Question Picked up a pair of Faber LP95s, do I need to tweak my weighting for buoyancy?

[Tanks A Lot]

I still do not know exactly if Faber specifies with or without a valve, as they never got back to me. I do know that Catalina and Luxfer specify the buoyancy without a valve.

The PDF you have this data from is either from XS-Scuba or Seapearls, I can't quite recall. Neither of those being the OEM, just distributors. Other distributors, like Kaplan, specify the exact same values without a valve.

I also would not know how to classify a "standard" valve. What the US considers standard, usually a Thermo Pro or similar, would be vastly different from what an Italian would consider standard, like a H-Valve or Y-Valve.

Again, I do not know if those values are with our without a valve, but others in the industry usually specify without a valve.

 

[inquis]

I don't see a lot of relevance for a data sheet that is specific to the "INDUSTRIAL, ACETYLENE MEDICAL AND BEVERAGE INDUSTRIES". As for which valve, Faber seems integrated with Blue Steel valves. I'm also quite at a loss how they would measure full buoyancy without a valve on it.

Regardless of whether the spec buoyancy is with or without a valve, for this question we are looking at the *difference* in buoyancies. Valve weight, if any, cancels out.

 

[Tanks A Lot]

Ups, that was the wrong PDF right there, I changed it to the correct one.

I would be highly surprised if any measuring for buoyancy would occur at all. This is usually calculated from the drawings. Measurement would be cumbersome and vary by a bit, as the machinery to draw the cylinders into shape wears out. Hence nominal values are what is usually given and these always come from the drawings.

As to Faber and BlueSteel, their are separate entities. San-O-Sub (SoS) is the maker of BlueSteel valves and they are just marketed under the BlueSteel brand name in the US.

 

[Still Kicking]

As for which valve, Faber seems integrated with Blue Steel valves.

As Tanks A Lot points out it depends on the distributor. Blue Steel uses San-O-Sub valves and XS Scuba naturally uses their own brand of Thermo style valves.

This is all very interesting in an abstract sense but i think it's using a laser to split hairs. There is no substitute for an in-water weight check to establish actual buoyancy and trim (err slightly on the heavy side to start with).

If any of these variables of with/without valves/style of valve etc. affects a diver's ability to attain neutrality, I would argue they are a couple pounds underweighted.

 

[lexvil]

These are just vague guidelines, what matters is how they perform on YOUR back (side) if you sink at the end of the dive or can’t stay down do you consult a chart or adjust your weighting?

 

[Still Kicking]

These are just vague guidelines, what matters is how they perform on YOUR back (side) if you sink at the end of the dive or can’t stay down do you consult a chart or adjust your weighting?

If you carry enough charts, they count toward your weighting.

 

[inquis]

if you sink at the end of the dive or can’t stay down do you consult a chart or adjust your weighting?

I adjust the chart so that the next time I can put on the appropriate weight. In truth, I have a list of component buoyancies so I can mix & match as needed. Various tanks, various backplates/sidemount, various drysuit layers/wetsuit thicknesses, etc.

 

[Sol]

FWIW, I got a set of LP95s last year. I'm down to about 4 lbs in the tail weight pouch in fresh water, but that's with wing and suit pretty much completely empty. I wouldn't want to try a valve drill at 10 feet. I've also been told by a very well-respected instructor that they're too short and fat for me. Bottom line, I've been diving them for a year and they're just not right for me. Live and learn.

 

[rx7diver]

... I've also been told by a very well-respected instructor that they're too short and fat for me. ...

It's interesting that an instructor would tell you that the cylinders are too short for you. Do you know how he/she came to this conclusion?

My first set of doubles were HP100's (3,500 psig PST cylinders). I really liked them for the dives I was doing at the time, for their capacity and buoyancy characteristics (dry suit diving) and because they weren't extremely heavy out of the water.

I knew, though, almost from the start, that these doubles are a bit too short for me--because I had to struggle to reach my valves. I could, but it wasn't without some effort. If I moved my rig up "higher", I could more readily reach my valves, but doing this left me too head heavy.

Eventually I replaced the HP100's (24" tall) with HP120's (28" tall). Problem solved! Except, my rig became significantly heavier!

Okay. Point is: No one told me that I needed taller cylinders. This was self-diagnosed.

rx7diver

 

[jellycatsdad]

I got the LP95s back from the LDS. The first 3 dives of the weekend I was way overweighted with them between 22-26lbs of lead. Noticed I had to add more air into my BC and I was fighting to stay around 15-18ft on my safety stops. I dove with 19lbs of lead after doing a weight check and I had to kick and scull just to be at eye level and decended almost immediately. It was only a pound more weight than the 18lbs I carry with HP100s. Trim/buoyancy was fine, except for the weight on land and the size, they worked out.