Just bought a Stiletto

[oreocookie]

So I just bought a Stiletto and I can't wait to try it out in the water on tuesday. After trying it on, I realised that I've never used a bc that actually fit before. The woman helping me at the shop dives one and describes it as hugging the body, which feels like a pretty good description.

The first thing on my to-do list is get a bit of practice rethreading the ripcord, just in case somebody wants some first hand experience on how that works during my last rescue diver pool session tuesday. Can't wait.

 

[terrylowe]

I only have about 5-6 dives on mine, but loving it. It feels more stable in the water with less "wobble" than my prior vest BC. It packs down so small that I now take it as a carry-on when I travel. Have fun!

 

[Zen1300]

I, too, have one... still not a lot of dives, but I do like it. I cannot compare to anything else. But from my time in the military I know I wanted my gear light and flexible for accessories. I also wanted something to pack easily. So this fit the bill.

 

[Capt.Gene]

Push down on the outside of the weight pocket with the flat of your hand.
The tabs go through the gromets and the cable goes through the tabs on the inside of the pocket.

 

[oreocookie]

Thanks Gene. I'm not too worried about figuring it out; I've seen a video of it being done and it looks pretty straight forward, but sometimes actually doing is not the same as just watching somebody else do it. I might give it a try sometime this weekend so I have an idea how easy it is to do and how long it takes me to do it for future reference.

 

[Zen1300]

The thing is to test it in a pool if you can. I was comfortable with re-threading it, but was uncertain if it would work again. I've threaded/pulled over and over until I became confident in it.

 

[oreocookie]

This may be a dumb question, but if i'm using block weights, is there any reason why I couldn't/shouldn't put them directly in the pockets vs putting them in the pouches first if I'm only using one block per pocket?

 

[Zen1300]

The only reason I put them in the pouches is the color... while my life is more valuable than lead, and I would ditch without worries. At least in the yellow pouches they might be found depending on the depth... but it doesn't really matter. Either way, test that they fall.

 

[oreocookie]

So I got to try it out in the pool tonight... and I absolutely LOVE it. I think I finally found out what it feels like to actually be horizontal in the water, because that seems to be the natural position it'll put you in if you let in. I didn't manage to find the right tank height on it (valve was a bit high) but I didn't have much chance to tweak it, so I'll see if I can get that worked out this weekend.

 

[BORG]

I have had a Ranger LTD for about 5 years now and it's a great BC. But, I wanted something more compact for just wet suit diving in the summer time at my local lake north of Atlanta.
I got a Stilleto a few weeks ago and dove it yesterday for the first time. It's even better than my Ranger if that was possible. More streamlined, doesn't carry as much weight, but it is more compact and has enough lift for my setup for summer diving here and in Florida.
Makes my dives more fun!! Gotta love the Zeagles BCs!!