Zeagle Ranger Harness + Stiletto Bladder

[ProfessorAronnax]

I'm not Larry... but I do own a Brigade.

You pretty much nailed the main design feature of the Brigade - a more streamlined bladder.

The Ranger has some 44 pounds of lift, the Brigade (using the Escape wing), has 35.

The two BCs are otherwise identical. Brigade is nothing more than a Ranger with a smaller wing.

-Brandon.

You might want to compare the Escape with the Ranger on the Zeagle Website for an accurate comparison. The Escape is good entry level choice and is constructed of lighter weight pack cloth. The Ranger is more of a tech BC utilized by Public Safety Departments and the Military and is constructed of heavily reinforced ballistic nylon. Of course the Ranger's price point is considerably higher.
All Zeagle BCs are built to last, and the new students should be fine with the Escape type BC.

 

[RonFrank]

I just got a Stiletto, and own a Ranger that is going to auction.

The Brigade is a fine choice. The Stiletto is also an excellent option. I decided that the very slightly wider shoulder straps on the Ranger just did not make much of a difference. In addition the smaller weight pockets, and aux pockets on the Stiletto are plenty for me. Also the Stiletto has rear weight pockets which are built in, and nice, and it has a built in lumbar pad which is great.

The Stiletto is just a more streamlined travel friendly BC vs. the Ranger. Zeagle designed it from the ground up to be rugged, full featured, lightweight, and a great packable BC. I decided that if I ever want to dive doubles I'd likley go with something like the Ranger BP solution. The Stiletto is a great Single tank BC, and after diving it this weekend for the first time I'm nothing but pleased.

IMO, you can not go wrong with Zeagle, but if you want a rugged travel BC, the Stiletto is the way to go unless you really like the extra pocket size. You can add a lumbar pad, rear weight pockets (they actually maybe now included with the Ranger, but I don't think so). What you end up with is the LTD basically, but it will run you another $100, and add weigth and bulk as the LTD lumbar pad is not as compact vs. the Stiletto.

 

[Brandon]

You might want to compare the Escape with the Ranger on the Zeagle Website for an accurate comparison. The Escape is good entry level choice and is constructed of lighter weight pac cloth. The Ranger is more of a tech BC utilized by Public Safety Departments and the Military and is constructed of heavily reinforced 1050 denier ballistic nylon.
All Zeagle BCs are built to last, and the new students should be fine with the Escape/Brigade type BC.

Comparing the Escape with the Ranger is not exactly an accurate comparison.

The Brigade is a Ranger harness with a Escape bladder. Exact same construction and materials with the exception of the wing.

Escape:

Ranger:

Brigade:

It'll end up being that I'm wrong though =)

-Brandon.

 

[pitio]

I've never had a problem with trapped air... is this a technique issue?

Yeah, you could say that. It is just that my Venture wing dumps air quicker. I sometimes have to shake the Brigade to dump air completly, so I guess it is the technique issue. I was blaming the bungee for my poor technique. When I think about Venture wing, it is a donut type bladder, so it should be a bit different from the Escape one.

One last question, The upgrade to the Stiletto Bladder is just the thicker material?
I though Zeagle put tremendous effor to improve this new bladder?
Is there any reason to remove the bungee?
I just love Zeagle stuff. Anything new that is coming out of Zeagle, I would like to know.

 

[Chad Carney]

Yeah, you could say that. It is just that my Venture wing dumps air quicker. I sometimes have to shake the Brigade to dump air completly, so I guess it is the technique issue. I was blaming the bungee for my poor technique. When I think about Venture wing, it is a donut type bladder, so it should be a bit different from the Escape one.

One last question, The upgrade to the Stiletto Bladder is just the thicker material?
I though Zeagle put tremendous effor to improve this new bladder?
Is there any reason to remove the bungee?
I just love Zeagle stuff. Anything new that is coming out of Zeagle, I would like to know.

pitio,

The Ranger/Stiletto BC combination would be a fine, versatile & rugged BC, that many dealers have considered. I don't know if many have been sold or created in the field by swapping components, but would not doubt it.

During the developement of the Stiletto many of the Ranger features were considered. But by choosing the lighter harness the Stiletto turned out to be a Testers Choice in SM as a travel BC.

In the Stiletto photos below, (deflated, inflated and web pic), you can see that the bladder does have the the bungees, but also has the winglets with clips. They do not block the pockets and do further streamline the BC.

The Brigade is a fine BC, more versatile than a Stiletto, and certainly tough enough for the majority of recreational divers. If you're looking for a super-streamlined single tank BC that can take lots of extra abuse, the Stiletto is it! It is made of 1000 denier cordura material throughout.

The Stiletto bladder has now been assembled as a BP&W too! It's great on the aluminum BP for traveling divers.

Thanks for the Zeagle complement! Stay tuned for more new Zeagle products this spring.

Chad
Zeagle FL Rep.