Suggestions for upgrading Double AL-80's

[Gandalf-the-Diver]

Good day everyone!

After my last tech dive I want a little more back gas than the AL 80's I trained with and use. I bought som AL 100's as an upgrade but those things are MONSTERS and just too big.

So what are suggestions and why?

- Occasional Tec diver
- Wetsuit/warmer water
- TEC depth avg 130-150

Thanks in advance!

Faber HP steel 100s are the same physical size as an ali 80, just sayin.

 

[inquis]

Wetsuit diving (6-10? lbs lost at depth)... 200+ cf of air (15+ lb)...

That's quite a lot to swim up from depth if your wing failed. Your choice of tank will influence the amount of lead carried. Either a redundant bladder or 10-15 lbs ditchable lead would be useful in some scenarios.

 

[DiveTucson]

Based on that you said you were warm water diving and diving wet maybe just consider carrying an AL80 stage bottle for your dive. This way you are not extremely negative at depth with suit compression. The stage can always be dumped or sent up an SMB line if needed.

 

[tbone1004]

On paper they're slightly longer and neutral when empty as opposed to the Worthington -1. No idea how different they "feel" though. Maybe @tbone1004 would know?

I'm actually a bad one to ask that kind of question, though I did have a set of double 85's on for a shore dive last night with @LandonL

So why am I the wrong one to ask? I'm a BIG guy at over 6'3", lots of muscle, and I have a lot of experience. All that means is that most tanks are very easy for me to run around in. I was diving PST LP120's in cave country last week with Deep6 Eddy fins. All things you will read online say that that basically shouldn't be possible and that I need to be using heavy fins to deal with the head down trim but my legs are heavy enough that they go out just past 90* and the moment arm is big enough to counter the tanks. Landon saw me last night pick the 85's up on my back and literally start jumping around because they were so light that I was dancing around the parking lot with them on and when we were kicking around in the water they felt almost like a single tank compared to the LP120's since they're only about 2/3's the weight of the 120's.
My size can compensate for a lot variables in weight placement and when combined with the fact that I dive XXL fins where the blade is bigger than @grantctobin 's whole body, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to really throw me off. Add that to a lot of experience diving where you body automatically compensates for differences in weight placement no different than you automatically adjusting when you pick up a suitcase in one hand and you end up with a complicated answer to how I perceive the feel of different tanks. The 85's obviously feel considerably lighter than my LP120's, but if you were to ask me to compare them to AL80 doubles or anything else I would really need to take the both on a dive in very close time proximity with the intend of paying attention to how they feel in the water. The Worthington LP85's are weird tanks though and I have never dove them but am not entirely sure I would want to for me personally.

 

[grantctobin]

I'm actually a bad one to ask that kind of question, though I did have a set of double 85's on for a shore dive last night with @LandonL

So why am I the wrong one to ask? I'm a BIG guy at over 6'3", lots of muscle, and I have a lot of experience. All that means is that most tanks are very easy for me to run around in. I was diving PST LP120's in cave country last week with Deep6 Eddy fins. All things you will read online say that that basically shouldn't be possible and that I need to be using heavy fins to deal with the head down trim but my legs are heavy enough that they go out just past 90* and the moment arm is big enough to counter the tanks. Landon saw me last night pick the 85's up on my back and literally start jumping around because they were so light that I was dancing around the parking lot with them on and when we were kicking around in the water they felt almost like a single tank compared to the LP120's since they're only about 2/3's the weight of the 120's.
My size can compensate for a lot variables in weight placement and when combined with the fact that I dive XXL fins where the blade is bigger than @grantctobin 's whole body, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to really throw me off. Add that to a lot of experience diving where you body automatically compensates for differences in weight placement no different than you automatically adjusting when you pick up a suitcase in one hand and you end up with a complicated answer to how I perceive the feel of different tanks. The 85's obviously feel considerably lighter than my LP120's, but if you were to ask me to compare them to AL80 doubles or anything else I would really need to take the both on a dive in very close time proximity with the intend of paying attention to how they feel in the water. The Worthington LP85's are weird tanks though and I have never dove them but am not entirely sure I would want to for me personally.

Let it be known that while they are longer than I am tall, I often sport a pair of PST LP120s and unfortunately use the same fins as Tom here.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

I'm actually a bad one to ask that kind of question, though I did have a set of double 85's on for a shore dive last night with @LandonL

So why am I the wrong one to ask? I'm a BIG guy at over 6'3", lots of muscle, and I have a lot of experience. All that means is that most tanks are very easy for me to run around in. I was diving PST LP120's in cave country last week with Deep6 Eddy fins. All things you will read online say that that basically shouldn't be possible and that I need to be using heavy fins to deal with the head down trim but my legs are heavy enough that they go out just past 90* and the moment arm is big enough to counter the tanks. Landon saw me last night pick the 85's up on my back and literally start jumping around because they were so light that I was dancing around the parking lot with them on and when we were kicking around in the water they felt almost like a single tank compared to the LP120's since they're only about 2/3's the weight of the 120's.
My size can compensate for a lot variables in weight placement and when combined with the fact that I dive XXL fins where the blade is bigger than @grantctobin 's whole body, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to really throw me off. Add that to a lot of experience diving where you body automatically compensates for differences in weight placement no different than you automatically adjusting when you pick up a suitcase in one hand and you end up with a complicated answer to how I perceive the feel of different tanks. The 85's obviously feel considerably lighter than my LP120's, but if you were to ask me to compare them to AL80 doubles or anything else I would really need to take the both on a dive in very close time proximity with the intend of paying attention to how they feel in the water. The Worthington LP85's are weird tanks though and I have never dove them but am not entirely sure I would want to for me personally.

Well with that said I guess we're just back to "you have to try a few different sizes to know what works for you".

It probably helps to know the size of people when they like / dislike a set. I'm 6', relatively fit and I really like my HP100's / LP85's, but even in that I've never tried dbl 120's, so what do I know.

Edit: I don't think you'll catch me dancing in them, but I can be in a sitting position on the ground and get up with them with little effort.. I don't mind them at all when they're on my back. To me it feels more stable than a single tank (or maybe I tell myself that because I like doubles)

 

[happy-diver]

I'm actually a bad one to ask that kind of question, though I did have a set of double 85's on for a shore dive last night with @LandonL

So why am I the wrong one to ask? I'm a BIG guy at over 6'3", lots of muscle, and I have a lot of experience. All that means is that most tanks are very easy for me to run around in. I was diving PST LP120's in cave country last week with Deep6 Eddy fins. All things you will read online say that that basically shouldn't be possible and that I need to be using heavy fins to deal with the head down trim but my legs are heavy enough that they go out just past 90* and the moment arm is big enough to counter the tanks. Landon saw me last night pick the 85's up on my back and literally start jumping around because they were so light that I was dancing around the parking lot with them on and when we were kicking around in the water they felt almost like a single tank compared to the LP120's since they're only about 2/3's the weight of the 120's.
My size can compensate for a lot variables in weight placement and when combined with the fact that I dive XXL fins where the blade is bigger than @grantctobin 's whole body, it takes a tremendous amount of effort to really throw me off. Add that to a lot of experience diving where you body automatically compensates for differences in weight placement no different than you automatically adjusting when you pick up a suitcase in one hand and you end up with a complicated answer to how I perceive the feel of different tanks. The 85's obviously feel considerably lighter than my LP120's, but if you were to ask me to compare them to AL80 doubles or anything else I would really need to take the both on a dive in very close time proximity with the intend of paying attention to how they feel in the water. The Worthington LP85's are weird tanks though and I have never dove them but am not entirely sure I would want to for me personally.

This post is brilliant real world describing gear relative to the size of the diver
the usual I wear this and I carry that but you can't because it tips you forward
posts without diver size and the type of thermal protection dived, are lacking

Vote 1 diver size details under avatars

We'll let the chairperson off, from this

 

[RyanT]

@Marie13 and @rob.mwpropane, I own a set of Faber 85s, Worthington 85s (Ok, those are really Kim's) and Faber HP 100s. The HP100s and the Worthington 85s may as well be the same tanks. Trim and buoyancy are almost identical. As individual tanks, they are both about -1 empty. The Faber 85s are lighter, individually, they are about +2 empty. I don't have trouble diving any of them. I don't really notice any difference in trim across the tanks, but I could very well be used to them and just automatically compensate.

 

[RyanT]

Landon saw me last night pick the 85's up on my back and literally start jumping around because they were so light that I was dancing around the parking lot with them on

Wait a minute.. @LandonL , my 85s better not be diving without me. LOL!

 

[rddvet]

When looking at charts for tanks, remember that there are the old white Faber’s and the new galvanized ones. They dive slightly differently. The white ones tend to get butt light at low pressures