Rec BP/W - New Setup, Comparisons and Advice

[skinnytwiggy]

Hi everyone! As you can see I am very new to diving (working towards my AOW in 3 weeks!) and the ScubaBoard forum as well. I've been reading up a lot though and have been amassing my dive gear bit by bit over the last couple of weeks!

Well, I was in my LDS earlier (buying more stuff!) and was looking at BC options - originally intended to start off with a back-inflate style BC as my first but I had a chance to try out a couple of BP/W setups in the shop as recommended by my LDS guy. Oooh, bye bye clumsy jacket BCD. Helloo freedom (I think I am a convert already)! And they were nice enough to offer to let me try out the different configurations in an upcoming pool session before buying my own setup!

Some basic information - I'm 100lbs, 5'5"; mainly dive in Tropical (Asia) waters - will require some form of air travel mostly; *3mm full wetsuit*; single tank dives up to 40m max; plan to dive at least 1-2 times a month.

I'd like to hear your recommendation on what type of set up would be good to start off with, allowing the flexibility to upgrade/modify based on my future needs as I accumulate more dives and experience. Should I get a Al plate? The difference between a soft pack w/o STA vs. rigid backplates? Wing lift requirements? Are cinches necessary? The list of questions go on and on..

I'm open to 'mixing and matching' from different manufacturers as well. Please let me know what I need to consider and look out for when shopping for my setup, any help will be much appreciated! Thanks!

Some of the options I am looking at (from my LDS):
-DR (*Deluxe vs Transplate*)
-Halcyon (*Eclipse*)

Ordering from other stores/ online:
-Hollis (*Switchback vs Elite2*)
-OxyCheq (*Deluxe*)

 

[rakpix]

if its your first and price is no object, you want to get one of the halcyon cinch systems. like the halcyon infinity. its a back-inflate BC, but one of the components is a 316 stainless steel backplate, which you can remove and rig up once you move on to doubles.

if its your first and you want good value ... skip the LDS (i know, sacrilege) and get a plate/wing combo from the OMS outlet store. some might have cosmetic defects, or been on display at DEMA & other dive conferences, but who cares! http://www.omscloseouts.com/omsco/agora.cgi?product=Attic-BCs

if its your first and you want to pay less than $100, keep your eyes peeled to the scubaboard marketplace and make an offer. oh, and welcome to the board!

 

[a22shady]

Halcyon Eclipse

 

[vladimir]

Some basic information - I'm 100lbs, 5'5"; mainly dive in Tropical (Asia) waters - will require some form of air travel mostly; single tank dives up to 40m max; plan to dive at least 1-2 times a month.

I'd like to hear your recommendation on what type of set up would be good to start off with, allowing the flexibility to upgrade/modify based on my future needs as I accumulate more dives and experience. Should I get a Al plate? The difference between a soft pack w/o STA vs. rigid backplates? Wing lift requirements? Are cinches necessary? The list of questions go on and on..

I'm open to 'mixing and matching' from different manufacturers as well. Please let me know what I need to consider and look out for when shopping for my setup, any help will be much appreciated! Thanks!

Some of the options I have from my LDS:
DR
DSS
Halcyon

Some I quite like though I may not be able to buy them through my LDS:
Apeks (WTX)
OxyCheq
Zeagle

I also dive mainly in SE Asia. If you use minimal exposure protection, as I do, an aluminum plate might work nicely for you, as you may not need the extra ballast a steel plate provides and you will appreciate the lighter suitcase. That's something you should work out in the pool before you buy. I use a steel DSS plate with a 30 pound wing; it sinks me with no additional weight in a 3 mm suit, and I am not quite as svelte as you. Tobin will be happy to help you size the wing, as I'm sure your LDS will. Again, assuming you are using a relatively thin suit, you can probably use a 26 or 17 pound wing. If I understand the Halcyon cinch system correctly, it allows you to snug up your harness to compensate for wetsuit compression; again, with light exposure protection, this is not really an issue. In fact, many of the benefits of a backplate and wing are less apparent to most tropical divers, since we typically are not diving with a lot of exposure protection and a correspondingly large air bubble in our buoyancy compensator.

 

[ajduplessis]

Halcyon with Cinch, 40lb should be more than enough. I really like the SS (2.6kg). However the ALI should be good for traveling a lot.

 

[TSandM]

Tobin has a bunch of good posts about determining lift. If you are diving only in warm water using a recreational setup, there is no way you are going to require more than 30 lbs of lift, and most likely, you will need less.

For warm water with minimal exposure protection, an Al plate is probably a good choice. You can always add weights to camband weight pouches, if you need them, but you can't subtract weight from a stainless plate. And the Al buys you a few more pounds in the luggage. DSS does not make an aluminum plate, but they make a Kydex one which is quite nice -- we own two of them. DSS uses an elastomeric grommet in their harness slots, which holds the harness in tension without the use of triglides, so it is a little easier to adjust than a standard plate. I do not think that someone who is diving the same exposure protection all the time needs the Halcyon cinch system, although it might be handy for someone who is going from cold to warm water diving frequently.

In warm water, I have used the Kydex plate and 17 lb tropical wing, and it's a delight -- so easy to vent (because the air never gets very far from a valve!) and very streamlined. But I now dive dry in warm water, so it's no longer enough lift.

I'm not very familiar with the Dive Rite line, but I don't remember them making any very small singles wings. Halcyon at least used to, but they will cost the most. Of your readily available options, I think you should go with DSS. It's very good equipment, the customer service from the manufacturer is outstanding, and you may have some warranty or service availability through your LDS.

 

[rongoodman]

Oxycheq has a nice 18 lb wing too. As much as I like my Halcyon gear, I wouldn't bother with the Cinch system unless you really need it to solve a specific problem. It works, but so does a single piece of webbing in most cases, and it's a lot cheaper.

 

[skinnytwiggy]

Thanks all for your input so far, very helpful. I think I will go for an Al plate and since the cinch system does not add a lot of value to my setup (3mm suit, warm water, 40m depth) i will probably skip that too. For a Halcyon setup, is it correct to say that the Eclipse is a basic no-frills version of the Infinity w/o the extra cinch, weight pockets, harness pads? All of which can be purchased separately as add-ons to the Eclipse setup?

Any additional reviews or thoughts about the other alternatives (DR, Hollis etc)? What is the main reason for going with a soft pack (e.g. DR Transpack) as opposed to a standard BP/W (Halcyon Eclipse)? Will an additional STA add so much bulk/drag?

Also, can I get items from different manufacturers say BC from Halcyon, Al plate from DR, harness from Hollis etc? Will they all fit together nicely?

 

[rongoodman]

The Eclipse is the single tank wing, which you can order with either the Infinity or the simple Hog harness, and either the SS or AL plate. As long as you're starting with the Halcyon plate, you can add all the other pieces as you wish.

 

[super7]

I've got a DR Transplate (alu) with Rec wing. The wing has 51lbs lift, but I needed the lift because I was getting trained to dive doubles. As long as you're diving single alu tanks, a Travel wing with 27lbs lift should be sufficient.
Compared to a simple hog harness, the Transplate harness is somewhat cumbersome but comfortable on land, and bulkier in the bag. Under water, the difference is unnoticeable. I am comfortable in my rig, and like diving it, but then, I might convert it to a hog rig when the present webbing wears out.