Travelling With Bp+w

[mattia_v]

Hey everyone,

I'm an inch away from having the gear complete (fins are on the way), and just completed my first test dive with my new Tecline BP/W in the local pool, which was an interesting experience. Liking the wing so far, should be better when I can dial in the boyancy better - steel tank and alum backplate with a 10L steel tank = too negative, even without weights. Salt water should cure most of that.

What I'm wondering about now is the most effective way to pack the BP/W setup; we'll be travelling with two full sets (2 3mm wetsuits, 2 alum BP/W setups, fins checked, mask and regs in carry-on), and I'm still trying to decide on which bag solution would be best. We're headed to Indonesia, so something non-descript, and easy to travel with for the non-diving 10 days of the trip would be highly appreciated. I'm eying a fairly non-desript roller bag from Decathlon (local sports equipment manufacturer Duiken_Verplaatsen - Duiktas 120 l ) that looks decent (9 lb weight, includes a wetsuit bag, and convertible to backpack use, 120L content). Something like the Dive Caddy looks interesting but is cost prohibitive and I have a block of camera gear (topside, mostly) that kind of rules out full more carry on stuff.

What I'm most curious about is how best to go about packing the BP/W setup, and particularly how worried I need to be about folding/creasing the wing a little to make it fit nicely. I'm assuming the 'standard' way to pack is to separate the wing from the backplate?

The Tecline is a fairly 'standard' 33lb donut wing shape, with an internal bladder with zipper along the inside of the tough shell. My girlfriend's is the 13L (30lb) X-tek (LDS cut her a good deal),so very similar in size. Any comments in that regard? I was secretly hoping to simply use my backpack (hiking pack) but that requires 'folding' the wing maybe a bit too much, and I think a roller with both sets of gear and little else is the better choice, so it's no biggie if some of it is still wet, and have clothing in another (smaller) bag. I even wonder if 120L isn't 'too much bag' in some ways, with an eye on weight restrictions (25kg for all the flights we have scheduled at the moment).

I have integrated weight pockets attached to the backplate which are best taken off for efficient packing I think. Any practical tips or experience welcome. And recommendations for luggage that I can find in Europe (so not the Costco rolling duffle everyone seems enamoured with, sadly...)

 

[ronscuba]

If weight is a big concern, a large duffle bag weighs about 2 lbs. Obviously not as easy to move around compared to wheeled luggage, but you save about 7 lbs. Speaking of wheeled luggage, be careful with wheeled duffle bags. They need a telescoping handle. Without it, the bag will hit your legs as you walk.

I have an Eagle Creek, wheel less duffle bag. A little on the expensive side for a duffle, but it is lightweight, durable and has compression straps. The compression straps let you tighten down the bag when it is less than totally full.

Separating the wing from the backplate is a good idea. The hard edges of the plate can damage the wing.

 

[DaveV]

When I travel with my BP/W, I do remove the wing from the BP for easier packing. My plate fits perfectly in my carry-on suitcase, which is just normal carry-on size luggage. I put the plate in the bottom of the suitcase, and fill any gaps using socks or bathing trunks. Mask, computer, flashlights, DSMB, etc stack on top of the plate, and the wing goes in next. I typically remove the inflator hose as the wings lies flatter without it. Then my exposure suit sits on top of all that. I try to be careful about creasing the wing (HOG 32lb) but don't worry about it too much, as long as nothing sharp is anywhere near the wing. I try to be especially careful with the dump valve and the inflator flange. Any space left in the suitcase I use for clothing which helps pad and cushion the dive gear. I usually put my fins and boots in my checked bagged, not carry-on. It's worked out fine for me.

 

[elgoog]

I have a 30lb DSS wing and have folded and rolled it up with no issues. I do it in a way that the OPV and inflator end up on the inside and then wrap the whole thing in a T-shirt or towel. Never had any issues.

 

[divad]

With an almost "legal" rolling-duffle, I lay the upper half of my double fleece in the bottom of the bag followed by a rolled up drysuit, a rolled (or folded and rolled) wing with the removed hose inside, followed by as much t-shirts/socks-underwear as you stuff in, then the lower half of the undergarment and the nicely V-shaped BP for protection. If I have to gate check it, it's fine. Oh yeah, if you remove the inflator hose, put the large washer around the mouthpiece or one of the buttons.

 

[2airishuman]

I have a DSS backplate and 30# wing. I separate them. The backplate goes on the bottom of my carry-on duffel bag. The wing is either folded in quarters, or rolled, and also goes in the carry on. I can fit all my warm-weather diving stuff into my carry on, except for my fins, though I put the line cutter in checked luggage because of (U.S.) security requirements.

I use a duffel rather than a wheeled carry on because it is lighter, easier to store when not traveling, and because it's amorphous shape sometimes allows me to stuff it into places where a wheeled carry on wouldn't fit.

 

[mattia_v]

Thanks for the feedback. Never occurred to me to unscrew the hose, to be honest, but that was the area I was most worried about (weak spot). Will have to start playing around with packing once both sets are in and decide on luggage. The downside I see to a duffle is that I'll need to carry it, and we're not 'just' going diving this time around. Not sure the wheels will be a major advantage, however.

 

[redacted]

The corners on my plates are well rounded. I leave my wings attached when I pack them. Never any problem.

 

[tbone1004]

always separate. The plate can fit on the bottom or side and have whatever you want packed on top of it, and the wing I typically roll like a towel and put in with clothes.

 

[wetb4igetinthewater]

I travel with an XDeep Ghost and a pony bottle. I find that with aluminum tanks, all I need is 3 lbs on my left side and I'm perfectly weighted in a 5 mm wetsuit. However, when I dove in the Greek islands last fall, I was using steel tanks, and I was definitely overweighted, even without any additional weight (but keeping the pony bottle). I know few people bother with a pony when traveling, but I did want to share my experience.