LDS say not to go with bp/w

[JohnL]

They both work and many of the "recreational" BC's work pretty well. I do like the harness on the plate as it feels a lot less cluttered in the water. It also get's 5-6 pounds of weight off of your belt and up higher where it can help with trim.

If you are up for getting out and diving I can bring my old bc and you can try my plate in the water.

 

[gurumasta]

They both work and many of the "recreational" BC's work pretty well. I do like the harness on the plate as it feels a lot less cluttered in the water. It also get's 5-6 pounds of weight off of your belt and up higher where it can help with trim.

If you are up for getting out and diving I can bring my old bc and you can try my plate in the water.

wow. that is an unreal offer. i appreciate the courtesy, but to be honest with you, i am new to this and i would be scared that i would damage your equipment. outside of that, hell yea i would like to get out and dive with you. i have very few buddies who dive and they are all lazy. thanks!!!!!

 

[utdivermatt]

I had a similar experiance when I was shopping for a BC. My shop said there was no reason for a bp/w... 'all it will do is flip you on your face'. I asked them about a back inflate (like the one I eventually bought), same response. Asked them if they carried any bpw's... nope. But they did have a really great $300 BC that looked like it would last two weeks they were more than happy to try to sell me.

 

[LSDeep]

my tip would be to try and get a bp/w of somebody you know or another lds / ds and rent it for a weekend. see what you like better. thats actually my advice to all my students for any kind of gear. try it before you buy it. a main factor is that you are comfortable with it!!! its not about a brand / style if youre not comfy with it! if you consider to go into tech diving before too long consider a closer look into the bp/w config, if youre not sure you might want to have a look into zeagle's line. the tech pack is a decent bcd what keeps your options open even without the bp! i use one quite regularly with doubles and stage tanks as well as singles. it will serve you well for a long time (mine is about 10yrs old and 4000dives later it still works well - just doesnt look that amazingly new anymore). if you have no intention to go anywhere close to tech, there are many good jacket style bcd's that will do you a long time. as ppl said before, dont let your lds (as much as you like it) restrict you in your choices. when i worked fulltime in diving we where happy to get ppl into anything they liked to try and usually waved the rental fee if they bought it. dont get "pushed" into something you are not sure you want.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

If you can't find a BP/W to try out, don't buy one. After 30 years of diving I listened to the hype on this board about the BP/W, and bought one at Christmas and found that it does not provide me a significant improvement over my old sea quest BC's. The crotch strap is a pain and I mis my pockets. The supposed improvement in trim was never realized; I guess because it was good before.

I'm gonna keep using the BP/W for a while, but I just got a used Sea Quest Balance BC (back inflate) that I'm sure will be extremely comfortable and I will be trying it out this Saturday. I suspect that this BC will now become my usual rig.

Sometimes, I carry 30 cuft stages and sometimes even a 80 cu-ft stage bottle and the BC was not optimal for that configuration, but I rarely dive with stage bottles.

 

[CD_in_Chitown]

wow. that is an unreal offer. i appreciate the courtesy, but to be honest with you, i am new to this and i would be scared that i would damage your equipment.

Take an equipment care class if you didn't get a good handle on how to treat gear in OW, I bet that anyone who would hook you up with their kit will give you the lowdown on any special tricks to not damage it, and would certainly keep a close eye on you thinking of other ways you might harm something if you expressed your anxiety.

Take advantage of the offer, getting in with local guys that have extra kit so you can try some different set-ups will prove beneficial. If you're interested after diving a BP/W then find an LDS that stocks a selection or will order a selection. Dive-Rite's transplate combines the convenience of a BC with the benefits of an SS plate in a way that is acceptable efor rec diving IMHO. The shop should be able to hook you up with a demo in the brands they carry for more experimentation dives.

 

[Chaseh]

If you can't find a BP/W to try out, don't buy one. After 30 years of diving I listened to the hype on this board about the BP/W, and bought one at Christmas and found that it does not provide me a significant improvement over my old sea quest BC's. The crotch strap is a pain and I mis my pockets. The supposed improvement in trim was never realized; I guess because it was good before.

I'm gonna keep using the BP/W for a while, but I just got a used Sea Quest Balance BC (back inflate) that I'm sure will be extremely comfortable and I will be trying it out this Saturday. I suspect that this BC will now become my usual rig.

Sometimes, I carry 30 cuft stages and sometimes even a 80 cu-ft stage bottle and the BC was not optimal for that configuration, but I rarely dive with stage bottles.

please give an update after you dive the balance. That's what I use, and I'm very happy with the BC. I'm interested what an experienced diver who has the BP/W but isn't part of the religion thinks in comparision.

 

[dumpsterDiver]

I'm diving thurs, fri and sat (3-5 drops per day) if the weather holds. I'm gonna alternate the two rigs.. We will see.

 

[djanni]

The most important thing is to get equipment that fits you and that you are comfortable using. The problem is that, when you start, you don't know what's out there, and you don't know what you'll like. It IS worth visiting a variety of stores and looking at different brands and types of equipment before buying. However, the proof of the pudding is in the diving, so to speak, and often the only way to dive equipment is to buy it or rent it. Buying lands you with something you've committed to, but gets you in the water a lot; renting allows you to try different things, but runs up a big bill and makes each dive more of a hassle and more obviously expensive.

Or you can do what I did, and buy something that sort of works, and replace it in six months when you've figured out what you really want

BTW, I started with a back-inflate and now dive a BP/W.

A bp/w is a back-inflate? What are trying to tell this person?

 

[gurumasta]

I'm diving thurs, fri and sat (3-5 drops per day) if the weather holds. I'm gonna alternate the two rigs.. We will see.

i look forward to this review as well.