jacket BCD squeeze?

[NadMat]

Yeah... but you can't be squeezed with a back inflate, or a BP/W.

I dive a jacket BC... I was adding a point that hadn't been mentioned regarding Jacket BC's and squeeze, and how they can happen.. that's all.

I was not complaining or trying to be defensive or nit-picky (that was friday's theme, not todays ). Just pointing out that no matter what you use to control bouyancy, it can suck if you are not set up right. Everybody should dive what works for them, but nothing is going to work right if not set up properly.

 

[HowardE]

I was not complaining or trying to be defensive or nit-picky (that was friday's theme, not todays ). Just pointing out that no matter what you use to control bouyancy, it can suck if you are not set up right. Everybody should dive what works for them, but nothing is going to work right if not set up properly.

Ok... I agree with that explanation. That is kind of my point as well... to look deeper than the problem itself... Jacket BCD squeeze is the end problem... what causes this? Many people are quick to "jump" to blame the jacket BC. But if you look deeper, the cause of the Jacket BC's problem is really something else. So I guess my overall point is to say... if you're not diving the product correctly, how can you blame the product for being "defective" or "functioning poorly"

 

[Marek K]

Triple-L / ScubaL Stratos. I can certainly feel it when it's fully-inflated at the surface, though it's not uncomfortable; rather comforting, actually, and lets me know it's inflated.

No squeeze at all at depth. Though, again I can feel it inflating or deflating when I add or dump a bit of air.

Being an - um - inexpensive BC, I've noticed it's not pre-formed around my waist... that is, when I'm not wearing it, and it's unbuckled and fully-inflated, the sides of the BC stick almost straight to the left and right. I've noticed with some more-expensive jacket BCs, the side lobes naturally curve around to the front. But, again, I haven't noticed a problem.

--Marek

 

[Charlie99]

Pockets hard to deal with while BC is inflated and That bear hug you get at the surface when inflated. It is not felt while under water because there should not be anywhere that much air in the bladder.

Why are you putting so much air in at the surface? Your wetsuit expands and gives extra floatation at the surface.

The SeaQuest ProQD is kind of a cross between back inflate and classic jacket. Gussets open up as it inflates. Very streamlined, yet no squeeze even when fully inflated. I rarely fully inflate it, since even at 1/3 full of air my head is well out of the water.

 

[Zenshift]

Oceanic Flex. The marketing people said it works .. therefore it does.

 

[Mandy3206]

When I used the jacket Style BC, at depth it never squeezed me, the main problem was that it felt loose and the tank rocked because it was with little or no air in it, at the surface, I like to have maximun flotation and therefore I inflated the BC to the max as many other divers do, we can argue that it's not necesary to inflate it all the way at the surface and I agree with that point, but it's done all the time by most divers, either by inexperience or preference.

Another problem is that if inflated to much at the surface, the Jacket tends to rise above the divers head adding stress to the diver, this can be solved with a crotch strap (can be added to most BCs without mayor modifications).

With a Back inflated type of BC (Soft Pack or BP) you can inflate the bladder to it's full capacity and never feel the squeeze, if you don't use the crotch strap, the Back Inflate BC can ride high on the diver too if inflated too much.

Jacket Style are prefered by many photographers cause orient the diver in a more vertical position than the back inflate BC.

 

[all4scuba05]

My BC fits me like a glove. Not as snug as a wetsuit but after inserting one arm through it, I can get the other in with a little work. Thats because its the perfect size for me. Even if I (for I don't know what reason) overinflate, it never moves around on me. Its snug like the right size should be. By the way, when overinflated, the lower front sections don't squeeze my abdoman. They actually open to the sides. So I can't get a squeeze no matter what. I've seen plenty of others who just by looking at theirs, I can see why it would move up on them or even roll while horizontal. Some are chosen too big. For those who look pregnant, I can see why you might need a jock strap when surfacing. You chest is a lot smaller than your six pack and therefore when vertical, the cumberbund wants to slide up.

Point is that like someone said, not all our bodies are the right shape for certain equipment and not everyone buys the right size. Oh and not everyone uses it correctly. Including being overweighted and therefore overinflating.

Use what works best for you. But get fitted correctly and use it the right way.

 

[MSilvia]

Squeeze? No, I never felt a squeeze.

I have found them undesirably bulky, and I've had a less than satisfying experience with several other things about stab jackets, but not that. Well, now that I think of it, I did have some trouble getting something out of a pocket when my jacket was fully inflated at the surface, but it was really the object in the pocket that was being squeezed, not me.

Point is that like someone said, not all our bodies are the right shape for certain equipment and not everyone buys the right size.

That's one of the things I like about my backplate... it isn't like the "certain equipment" that you have to be careful about size when buying. Unless you're at an extreme end of the human size bell-curve, it'll fit like a glove when adjusted properly. I'm 5'11" and 260 lbs, and I've let a 5'5" 140 lb friend dive my plate to try it out. It fit us both perfectly (although I had to tuck some now-extra webbing out of the way when he wore it).