Single/Double BP/W for travel?

[Scubaguy.uk]

Having decided to fully kit myself out, I've read several of the posts yet am still undecided in what B.C.'s best for the type of diving I wish to do. At present I'm a recently qualified (1yr) rescue diver & have done all but one of my dives in a drysuit in the UK. However I do wish to travel to warmer climes to further my diving.
I do find that I 'gulp' my air, even when not exherting myself and usually hit 50bar well before others. For this reason I will probably lean toward a double tank setup. From what I've read, with hindsight several people wish they'd have gone straight into a BP/W rather than a BCD.
My question is therfore, if money were a secondary concern, is there a suitable B.C. system which would hold two tanks when I'm in a drysuit, but also (maybe with purchasing another backplate) be suitable to take away where I may only be able to get a single tank & I'd be in much warmer water wearing a westsuit?
I have looked at a Nortern Divers Sea Eagle Dual Bladder Wing, Zeagle Ranger & 911, Dacor Rig Pro, DUI Delta wing, Custom Divers TCW Wings, Aqualung Raider & a Buddy Tek Wing. I have also considered a custom made Jet Harness, possibly with two backplates.

 

[Boogie711]

The beauty of a backplate is that you DON'T need two plates. If you want to move from singles to doubles, you just need a different wing.

Don't be fooled into thinking you can get any system - BC or BP/Wing - which will dive both a single tank and a double tank setup. They're a kluge - a compromise incorporating the worst of both worlds. But a BP/Wing works quite well with single tanks. If you're diving double steel tanks dry (although I'd caution against doing that simply to solve air consumption issues) then you will probably want an AL plate - which is perfect for diving in the warm waters with minimal exposure gear.

 

[OneBrightGator]

Yes, what Boogie said. You can dive single or double tanks with the same backplate (I would suggest SS in your case) just buy a wing for doubles and a singles wing and single tank adapter.

Ben

 

[Tom Winters]

And when you check your dive gear, don't be too surprised when you get called into the security screener spaces so they can open your bag - my tech stuff freaks the scanner guys out - I think it's the steel backplate that really sets them off the most. Dive computers and battery packs probably look kinda suspicious too. I'd hate to see what a rebreather would do to them.

 

[IndigoBlue]

...I do find that I 'gulp' my air, even when not exherting myself and usually hit 50bar well before others. For this reason I will probably lean toward a double tank setup. ...

Bad guess. This is NOT why you would ever look at double tanks. This "might" however justify a 100 cu ft or 120 cu ft single tank. Some travel destinations offer these. But not many. Ultimately you need to "fix" your air consumption.

...My question is therfore, if money were a secondary concern, is there a suitable B.C. system which would hold two tanks when I'm in a drysuit, but also (maybe with purchasing another backplate) be suitable to take away where I may only be able to get a single tank & I'd be in much warmer water wearing a westsuit?
I have looked at a Nortern Divers Sea Eagle Dual Bladder Wing, Zeagle Ranger & 911, Dacor Rig Pro, DUI Delta wing, Custom Divers TCW Wings, Aqualung Raider & a Buddy Tek Wing. I have also considered a custom made Jet Harness, possibly with two backplates.

I recommend the Zeagle 911 or the Zeagle Tech. These are soft-back back-inflation designs that work perfectly for travel. You need to also buy the double-size bands as well, so that you can dive both single and double tanks with them. And they disassemble nicely into components so that you can roll them up and tuck them into your carry-on.

However you are NOT going to solve your air consumption problem with doubles. Exercise and dieting, until your SCR gets down to about 0.75 working or 0.50 resting is going to be unavoidable.