Oxycheq "O-Pac"

[Furner]

http://www.oxycheq.com/O-Pac.html

Anyone have/had one? Obviously its not DIR, is it any good or better to just go with a DIR BP?

 

[RichLockyer]

Some would disagree, but I wouldn't say that it's totally anti-DIR. Move the D-ring from the right waist to the rear of the crotch strap (or just eliminate it) and it's not much less DIR than a plate with an MC-Pack "padding" the plate.

The biggest drawback that I see is that, unless what we're looking at is covering a plate, you are going to have to carry an extra 5-10 pounds of weight on your belt compared to a stainless plate rig.
Having all of your weight on your hips could present trim problems.

 

[grahamsp]

Some would disagree, but I wouldn't say that it's totally anti-DIR. Move the D-ring from the right waist to the rear of the crotch strap (or just eliminate it) and it's not much less DIR than a plate with an MC-Pack "padding" the plate.

The biggest drawback that I see is that, unless what we're looking at is covering a plate, you are going to have to carry an extra 5-10 pounds of weight on your belt compared to a stainless plate rig.
Having all of your weight on your hips could present trim problems.

I have had a OxyCheq 14 kg (30 lb) wing + O-Pac for two months now. After 16 dives with it, I have no complaints - I got what I paid for. A very good quality, functional, minimalist wing. Overall, a great bit of gear and a huge improvement on the conventional BCD's I have been using.

However, Rich is absolutely right about weight distribution. Without a back-plate and using a standard weight belt, maintaining horizontal trim takes effort which is of course not good. To this problem, there appear to be three solutions:

1. A stainless steel backplate;

2. Tank weights;

3. A weight belt dragged up to chest level after entering the water though this does require a great deal of underwater gymnastics and general thrashing around.

In my view, Option 1 is the way to go (tho' it does open up the whole question of whether weights should be ditchable or not but let's not get into that here). However, as OxyCheq's Australian agent does not carry them in stock, getting my hands on one at a price that won't bankrupt me may be difficult. So for the moment and as Option 3 really sucks, it looks like Option 2 - tank weights. After due consultation with my LDS, I will take to the water this weekend with 2 x 6 lb tank weights plus 6 lbs in a standard weight belt. Hopefully that will deliver much better trim even if it is a far from elegant solution.

 

[RichLockyer]

my LDS, I will take to the water this weekend with 2 x 6 lb tank weights plus 6 lbs in a standard weight belt. Hopefully that will deliver much better trim even if it is a far from elegant solution.

I would reverse the direction of one of the cam bands (put the buckle on the wrong side). Now, when mounting the tank weights, slide them ALL THE WAY BACK to the wing... one on one side and one on the other.

Putting the weight on the back of the tank can cause "turtling" if you roll out of face-down.

 

[grahamsp]

I would reverse the direction of one of the cam bands (put the buckle on the wrong side). Now, when mounting the tank weights, slide them ALL THE WAY BACK to the wing... one on one side and one on the other.

Putting the weight on the back of the tank can cause "turtling" if you roll out of face-down.

Thanks - will do.

 

[ABQdiver]

I've got one I use for vacation diving. It's light, easy to pack and has been great for traveling. The first thing I did was to shuck the pad. Supposedly it does not add a lot of buoyancy, but I saw no good use for it and it's not needed.
I carry my own weight belt and use the boats weights and it all works out fine. Just tuck the long hose or use your knife to route the hose under if your not carrying a light.

 

[scubatoys]

I have several customers that have gotten them from us - and so far I'm getting all thumbs up. I tried it really quick in the pool with the 18 pound bladder and it seemed great - but I haven't had a chance to actually go into real conditions with it yet.

 

[grahamsp]

I have several customers that have gotten them from us - and so far I'm getting all thumbs up. I tried it really quick in the pool with the 18 pound bladder and it seemed great - but I haven't had a chance to actually go into real conditions with it yet.

I'm not surprised. The OxyCheq wing is a gem. Further to my earlier post, the tank weights solved the trim problem. On Saturday, we dived on the Valiant - go to http://www.michaelmcfadyenscuba.info/articles/valiant.htm for more info - and things worked as they should. Even better, by tucking the weights behind the cylinder there was no tendency to turn turtle. I might not bother with the backplate now.

 

[Kriterian]

:06: I have a couple of questions about the Oxycheq O-Pac harness and didn't want to start a new thread.

I forgot to ask if my wing/o-pac combo came with the mounting bolts to attach the wing to the harness. Needless to say, it didn't come with the bolts so I was wondering if some one could suggest a nut/bolt combo along with their sizes please? Also, does the bolt point towards my back or towards my tank?

I've never seen the funky double under under over loop thingy that is used on the tank's cam bands. After practicing a few minutes I've found that I can thread it ok from memory. My problem is that I can't see an easy way to loosen/tighten it for attaching the tank. It seems like it would be ok if you had the same size tank on it all the time, otherwise it looks like a hassle to undo it completely each time. Can anyone with this harness or who has a clue of what I'm talking about please explain if there is an easier way to adjust the bands that I'm missing?

None of this is an attack on Scubatoys.com, I love shopping there and if I wasn't spending so much money on gear then I'd probably fly out to check out the retail store.

 

[Scubaroo]

Hi all,

Graham, glad to hear the O-Pac & Signature wing is working out well. We just returned from that trip to Fiji, and my wife dived the same combination there for 10 dives - we went with some cheap XS Scuba 5lb weight pockets, distributed as Rich mentioned, on the waist and camstraps - her trim worked out great. She left the back padding off the O-Pac as well. I lugged a backplate along.

There's some body position techniques you can use in the water to shift your "centre of buoyancy" and maintain horizontal trim, like extending or retracting your clasped hands in front of you (extend to go head up, retract to go head down), and bending your knees to raise your feet.

Stainless steel backplates - after a serious time gap, we've got them back in stock.

Kriterian,

There's no bolts for the O-Pac - a simple solution to holding the wing in place is some mouthpiece ties (aka zipties) through the pairs of grommets in the O-Pac and the wing (assuming you've got an OxyCheq wing). Pull them tight, and trim. Rock solid, and seeing as the weight of the tank is born by the camstraps passing through the O-Pac, there's only the minimal weight of the wing on them, so they're not a failure point.

Any other questions, feel free to post them here or in a PM.

cheers

Ben