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Originally posted by TexasMike
Pug, you might know the answer to this one....
I'm sorry Mike but I don't have the definitive answer on that question as I have only seen one of the un-named rigs in real life and it was dark.

I do know that it is possible to sell them on ebay if you use words like: Technical.... Comfortable.... Lotsa D-rings....
 
Originally posted by Uncle Pug

As for the nitrox... probably one too many of them exploded when used with EAN22 and above...

:wink:


Yea, It's a nasty scene when you see someone descend to a nice easy 30ft, add a little gas to the BC, and then just explode...

They should rename that BC to 'BS'...

Definatly do some research into the BP/Wing option before making your decision. You might be pleased with it's scalability.
 
Oops! Sorry again Mike I thought for a minute we were talking about the xxxxx almost oops again....

I see now you are referring to the #### that we have both had and enjoyed....

And the part that you would need to add is the duct tape and rope....

BTW.... same words work on ebay for the ####
 
i think uncle pug hit the nail on the head with the bladder blowing suggestion i seem to recall hearing or reading something about it.
other than that i am totally at a loss. the cheapest bcd i have seen have no such warning. would make me think twice.
 
Thanks for all of the information so far; there are so many things to consider. So, is the jury still out on the "Advantage"? I still feel good about the back-inflated "tech" BC. I was concerned about the way the Advantage handled the weights, however. Is that something to worry about in this style of BC?
 
Originally posted by bobafett21
So, is the jury still out on the "Advantage"? I still feel good about the back-inflated "tech" BC. I was concerned about the way the Advantage handled the weights, however. Is that something to worry about in this style of BC?

The Advantage has two non-releasing trim pockets located rather high up and right next to the tank. They will hold 5 pounds each and will need to have weight in them with an aluminum tank. Otherwise you are doing a face plant in the water. The two releasable pockets on the cumberbun will hold an additional 26 pounds of weight together. However, as the BC will need to be balanced as to weight fore and aft, it may not be practical to load the front pockets with that much weight unless you add some kind of additional weight to the back also i.e., a tank weight. The problem, as stated, is that the releasble weights are not supported by the shoulder straps and thus the cumberbun becomes a squishy weight belt with less pockets. This could be fixed if there was simply a D-ring located on the belt directly above the weight pockets that could be attaced to the lower D-rings on the shoulder straps.

The back plate and wing configurations that have been discussed (correct me here guys if I don't get this quite right) give you a lot more options and also require a lot more decisions. Normally, with this kind of configuration a lot of weight management will come from a stainless steel back plate and a pair of steel air tanks. In addition, and especially with a single aluminum tank, you have the options of purchasing a variety of weight configurations including weight belts, add on trim pockets, bolt on weights, pockets that connect to the tank strap, etc. The options that are available will vary with the brand of BP and wings that you buy. Here, as with the Advantage, the weights will need to be balanced front to rear, etc. In all cases, they are add-on pieces, that must be worked out through trial and error for the configuration that you are going to be diving. Keep in mind, these weight decisisions come after having settled on a back plate (there are usually three types?), the webbing or harness or shoulder straps (there are about three options here as well) and the wing or bladder (again there are several to chose from.) (Did someone say simple?) Personally, I am not sure that I have the knowledge to put such a system together without someone to help or without making a lot of mistakes. Perhaps Uncle Pug, etc. can suggest a typical setup for those of us who are planning on diving the next little bit with one aluminum tank and in my case a lot of neoprene?

I am not sold yet on the Advantage but I don't know if I could piece together a BP/wing setup without help. Personnally, I wish that I had spent a little more time looking at some other options including Zeagle, Dacor Flyt Pak, Dive Rite's Recreation BC, etc.

If like me you are confussed, that is good. Remember, confusion is a heightend state of awareness and allows you to learn faster?

Anyway, so much for my rambling, mayhaps those of you who know what you are talking about should jump in and save the day. :)
 
Bobafett21,

I was in your position a year ago looking for a new BC. If you don't intend to dive doubles, there are a lot of decent back inflation bc's from which to choose. I don't know much about IDI, but last year I narrowed my choices to the Dive Rite Transpac, Zeagle Ranger, and Seaquest Black Diamond. In the end, I went with the Seaquest as I liked the feel of it the best, but all are top notch. Rodales did a recent review of back inflated BC's that you might want to check out, at least to get an idea of the options out there. Clearly there is a growing trend to backplate and harness configurations, for either a single or doubles, but if you don't feel comfortable going that direction, there are many good choices out there. Best thing to do is to try out a few before making a final decision, or at least find a dealer with a good return program if you are not happy. Best of luck.
 
landlocked,
if your singles in a wetsuit, the following BP/Wing setups are what you'd want to look at:

BP - they are either Steel or Aluminum. Steel weighs more. the more weight in the backplate, the less on the belt/waist, but weight in the backplate isn't "ditchable" Halcyon, OMS, and FredT are some popular ones. (FredT is a guy, email him at ftagge@goldinc.com)

The harness attatches to and is 'weaved' into the backplate. It should be one continuous peice of webbing (the OMS is not -> bad) for safety.

For singles diving, you can wear a traditional weightbelt, or Halcyon has a ACB system that attatches ditchable weight pockets to the harness webbing at the belt strap.

The wing:
I think that the toughest no nonsence wing out there is the Halcyon. It comes in 2 flavors, Pioneer (for singles) and Explorer (for doubles) The Pioneer comes in 4 lift sizes, you probably want to only look at either a 27# or 36# for wetsuit diving. If you have a 3mil suit, the 27# is probably adiquite (provided you don't overweight yourself) if you dive colder, wear 7mil farmer johns, you probably wan't to look at the 36# wing.

The fact that it's so customisable is a little daunting at first I suppose, but that's the beauty of it. If later you want to dive doubles, you only need get another wing, not a whole new setup. because it's modular, it's very scalable.
 
The harness attatches to and is 'weaved' into the backplate. It should be one continuous peice of webbing (the OMS is not -> bad) for safety.
Jetblast,

I'm not 100% certain what you're referring to with the OMS system, but I do want to clarify that like the other backplates, you are able to "weave" as you put it, a continuous harness webbing through the appropriate slots in the OMS backplate.

If I missed what you're referring too, please clarify.
 

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