RDRINK25
Contributor
I normally use 16lbs with a 5mm wesuit in salt water with AL80s. What should I use when using these steel 100s?
Steel 100s weight ?
- Thread starter RDRINK25
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Remove about 7 pounds.
Compare the "empty buoyancy" specifications and take the diffefrence.
Scuba Cylinder Specifications from Tech Diving Limited - 928-855-9400
Pete
Compare the "empty buoyancy" specifications and take the diffefrence.
Scuba Cylinder Specifications from Tech Diving Limited - 928-855-9400
Pete
OP
RDRINK25
Contributor
It seems I have dove with steel 100s and always seem to be overweighted. I have gone a few times with 0 weight and have been fine. When I try to take weight away from the 16lbs with an Al80 I feel super lite. Am I crazy here or is this normal. I recently was in the Galapagos with an AL100 and used 11lbs and was OK. I guess I was a little overweighted but you want to be that there with the currents and all. They also say the salt water is more there so you need more weight to get down.
The whole thing is a collection of puts and takes. Any weight check is based on you, your gear and mood at the time you do it. The AL80 could be a Catalina or Luxfu The HP 100 a PST , XScuba etc, etc. Each is a little different. You will want a little extra weight in surge and so forth. Salinity can have an effect too.
I don't know what you used when you felt overweighted with the steel 100s in the past. If it was the whole 16 you were a dirt dart. Also, you have more air at the start of the dive with a 100 adding to your initial negativity. It amounts to over 2 pounds so that alone is over 1 quart additional of air volume you need in your BC at the onset. Since the end of the dive is the defining moment for your weight this extra air weight is just the price you pay for carrying extra gas. A shot in the BC and it's all good.
Pete
I don't know what you used when you felt overweighted with the steel 100s in the past. If it was the whole 16 you were a dirt dart. Also, you have more air at the start of the dive with a 100 adding to your initial negativity. It amounts to over 2 pounds so that alone is over 1 quart additional of air volume you need in your BC at the onset. Since the end of the dive is the defining moment for your weight this extra air weight is just the price you pay for carrying extra gas. A shot in the BC and it's all good.
Pete
idive2
Contributor
I have an aluminum catalina 80 as a back-up when my LP85s are empty. When switching to the aluminum
80 I add 8 lbs more than I use with the lp85. If I wear my 2mm hooded vest I add an additional 2 lbs to
my base weighting. Kind of tough when switching to an aluminum from a steel since it is hard to tell whether you
were maybe slightly light or slightly heavy when using your steel weighting.
80 I add 8 lbs more than I use with the lp85. If I wear my 2mm hooded vest I add an additional 2 lbs to
my base weighting. Kind of tough when switching to an aluminum from a steel since it is hard to tell whether you
were maybe slightly light or slightly heavy when using your steel weighting.
What Spectrum said. Different cylinders have different buoyancy characteristics even if they are the same cf. For example, certain Faber HP 100s are more negative that the XS/Worthington 100s. Also true for different AL80s. So, once you are dialed in with your tank, research that tank's buoyancy and then compare to the actual AL80 cylinder you will be using, and you will know how much to adjust.
As just one example. Here in S. Fla the XS Steel HP 100s are very popular. They go from about -7 full to -1 empty. The AL80's in use here, by contrast, go from about -1.5 full to about +4.5 empty. Since you weight for an empty cylinder (to hold your safety stop), you have add about 5-6 pounds going from the steel 100 to the AL80.
As just one example. Here in S. Fla the XS Steel HP 100s are very popular. They go from about -7 full to -1 empty. The AL80's in use here, by contrast, go from about -1.5 full to about +4.5 empty. Since you weight for an empty cylinder (to hold your safety stop), you have add about 5-6 pounds going from the steel 100 to the AL80.
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