Quick Questions Re Diverite Transplate

[ChickenBone]

Hey Chickenbone,

I have 4 dives now on the exact same gear (as you know and mentioned above) and I hope you can get it wet too very soon. I love this rig!!! I have finally found what I was looking for and I hope it works out for you too. Let me also say that North East Scuba Supply was awesome as well. Let us know how it goes...

Scubadobadoo,

i was able to dive the rig this past weekend - it was awesome! i noticed a big difference in only 2 dives. i can now understand the enthusiasm for this type of rig. I was initially worried at first that the venture wing might not be enough lift diving with a wetsuit, especially at depth with full compression. however, i've discovered that it's plenty for me.

btw, when i was at the shop friday afternoon, i bumped into richie kohler, who was getting tank fills and shopping for gear. not really that big a deal i guess, but i thought it was cool since i had just finished reading 'shadow divers' a few weeks prior. really nice guy.

 

[scubadobadoo]

Cool. I also just finished the book and loved it. I would have been excited. Waiting for the movie version...

I had the same fear with the Venture wing but was also pleased that I didn't get the bigger wing.

 

[Schwim]

Just changed plans yesterday, wife and I were supposed to fly to Grand Cayman this morning, but I was able to reschedule for Turks and Caicos tomorrow morning. We paln to dive with Fifi at Scuba Adventures. A real tragedy down there in the Caymans, I hope everyone is OK.

Anyway, we're the proud new owners of the Diverite Transplates with SS backplates and Venturewings. We have not gotten them wet yet. The setups came with 2 tankstraps each. Do people use both straps when diving a single? Also, would you recommend we get crotchstraps?

Thanks,
Schwim

Thanks for all the great input guys. We just got back from Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos where my wife and I got in 10 dives in our new setups. We were quite pleased with the performance of the DR BPs, transplates and VentureWings. We found that the rigs were very comfortable and stable plus we only needed 8 lbs each with full 3mm wetsuits.

We didn't have crotch straps but will definitely be ordering them, as the waist straps tend to ride high, like around the bellybutton area. We still need to fine tune our rigs, but they were huge improvements over the vest-style BCs we had rented in the past. We both love the fact that there is essentially nothing in front of you and therefore the freedom of movement is much improved. Now I need to contact Northeast Scuba supply to see about the straps and to see if we can get the smaller (16) weight pockets, as the 32s are way oversized for only 4 lbs on each side.

 

[Schwim]

Thanks for all the great input guys. We just got back from Providenciales in the Turks and Caicos where my wife and I got in 10 dives in our new setups. We were quite pleased with the performance of the DR BPs, transplates and VentureWings. We found that the rigs were very comfortable and stable plus we only needed 8 lbs each with full 3mm wetsuits.

We didn't have crotch straps but will definitely be ordering them, as the waist straps tend to ride high, like around the bellybutton area. We still need to fine tune our rigs, but they were huge improvements over the vest-style BCs we had rented in the past. We both love the fact that there is essentially nothing in front of you and therefore the freedom of movement is much improved. Now I need to contact Northeast Scuba supply to see about the straps and to see if we can get the smaller (16) weight pockets, as the 32s are way oversized for only 4 lbs on each side.

Incidentally, the diving down there was great. On our first dive we saw reef sharks, manta, lobsters and great corals along the wall in West Caicos. On other dives we saw a nurse shark, octopus (night dive), turtles, stingrays and a multitude of other cool things. Unfortunately we missed 2 days of diving due to Jeanne, which was a tropical storm at the time and only brought some rain as it passed over.

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

We didn't have crotch straps but will definitely be ordering them, as the waist straps tend to ride high, like around the bellybutton area. We still need to fine tune our rigs, but they were huge improvements over the vest-style BCs we had rented in the past. We both love the fact that there is essentially nothing in front of you and therefore the freedom of movement is much improved. Now I need to contact Northeast Scuba supply to see about the straps and to see if we can get the smaller (16) weight pockets, as the 32s are way oversized for only 4 lbs on each side.

My SEU and I just returned from Bonaire, where we each got in 24 dives on our TransPlate systems. Hers is fairly new, and she's still getting used to it. One thing she discovered is that she prefers the shoulder straps lower (seems loose on the surface) and tighten down the crotch strap a bit. That puts the waist strap lower. When she made the change, she said the harness felt more comfortable in the water.

You might want to play around with adjusting the length of the shoulder straps.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[ChickenBone]

One thing she discovered is that she prefers the shoulder straps lower (seems loose on the surface) and tighten down the crotch strap a bit. That puts the waist strap lower. When she made the change, she said the harness felt more comfortable in the water.

i was finding the same problem initially. the waist straps just seemed way too high. but with a few adjustments everything sort of fell into place.

 

[Schwim]

What size crotch straps do you all recommend? They are available in 1 or 2 inch webbing. Sounds like the 1 inch would be more comfortable, but Doug at Northeast told me that most people order the 2 inchers.

Thanks,
Schwim

 

[MXGratefulDiver]

Strictly personal preference ...

I use a 1-inch on my TransPlate system and 2-inch on my standard harness rigs. The reason is that the TransPlate is really just for warm-water diving, and I think the 1-inch fits better with a thin exposure suit. For my heavier, cold-water rigs I think the 2-inch strap is better. Functionally the biggest difference is in how you attach it. The 1-inch strap has a quick-release fastener, while the 2-inch strap needs to be threaded through the waist strap buckle.

... Bob (Grateful Diver)

 

[ChickenBone]

What size crotch straps do you all recommend? They are available in 1 or 2 inch webbing. Sounds like the 1 inch would be more comfortable, but Doug at Northeast told me that most people order the 2 inchers.

Thanks,
Schwim

I chose the 1 inch strap. It's my first time using this type of gear, and i thought the 1 inch strap would be ok. if i do ever move to a one piece harness, i would probably go with the 2 inch.

fwiw, the one inch strap worked fine for me last weekend. saturday i had a full 7mm suit on, and sunday i was in the pool with just swim trunks on. it worked great both ways.

 

[scubadobadoo]

I have never used the one inch strap, only the two incher, but some have said that the one inch strap can dig into the "boys" if ya know what I mean.