My opinion of the Back Plate

[midwestdvr]

You may find that with a BP/W you don't need as much weight on the belt as you did and not just because the thing is heavier than a BCD. I would suggest a pool session or something to check trim before you go because it'd be terrible to get there and find the dive uncomfortable because your trim was way off.

By the way, Cairo is located where? There's a Cairo, MO not 5 miles from my house.

will definitely do that when I try my new BP/W.

BTW, I've lived in Kirksville and still maintain an apt in Columbia. Maybe we can get together next time I go back. It'd be great to put a face to a fellow SBer.

 

[StSomewhere]

Well infact Andrew and fasel got me the Gear but i have not dived with them yet.

You are in good hands then.

Another thing i could not reach my tank valve do you guys have picture of a correct height to setup up the gear single tank.

There is no correct height to set up a tank except that you need to be able to reach the valve. I find that I can reach back farther with my elbow pointed forward (with the inside of my forearm next to my ear). Get the tank the right height for valve drill and you can use the xsscuba pockets for adjusting weight position.

Well the problem with Pockets i guess is to put 1 weight pockets on each side on side will have the velcro so the strap will not close right...

it was a mistake to buy the AL but anyway i love the backplate

:06:

No you don't want the big ACB pockets, get the xsscuba type pockets and slide them on your tank bands all the way back by the plate. Plenty of room left for the cam strap. The AL plate wasn't a mistake, it'll be a great combination with a single steel tank for warm water dives.

 

[CIBDiving]

Beacuse the rig can get prohibitively heavy for some with nothing but missery depending on where when and how you need to don and doff.

The 'rig' weighs the same when it's ready to dive, so that's a BS argument! You can put the lead in the pockets just before you get in the water just like you can don the belt ( except you don't have to worry about that crotch strap )

If there is one thing I have learned it is that there's no such thing as a universal configuration.

Don't tell that to the DIR crowd!

 

[CIBDiving]

There may not be any good reasons for you to wear a weight belt and that's cool but you can't speak for me and I prefer a weight belt.

Then I doubt you've tried a BP/wing with well placed integrated weight.

So what Reason do you have for the belt that isn't satisfied ( and likely improved) by integrated weight?

 

[CIBDiving]

CIB, I wear a belt because I prefer it. It's easier for me to carry my weight around my hips than to hang it from my shoulders.

DN, too bad Marsa al Alam is so far away -- you'd have some good sources for gear setup and adjustment there with Red Sea Explorers.

the weight isn't hanging from your shoulders IN THE WATER and that is the only place you need to worry about How something works on your rig! Have you learned nothing from DIR?

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Loose the belt and go with weight integration. There are NO Good reasons for a rec diver to wear a belt - and I can't think of any for anybody else either!

I can think of a couple good reasons to choose a weighbelt over an integrated BCD ... but the one that trumps all others is simply personal preference.

In my experience, every piece of dive gear you can own ... and any configuration you can conceive ... has advantages and disadvantages, and those are often application-specific. As divers, we need to be able to discern what those advantages and disadvantages may be ... then decide which advantages we want to include in our kit, and what disadvantages really aren't that important to us. Then, and only then, we can decide for ourselves what is the best piece of gear for us to use.

I tell my students that any time someone tells them a particular piece of equipment is "the best" ... they should consider that the person most likely has ulterior motives for saying so ... i.e. they're either trying to justify their own purchasing decisions, or they're trying to sell you something.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[dherbman]

It's true. It makes using a weight belt difficult and is one of the reasons I prefer integrated. But to say there is no good reason for a weight belt seems a bit over the edge.

It certainly makes buoyancy more manageable should there be a need to de-kit while submerged.

There are NO Good reasons for a rec diver to wear a belt - and I can't think of any for anybody else either!

 

[mania]

CIB, I wear a belt because I prefer it. It's easier for me to carry my weight around my hips than to hang it from my shoulders.

DN, too bad Marsa al Alam is so far away -- you'd have some good sources for gear setup and adjustment there with Red Sea Explorers.

There is Hurghada - definitely closer and my friends who are instructors doing right now IDC with GUE - they can be extremly helpful.
If you want I can give you their e - mail - send me a PM


Mania

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

It certainly makes buoyancy more manageable should there be a need to de-kit while submerged.

That is one of the reasons I was thinking of ... keeping in mind that the whole reason we wear weights is to compensate for the inherent buoyancy of our exposure suit. If you should for some reason need to remove your kit underwater, an integrated weight system will separate your positive buoyancy (your body) from your negative buoyancy (your BCD) ... and in addition to constantly struggling to stay down while you take care of whatever caused you to dekit, you had better hope that you don't accidentally let go of the rig.

BTW - If you're going to use an integrated weight system, I heartily recommend you attempt dekitting in a pool before attempting it in open water ... there's some technique involved, especially when wearing a drysuit or heavier wetsuit.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[TSandM]

CIB, I do have to worry about how things work outside of the water, sometimes more than IN the water. I'm an older person with arthritis, and had horrible neck pain after walking my rig with integrated weights into the water on the shore dives which are almost all I do. I'm also pretty small, and found moving my rig around with integrated weights was quite difficult. Separating the mass into two pieces instead of one has made my on-shore diving life far easier. And, using the belt as I currently do, I have my weights distributed perfectly and trim out just right with the tanks I use. So what's wrong with using a weight belt in those circumstances? It may not work for you, but it works for me, and my Fundies instructor (who wore a weight belt, btw) had no problem with it.