SeaJay
Contributor
To be perfectly honest, I don't see much difference between the two.
I dive with a bp/wing mostly because of the stability that it provides over anything else, although I admit that some of the "better" BC's that have a hard structure built into them are almost as good in terms of stability. The Black Diamond, for example, comes to mind here. Of course, it'd make for a terrible travel BC...
And I agree that with the padding removed, the TPII probably weighs less than an AL plate and harness. With the padding, though, it'd be an interesting experiment to find out which one was heavier... At least when wet.
I was simply responding to archman's inquiry; yes, they feel very different, but it's not entirely accurate to say that bp/wings are less comfortable. It really depends on where your discomfort is. The TPII's padded straps tend to feel more "comfy" when you're walking around topside, but I find the actual plate in a bp/wing more "comfy" than the padded back of the TPII, even if it doesn't look that way in the store. Regardless, both pretty much dissappear underwater. I prefer the stability of a hard plate on my back... But Dive Rite is selling a plate to go on the TPII anyway... So again, it's sorta a wash.
IMHO, all of the "padding" is pointless anyway, as soon as you put 3 mil or more of neoprene on... And like you said, even moreso in the water where the weight goes to zero.
I dive with a bp/wing mostly because of the stability that it provides over anything else, although I admit that some of the "better" BC's that have a hard structure built into them are almost as good in terms of stability. The Black Diamond, for example, comes to mind here. Of course, it'd make for a terrible travel BC...
And I agree that with the padding removed, the TPII probably weighs less than an AL plate and harness. With the padding, though, it'd be an interesting experiment to find out which one was heavier... At least when wet.
I was simply responding to archman's inquiry; yes, they feel very different, but it's not entirely accurate to say that bp/wings are less comfortable. It really depends on where your discomfort is. The TPII's padded straps tend to feel more "comfy" when you're walking around topside, but I find the actual plate in a bp/wing more "comfy" than the padded back of the TPII, even if it doesn't look that way in the store. Regardless, both pretty much dissappear underwater. I prefer the stability of a hard plate on my back... But Dive Rite is selling a plate to go on the TPII anyway... So again, it's sorta a wash.
IMHO, all of the "padding" is pointless anyway, as soon as you put 3 mil or more of neoprene on... And like you said, even moreso in the water where the weight goes to zero.
