Help Needed for College Senior Project

[ccbeachlife]

Hello,

I am an active diver and a college student at California Polytechnic University in San Luis Obispo, CA. Part of our graduation requirement is to conduct a research project in industry. I am conducting my senior project in the SCUBA industry; more specifically I am looking at the BCD integrated weight system.

Currently the integrated weight system has a permanently attached (normally sewn) female quick disconnect fastener to the BCD. If the quick disconnect fastener internally breaks or the attachment point breaks, either the BCD must be sent back to the manufacture for repair or the consumer has to buy a new BCD. This problem costs the customer and manufacturer money and time. My report will analyze the current problem and investigate feasible solutions.

Currently I am trying to collect data. I would appreciate any statistics that anyone knows or maybe a finger to point me in the right direction regarding finding the following information:
1) Data on the occurrence of this problem
2) History of the weight integrated BCD (such as when was it first brought to market and in what year?)
3) The % of weight integrated BCDs vs. traditional BCDs that are sold worldwide
4) Any legal issues pertaining to modifying equipment (even after a manufacturers warranty expires)
5) Any products currently on the market that remedy this problem

Lastly, how many people have personally had the female clip for their weight integrated system break and need replacement that required the BCD to be shipped back to the manufacturer? What was your experience in this matter?

Any help would be appreciated. Thank you.

Sincerely,

Mike Holmes

 

[scorpenesub]

Helo Mike Holmes, welcome to ScubaBoard. I have no info to offer to the questions you asked, so hopefully others will have. My only bad experience with integrated weight was that in one dive in Bali, my weight pouch detached accidentally during descend. Luckily, the bottom was merely 20 metres so i retrieved eventually....

 

[Divers Direct]

Hello Mike.
(Please Note: That the information that I am providing to you is based on what our company has seen based on our customers and of our vendors. This information is coming from our trained technicians/instructors. We have a large customer base worldwide. This information is not representative of other LDS and what they have experienced.)

After talking to our repair service department, there is no known problem with the female clip of any weight integrated system ever breaking. If there is a situation in which this happens it is few and far between. Our company has never seen this happen. There has been a situation in the past with Mares and the Male Clip of the weight integrated system. The situation was that the Male Clip was breaking off. Mares has since recreated their weight integrated system which is now really strong. The main issues I have heard from customers and students are about losing the weight pocket during a dive like scorpenesub said above.

Weight integrated BCDs are dominating today's market. In our store there is only 1 BCD that we carry that is NOT weight integrated and that is the Mares Vector Origin BCD. Every BCD manufacturer has about 1 or 2 that is NOT weight integrated and that is about it.

The earliest models of the weight integrated system date back to the early 80s with Zeagle creating one of the first weight integrated systems. They created the weight integrated system when this idea was wildely unpopular. They are still innovating the weight integrated system by creating the "rip cord" system which uses a strong thread instead of a male/female clip and weight pocket. Other manufacturers such as Cressi have a BCD with a "gravity" weight pocket. This weight pocket is attached to the bc and is not a seperate weight pocket. If you need to drop your weight it features a quick release buckle and the weight drops the pocket down. You will never lose your weight pocket. After releasing the weight the pocket it will fold back up and clips back together. So there are many alternative weight integrated systems to the standard pocket weight integrated systems. The main issues if any with today's weight integrated system would be the male clip not fully locking with the female clip. There are several instances where people lose their pocket. There are replacement pockets out on the market for many BCDs. These cost anywhere from $20 - $50 per pair.

As far as our company goes, 9 times out of 10 we sell a weight integrated bcd. These bcds are more comfortable for customers which is the main reason in which to choose a bcd. Weight integrated bcds have some padding between the weights and a divers body. It can be uncomfortable for weight to sit directly on your waist and hips. But it all comes down to preference. There are individuals who are more comfortable with weight belts. Companies realize this therefore not eliminating the standard bcd completely.

As far as your legal issues pertaining to modifying equipment, we are not lawyers and cannot provide the best advice here. However, if you were a customer of ours here is what we would advise you if you were to tell us that you were considering altering a bcd. DON'T DO IT. You are not only voiding your warranty and your return policy from the store you are buying it from but you are also putting your life at risk. Scuba diving can be a dangerous sport if the proper precautions are not taken. Altering your scuba diving equipment yourself puts you at great risk. If you are needing changes to your scuba equipment talk to the manufacuter directly or talk to your LDS about getting in touch with your manufacturer. Making changes yourself makes YOU responsible not your LDS or the manufacturer. Buy smart, Dive smart. Know what you are buying and how to use it.

Look at the following websites for more specific information on bcds:

Cressi Professional Scuba Diving Equipment - fin, mask, snorkel, regulator, BC (CRESSI)
Mares - stand for diving (MARES)
Oceanic Worldwide - Research and Compare the latest Scuba Diving Equipment and Snorkeling Gear (OCEANIC)
Zeagle Systems - Scuba Diving Equipment Manufacturer (ZEAGLE)
DiveAeris.com - Scuba Gear, Scuba Equipment and Dive Gear (AERIS)

Hopefully others will chime in with their companies experiences. But my recommendation would be to look into how to better connect the male clip to the female clip in order not to lose your weight pocket. You may have better luck with this. I know there are a lot of unhappy divers out there that have lost their weight pockets accidently.

 

[Divers Direct]

Look at the manufacuters websites and contact them for general statistics about bcds. If you would like for us to crunch numbers from our company please contact us at experts@diversdirect.com.