Problem with one side of BC inflating more than the other

[TSandM]

Does he tend to adopt a head-down posture in the water? That will make it difficult for gas to equalize across the top of the air bladder. Going a little bit head up (you don't have to go vertical) will move the gas to the upper arc of the bladder, and allow it to equalize. If you are head down, either an off-center inflation point (common) or the use of a butt dump which is on one side, can result in uneven distribution of gas.

Having a bladder which is too large, which he has, can make evening things out more difficult, because there's so much space for the air to distribute itself in the side pontoons, far away from the upper arc -- this requires more of an excursion out of trim to fix it.

If he wasn't head-down, then I think Hawkwood has probably put his finger on the problem.

 

[DukeAMO]

The wings on the Ranger can be "clipped" to the BCD using quick releases, thus keeping the wing tight against the BCD.

OK, we'll check it out.

---------- Post added ----------

He swims pretty much horizontally, but not head down, no. But every time he turns around to look behind him he leans to the right, which is probably what gets the air off balance in the first place.

Swimming:


Does this look unclipped? Or can you tell from this? (I'll check at home tonight too.) In this picture what he's doing is turning around to look behind him. The BC is empty since we're near the surface.

 

[Hawkwood]

It could be, it's just kind of hard to tell from the size of the photo. In the second photo I could convince my self that the tank has moved to the right more than his body has. Maybe the BCD is just not tight enough on him. When horizontal, he "hangs" from it and everything is cool. When he twists his body one way, the loose BCD shifts on his back. Maybe.

If all his weight is in the waist pouches, that could accentuate his twist. If some of his weight isn't in the trim pouches that hug the tank, move some there. It will put some of the weight closer in to his midline, instead of being "outboard".

Let me know about the clips - it would be the easiest to address that was the case.

Tough to diagnose over the internet, but fun! You have had some good advise and lots of things to try out on your next dives.

I will confess, that the Ranger sometimes takes folks a bit of time to get used to using - it's not like what they use in the pool. Sometimes it's just a bit of "manipulation". That BCD also has a lot of ways to really customize a good snug fit as well.

Bill