Triple-L Stratos vs. Taurus...plus Libra

[Moogyboy]

hey all

Been away for a while but now I'm back for a bit...

I've been thinking lately about replacing my old Dacor Nautica BC in time for next year and after looking around at mostly name-brand stuff I've gotten very interested in Triple-L's line (thanks to a tip from a poster on this forum...I mean, thanks, poster!). This is excellent stuff from the the looks of it. I will probably go with another of the jacket-style BCs, with the Stratos being the front runner according to the good reviews I've read about it here. Here's the sticky: they also have the Taurus, which in their words is heavy-duty and no-frills. It's also a good $30 cheaper. Wow...what's up with that, what's the real difference, and would the Taurus be a good choice over the Stratos? I wouldn't say I'm a heavy-duty diver who's rough on my gear or who uses it every day, but I'm tempted by that perceived extra margin of durability, not to mention the price.

Also, I noticed the Triple-L Libra, which looks like a copy of Scubapro's Stab Jacket. I've always been intrigued by this design and was wondering if there is anything to be said for getting one of those instead? One thing I noticed, btw, is that their photo of the Libra doesn't show a conventional inflator hose attached. Am I to assume it doesn't have one??

Fyi, most of my diving is in local quarries and some quite-cool water, although I plan to take some more trips to the tropics soon, which means that usually I'd be wearing my BC over either a 3mm shorty or a 6.5mm full suit. I'm a straight recreational diver, no tech stuff in the near future for me. The Nautica fits okay and works pretty well, but it's quite old and being a former rental/training BC from my LDS it's becoming quite worn around the edges. And faded brown. Besides, my cummerbund has a habit of coming undone (especially when jumping into the water and/or wearing my full suit). Not confidence-inducing.

Anywho, that's all for now...any insights shall be appreciated.

cheers,

Billy S.

 

[cinder4320]

I own the Libra. It does not have the traditional inflator but has a dry suit inflator valve. Its stationary on your chest so it always easy to find. You can see a good pic of it on their website. The oral inflator is located right above it and can be done without hands. I am a total newbie (8dives) and found no problem getting used to this style. Now that I have it I wouldn't change. The air release is through dump valves. One on the chest and one on the butt. You can deflate through the oral inflator but it isn't practical. The sizes run a bit big so if you are inbetween sizes I would go to the smaller one. This holds true for the Stratus too which my b/f has.
The downs of the Libra that I have found so far are that the ring to attach your console is located low on the jacket. I have gotten a console holder(the bungee type) which relieved this problem. The inflator turned out to be a blessing. There is no hose to find and its always in place. Also there is no way you can accidently hit the wrong button and sump instead of inflate or vice versa. Those shouldn't happen on a normal BC anyways with proper training but with this one there is no chance of it happening. The sideways pocket at midlevel chest is awesome for tiny things. Also you can't beat the cost of replacement weight pockets! It is easy to get horizontal in and bouyancy control is simple too. Overall I feel just as comfortable in this BC as I did in the $500 one I did my certification in.

Miranda

 

[timle]

Yup I dive the Stratos with my girlfriend above diving the Libra. I bought a large and it fits fine with the straps all the way in but I would have gone with a medium if I knew I could get away with it. I'm 185# and 5'11".

The stratos is made of 840 denier nylon, the taurus 420.
The stratos has 7 stainless steel rings and 4 plastic. The taurus has 8 plastic rings.
The stratos is weight integrated - if you care.

I'd take the stratos over the taurus (and I did) pay the extra 30 and get a nice gear bag with it for free. The bag is nice and really big.

The drop pockets are so cheap I ordered an extra set when we bought the stratos and libra just so we have them on hand if something happened to one during a dive.