Quality Plastic Buckles? Want to Switch from SS to Something Lightweight

[buddhasummer]

Not trying to start a fight, but am genuinely curious as to why Ti plates are considered silly? Cheers.

 

[rhwestfall]

C.B.R. (cost-benefit ratio). Other selections do the same for "less", with marginal gains in accomplishing solution to the objective.

 

[The Chairman]

generally speaking,

You're killing me. I can't tell if this was written with your tongue firmly planted in your cheek or not. I hope so!

materials development has been successful, but the stigma hasn't changed....

Divers love their myths and biases as much as any sport. It doesn't make it right, but that's the way it is.

 

[RJP]

Not trying to start a fight, but am genuinely curious as to why Ti plates are considered silly? Cheers.

Perhaps a separate thread is in order to discuss the fact that the material itself is more expensive than steel or aluminum, that it is harder and therefor more difficult and expensive to work with, and provides no meaningful benefit in this application.

Other than that, it's a fine choice.

 

[rhwestfall]

:devil3:

 

[cool_hardware52]

Not trying to start a fight, but am genuinely curious as to why Ti plates are considered silly? Cheers.

Ti shines in applications that require:

Hi temp resistance

Very High unit stress

Very hi corrosion resistance, often at elevated temperatures

Scuba requires none of these.

That leaves "more money than sense" i.e. silly IMO.


Read up on Gary Klein and how he revolutionized the bike frame business by building very stiff "fat tube" bike frames that were far lighter than the steel frames of the day. He did so by using a lot more (by volume, not weight) aluminum than steel.

While not a perfect analogy the basic concept applies. Sometimes better results are to be had with more volume of a material that offers lower strength.

Of course one need look at the application. Back plates are very lightly loaded. Even a huge, full set of doubles is ~120-130 lbs. The unit stresses are tiny. Stainless Steel is not use for back plates because it's needed for it's strength, it's used because it's dense, and corrosion resistant. I have 100's of dives in steel doubles using a DSS Kydex plate. Kydex is a very tough material, but it offers a fraction of the yield of Stainless Steel.

The newly minted "Tech" divers that believe that their "massive" loads can only be handled with "space age" "aircraft grade" "zero flex" unobtainium is just laughable.


Tobin

 

[buddhasummer]

Perhaps a separate thread is in order to discuss the fact that the material itself is more expensive than steel or aluminum, that it is harder and therefor more difficult and expensive to work with, and provides no meaningful benefit in this application.

Other than that, it's a fine choice.

Practicality, logic and cost aside. I think Ti looks cool. If I had the money and someone made one I'd buy it for that reason alone.

PS I have no money so no one bother thinking they can make some money from this fool.

 

[cool_hardware52]

Practicality, logic and cost aside. I think Ti looks cool. If I had the money and someone made one I'd buy it for that reason alone.

PS I have no money so no one bother thinking they can make some money from this fool.

I'll also point out that from time to time Ti plates have been offered. Every time the market votes them down. (with good reason IMO) Repeating these commercial failures would also fit my definition of silly.

Tobin

---------- Post added September 17th, 2015 at 06:55 AM ----------

Practicality, logic and cost aside. I think Ti looks cool. If I had the money and someone made one I'd buy it for that reason alone.

PS I have no money so no one bother thinking they can make some money from this fool.

Perhaps I can interest you in a Carbon fiber decal…….


Tobin

 

[buddhasummer]

I'll also point out that from time to time Ti plates have been offered. Every time the market votes them down. (with good reason IMO) Repeating these commercial failures would also fit my definition of silly.

Tobin

---------- Post added September 17th, 2015 at 06:55 AM ----------



Perhaps I can interest you in a Carbon fiber decal…….


Tobin

I don't like stickers, but thanks for the offer.

---------- Post added September 17th, 2015 at 09:09 AM ----------

Did the market vote them down because of cost?

---------- Post added September 17th, 2015 at 09:10 AM ----------

If they were the same price as steel do you think things would have been different?

---------- Post added September 17th, 2015 at 09:11 AM ----------

Or was it just seen as totally unnecessary?

 

[RJP]

Practicality, logic and cost aside. I think Ti looks cool. If I had the money and someone made one I'd buy it for that reason alone.

Personally I'm looking for a plate made of depleted uranium for local diving, and have commissioned an artisanal travel plate hand-crafted using only 17th century tools and made out of reclaimed barn lumber, non-GMO flax seed, and hemp.