If you need to release 50% of your weight in an emergency you are likely overweighted. I need to drop 4 lbs. Maybe 6 at most to stay positive on the surface. That's using 26 lbs of weight with a single tank, dry suit, and BPW.
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I also want to be able to release at least 50% of my weight in an emergency, and it sounds like many of the options do not allow this.
If you need to release 50% of your weight in an emergency you are likely overweighted. I need to drop 4 lbs. Maybe 6 at most to stay positive on the surface. That's using 26 lbs of weight with a single tank, dry suit, and BPW.
Is this just an unfounded concern of a novice diver? I know that the circumstances where you would want to drop weight are specific and in many cases rare, especially under water, but I feel like it would not be a bad thing to have the option to drop as much of it as you can especially for boat dives.
I am a little confused on some of the terminology specifically regarding weights. What is a cam band? How are weight pockets added to the harness (as in how do they attach?) And most importantly to me, what impact do the different styles of weighting have on trim? I use a weight belt now and it tends to get loose during a dive and slide down my hips a bit, which further exacerbates the tendency to be in an upright position during the dive. I also want to be able to release at least 50% of my weight in an emergency, and it sounds like many of the options do not allow this.
I use a 3mm long wetsuit. I dove in cozumel with it on every dive in bathtub-warm water a month back, and more recently I did a quarry dive. My buddy and I quickly discovered that 40ft in the quarry was our limit due to the temperature but we managed a 35 minute dive at 50F-56F no problem. I like using this suit even in warm water because the neoprene on my legs seems to help with trim.
I dive with aluminum 80s primarily, and I drop a lb or two if I end up with a steel tank. Another lb or two if diving in fresh water. I would love to dive with doubles eventually but as I mentioned before I am mostly just going on as many trips as I can with the local training facility to gain experience (and because the instructors and other divers are great) so all my dives now and in the foreseeable future are going to mostly be with aluminum 80s in warmer water with the 3mm wetsuit.
I use a weight belt now and it tends to get loose during a dive and slide down my hips a bit, which further exacerbates the tendency to be in an upright position during the dive. I also want to be able to release at least 50% of my weight in an emergency, and it sounds like many of the options do not allow this.
The DUI weight & trim harness system that TSandM mentioned above addresses both of these issues directly. It's a great piece of gear for those of us with the wrong hip configuration to hold a belt in place. I picked one up a while back, and I'm really happy with it.
Lance
Of course I've got a 60lb wing, a drysuit, and a 6ft closed-end SMB for redundant buoyancy on top of my redundant buoyancy.