Mach V wing as well and save myself some money.

N

 

[diver 85]

I'm a both-er......

 

[Akimbo]

…But, I have decided not to buy one, well, I don't like the sternum strap and I just did not feel as streamlined and I think I integrate the weight into my Oxy Mach V wing as well and save myself some money.

I also find chest straps (and crotch strap in my case) annoying. The old blow-molded plastic back pack's ability to tighten shoulder straps by tightening the belly-band, plus the center top webbing slots, make both unnecessary on my body type. That plus needing more weight anyway is why I favor the Freedom Pack. To me, the larger back plates feel more like wearing old doubles with a strap harness.

 

[Jorgy]

I did for a part of least year's dive season......and will again this year.....

The background.....

I dive 90% of the year in a dry suit with an H SS BP/W and LP95's........

There is a couple of weeks at the end of summer where water temps get into the 65-70 range.....

I got a Cressi 7mm wetsuit on clearance and wanted to dive wet for some of the shallower late season dives......

Rather than mess with my BP/W and grabbed my original 2003 TUSA integrated weight BCD (that my son now uses) and my darling brides pink AL80 tanks......

You know what, I had some some great dives, not to deep, trimed out fine and had good buoyancy control, no issues, no fuss.......nice and easy......

So do I prefer a BP/W......yes

Did I have any issues diving a BCD......none at all......

Would I do a 100 ft river wreck dive with a AL80/BCD......no way.......

Also didn't have to do the crotch strap grab.......

M

 

[Nemrod]

I also find chest straps (and crotch strap in my case) annoying. The old blow-molded plastic back pack's ability to tighten shoulder straps by tightening the belly-band, plus the center top webbing slots, make both unnecessary on my body type. That plus needing more weight anyway is why I favor the Freedom Pack. To me, the larger back plates feel more like wearing old doubles with a strap harness.

The sternum strap on any rig is a problem with me because I literally freak out with anything pressing on my chest. It is a phobia, a phobia is an unreasonable fear of something and whatever, I cannot have anything on my chest.

The crotch strap as long as it is loose is not an issue and I actually like one as a stop but I rely mostly on the waist strap to hold the rig secure leaving the shoulder straps loose and the crotch strap loose. I have my wings rigged basic Hog(arthian) style.

We were drift diving and I was coming up alone usually, having the poodle jacket float me high and face up was v-e-r-y nice. Yeah, yeah, I have heard it before, wings do not face plant a diver, whatever, I have been using them forever and I am sorry, but they do when you inflate them enough to raise your head up, a poodle jacket simply offers a higher surface position and greater comfort on the surface and is nearly equal in trim underwater.

N