Switched from BP/W to traditional BCD?

[*Floater*]

I often hear from people who started out with the traditional jacket or back-inflate BCD, but switched over to BP/W (backplate and wing) and love it. I want to hear from the members who tried a BP/W and hated it, or just didn't like it as much as some traditional BCD for rec diving.

What BP/W setup did you try? How many dives? What traditional BCD did you decide to go with in the end?

What didn't you like about the BP/W?

 

[Bobby_M]

I'm not sure this is what you're looking for, but I've owned both a jacket BC as well as a BP/W BC. I think the only reason I currently only have the jacket is because I sold off the BP/W as a package with a doubles setup. I still consider my Seaquest ProQD a fine BC and it's easy to travel with. I converted to BP/W to get a taste of self-sufficient redundancy (manifolded doubles) and you really can't do that on a vest style BC.

If I were buying everything new today with the intention of single-tank diving, I would go with an alum backplate, hog harness, and 30-35lb wing. This is something I could travel with easily and then adapt to using with doubles in the future if I wanted to.

Why aluminum? Mostly for travel. I'd rather not have an excuse to bring my jacket BC. If they don't have steel tanks, I'd probably use a combo of weight pockets on the harness and some additionally fastened to the rear of the plate.

Bobby

 

[djanni]

Here's my experience:

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=112511&highlight=review

 

[herman]

I tried a BP on several dives over a weekend of diving and was not impressed. It did nothing better than my back inflate BC but it was a royal pain to adjust. I never did get it adjusted to where it was comfortable. They are good BCs and for diving doubles they are hands down the best way to go but I found no real advantage to them for my type of diving-single tank warm water. At the same time, I lost several features that my present BC offered that I like- easily adjustable straps,intergrated weights and quick releases. I find most of the "benefits" of a BP are overstated. In the real world quick release buckles rarely break and it's a rare diver who can actually "wear out" a BC. Sure it happens but rarely. I tried them with great expectations and found the BC I was already using much better suited my needs. I do however, much prefer a back inflate over a jacket. To each his own, I have dove all 3 and made my choice based on my needs and likes.

 

[SparticleBrane]

I have a slightly different perspective than other people--I started out diving with a Halcyon Eclipse in my basic OW/Nitrox course.
I had probably 30-40 hours of pool time in it and then had to go rent my own equipment for checkout dives (university wouldn't let you use their equipment on their checkout dives--wanted you to experience a dive shop).

Boy was I in for a surprise...I didn't even know a jacket-style BC existed--a bp/w was all I had ever known! (pointing to the cummerbund-"What the heck is that?" and "This thing doesn't fit!" and "Why is there only one tank strap?" etc) I didn't enjoy the experience at all.
We then went down to the keys to finish our dives and to have some fun dives--again I was rented a standard jacket-style BC. Not the best of experiences.
I worked in a dive shop that summer and whenever we went out on dives I used the shop's rental stuff--jacket style BCs.

After all that I eventually ended up buying an Eclipse. I enjoy how stable it feels in the water. Granted you can be perfectly horizontal with good trim in a jacket-style BC but I just prefer a bp/w setup better. They have everything I need and nothing I don't. I don't need lots of pockets--everything I would need in an emergency situation is within reach--bungied backup, backup lights, etc. I have one DiveRite waist pocket that goes through my waist strap on my right side and that's used to hold my wetnotes and some shears and to route my long hose (I'm too cheap to buy a canister light).
Some people complain that the bp/w setup is frustrating to adjust. Try it a few times and it becomes second nature. And besides, how often do you seriously have to readjust it? I might loosen the strap when I go from a 3mm full to a 6.5mm two-piece, but that's about it. As to the straps being uncomfortable--you shouldn't really have to deal with them being uncomfortable in the water, especially in an exposure suit. On land they might pinch a little, but that really isn't where they matter--walk to the water and hop in if they hurt--why are you standing aroud anyway if you have a tank on your back?!

 

[miesemer]

I regularly use three different BC's, a Zeagle Escape with 24# bladder for travel and teaching in a pool, a Zeagle Ranger for open water diving with students and a SS BP/W set up for doubles. I wouldn't give up any of them, they all fit their requirements perfectly. I prefer traveling with the Escape because it packs up into a small ball and doesn't weigh much. I like the Ranger for recreational open water (local) dives with students. Then there's nothing that holds a pair of high capacity steel cylinders as well as a backplate.

I don't use my Escape for technical dives and I don't use my Ranger or SS BP/W for warm water travel. In a previous life I raced bicycles and had different bikes for different types of racing, ie I wouldn't use my track bike in a Mt bike race or my Mt. Bike in a long road race. I use the same philosophy for my diving and don't think that any one bc does everything well. In my opinion, to make a BP/W do everything well you have to invest in at least two plates, two harness and at least two wings.

The argument that gets tossed around that you can't be trimed out in anything but a BP/W is pure BS. If you understand proper weighting you can be trimmed in a garbage bag. I think many BCD's come standard with trim pockets in the wrong places and people put weight where they don't need it, an issue that is easily remedied. The plain bp/w doesn't come with these low, rear pockets that induce the typical leg down bad trim.

After that, I probably didn't answer the original question yet but I've owned jacket bcs, back inflate bcs and bp/w's for singles and doubles diving. I think I still prefer my back inflate bcd's over the bp/w for single tank recreational diving especially in warm water and a 3 mm wetsuit.

 

[Adobo]

The argument that gets tossed around that you can't be trimed out in anything but a BP/W is pure BS.

I have read my fair share of BP/W vs. traditional BC threads. I have no recollection of ever hearing anybody say that one cannot get trimmed out in anything but a BP/W. Not one time. (Then again, my memory isn't that great.)

 

[miesemer]

I have read my fair share of BP/W vs. traditional BC threads. I have no recollection of ever hearing anybody say that one cannot get trimmed out in anything but a BP/W. Not one time. (Then again, my memory isn't that great.)

Here's an example
http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=1026642&postcount=49

What's your point? Anything constructive to add?

 

[Adobo]

Here's an example
http://www.scubaboard.com/showpost.php?p=1026642&postcount=49

What's your point? Anything constructive to add?

Why yes.. It was my way of asking you to cite specific examples.

And by the way, the one example you did cite does not match your claim that people are using the argument that "you can't be trimed out in anything but a BP/W is pure BS." If you read it carefully, the example you cite supports your position that "many BCD's come standard with trim pockets in the wrong places and people put weight where they don't need it, an issue that is easily remedied. The plain bp/w doesn't come with these low, rear pockets that induce the typical leg down bad trim." In your example, the OP does not say that trim became possible when he went to a BP/W, he says it became "relatively effortless".

Perhaps if they made BCs where you could easily put trim weights further north to counter act the super bouyant padding so often used on BCs, perhaps the poster on the example you cite would not have it so "hard" to maintain trim.

If someone were to post something that sounded unfounded to you, would you not challenge them on it?

As a side note, no need to get huffy. Just link your examples and I'll be happy to agree that my poor memory got the better of me again.

 

[kallardnyc]

Here's my experience:

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=112511&highlight=review

If you don't miss something, then why would you wish you had it?