shotthebreeze
Contributor
Does anyone use the Sherwood Avid BC? I'm looking into purchasing one and I just need some feedback.
Sherwood Avid BC
- Thread starter shotthebreeze
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Got one back in early '06. Used it on about 80 dives. Holding up real well. I got it because the dual tank straps were extra insurance for holding 120 cu. ft. tanks. It is easy to use.
I've been diving since '77 and initially used no BC at all. I've tried most, and they all seem to do about the same. If you can get a good price (I paid $280), you should be pleased, too.
I've been diving since '77 and initially used no BC at all. I've tried most, and they all seem to do about the same. If you can get a good price (I paid $280), you should be pleased, too.
I used one for three years in cold water and warm water. For a jacket BCD this has to be one of the better ones. It has a great weight-integration system, the aforementioned double tank strap, and decent pockets. The design is great because it minimized squeeze.
Hope this helps.
-J.-
Hope this helps.
-J.-
c555
Contributor
The sherwood avid was my first BC. It was better than others I tried, but there is a limit to how stable jacket BC's can be. I switched to a bp/w a year ago and love it. If you want a jacket bc, the avid works well.
OP
shotthebreeze
Contributor
Thanks for all of your help. I don't know if I'm ready for the bp/w yet, but I'm going to try both before I purchase one though. The Avid would be the jacket style that I'd prefer.
I really like My AVID but there is a design flaw in the newer ones starting in 2005.
There are guides that locate the waist strap that goes over the cummerbund. If you look at those guides you can see that where they are stitched into the jacket the plastic of the guide is very very tin to allow for sewing. On top of that the sewing process perforates this thin plastic.
You must remember to run this strap very loose or the tabs will be stressed and eventually torn when you inflate the BC for surface flotation.
My first one failed after about 40 dives. I was snugging it down more than needed but I should not have been able to cause a failure simply by that technique. The topic is not covered in the manual.
The factory replaced it and # 2 failed about 200 dives latter. In this case I had just come back from Bonaire where I dove a shorty. On my first drysuit dive I did not think to slacken the strap and it did not seem unduly snug. After the dive one tab was ripped out a the other was almost gone.
Being out of warranty I have since put a DIY fix on the situation. A PM to our benevolent ScubaBoard Sherwood representative was ignored.
Pete
There are guides that locate the waist strap that goes over the cummerbund. If you look at those guides you can see that where they are stitched into the jacket the plastic of the guide is very very tin to allow for sewing. On top of that the sewing process perforates this thin plastic.
You must remember to run this strap very loose or the tabs will be stressed and eventually torn when you inflate the BC for surface flotation.
My first one failed after about 40 dives. I was snugging it down more than needed but I should not have been able to cause a failure simply by that technique. The topic is not covered in the manual.
The factory replaced it and # 2 failed about 200 dives latter. In this case I had just come back from Bonaire where I dove a shorty. On my first drysuit dive I did not think to slacken the strap and it did not seem unduly snug. After the dive one tab was ripped out a the other was almost gone.
Being out of warranty I have since put a DIY fix on the situation. A PM to our benevolent ScubaBoard Sherwood representative was ignored.
Pete
I have one that only gets used for pool sessions, but it seems like a decent BC, as these things go. I'll keep an eye out for the issue spectrum brought up, though.
Only issue I can think of (aside from the fact that I vastly prefer bp/w) is the pockets are very small and hard to get anything into or out of when you have the integrated weights in place. In addition, the integrated weights, while seemly fairly secure yet easy to dump when needed, are a big PITA to get back in once they're out. Probably not much of an issue when diving normally, but when demoing skills in a pool over and over, re-inserting those pouches gets old quick.
Only issue I can think of (aside from the fact that I vastly prefer bp/w) is the pockets are very small and hard to get anything into or out of when you have the integrated weights in place. In addition, the integrated weights, while seemly fairly secure yet easy to dump when needed, are a big PITA to get back in once they're out. Probably not much of an issue when diving normally, but when demoing skills in a pool over and over, re-inserting those pouches gets old quick.
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