Zeagle Ranger vrs Stiletto

[halocline]

Go with the ranger period. As a DM i dive year round and have been diving dry for over 2 years now. The issue is that depending on what undergarment you dive you will need the higher lift of the ranger to account for extra lead a lofty undergarment will need and this does not account for the possibility of diving a steel tank.

The material your tank is made of has no bearing on your lift needs, unless you're advocating being overweighted. Needing 44 lbs of lift is extremely unusual for single tank diving.

 

[BoltSnap]

I don't think either of the BCs you're considering are good ideas

And why is that? If it isn't your "idea", it isn't good? Zeagle BC's are now no good according to your all knowing good self?


Incredible!!!

 

[Instructor_Tom]

Im always amazed at the arrogance of posters whom have thousands of posts, but no reference in their profile as to certs, or dive history. Seems like a lot of arm chair divers in this forum....

The OP should consider this when evaluating the advice they get..


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD

 

[BoltSnap]

The material your tank is made of has no bearing on your lift needs

You mean the material of the Tank that has direct relationship to its buoyancy characteristics isn't relevant to weighting and BC lift?

BTW, do you use a drysuit and different thermals at different times with different buoyancy characteristics?

---------- Post added March 11th, 2014 at 04:54 AM ----------

buying something because the instructional/sales staff at your shop uses it is doing exactly what they want you to do as a student.

And of course no thread about equipment is complete without the insinuation that the LDS staff and instructors are no good for nothing air heads that just use any piece of equipment without any knowledge or experience simply to screw their students and clients for a quick buck. I guess we should never ask for any type of equipment advice at LDS', bike stores, fishing gear stores, etc. Yep, let's just ignore their advice and expertise.

 

[Colliam7]

Over the last few weeks I have looked at various BCD's and one that really sticks out ( and feels great on) is the Ranger. . . . . I expect I will be in the range of 30 dives a year ( half in warm water and the other half drysuit diving in cold water) I am questioning if I really need the Ranger as it seems almost to be a Tec Bcd. I will be going on my open water drysuit dive in a week and will find out what I need for weight then but my instructor said he is guessing at about 30 lbs.

The Ranger is a great BCD. It was my first BCD, I still own it 12 years later. Zeagle customer service has been absolutely superb, and I have seen no change after Huish bought them.

Having said that, I would not recommend it for your intended use, as stated. Rather, before making a purchase, I would try a diving a steel backplate and a 30-35lb wing, in your drysuit. The issue with the Ranger is that it is inherently positively buoyant. You end up adding lead just to compensate for that buoyancy. I much prefer reducing the amount of lead I have to add, and going with a BCD that is inherently negative (a SS BP with an appropriate wing) is one way to do that.

At 44 lbs of lift, the Ranger is oversized for single cylinder diving. Look at some (properly weighted) divers in the water in a Ranger with a single cylinder, and notice the conspicuous taco of the wing. Most divers who profess love for their Ranger seldom see themselves in the water.

I have often said that the Ranger is a very comfortable fitting BCD - on the surface. It feels like I have put on a tailored sport jacket. And, that has absolutely nothing to do with its functionality nor does the 'feel' on the surface really mean anything (unless, possibly, you are hiking in scuba gear).

If you buy a Ranger, as a newer diver, it won't be a bad choice. You won't be unhappy. I personally think a wiser choice would be something less 'floaty'. That was the path I ultimately went down, and my Ranger sits unused in a closet.

I'm wondering if there are other divers out there using either of these for warm and cold water diving that could give me their thoughts?

I have used my Ranger for both and it worked well. Now, having said that, a note of explanation about my comment on Zeagle service:

Diving a drysuit in my Ranger, even with a steel cylinder, I needed an enormous amount of added weight (the 30ld your instructor mentioned is in the ballpark). It was so much weight that I essentially overstuffed the integrated weight pockets on the Ranger. Over time, this caused the fabric around the pockets to tear. Several years ago - after I had stopped diving the rig - I decided to have the tears repaired, in anticipation of selling it in the future. Because I bought it new through a local shop, I was able to obtain a copy of the sales receipt. I contacted Zeagle, who provided a code (RMA) and I shipped the unit to them. They repaired it superbly, and quickly, and the only thing I paid for was the shipping from NC to FL. So, I have nothing but good things to say about Zeagle service. And, yes, the Ranger is well built. But, it is not so well built to withstand the effects of stuffing the pockets with the enormous amount of weight necessary for diving a single cylinder with a positively buoyant BCD and a drysuit (nor is any other fabric BCD for that matter, I am not picking on the Ranger).

My bottom line - for what you describe as the kind of diving you are doing, at least consider as steel BP. Ultimately, it is your money, and you will spend it as you choose. But, having been in almost exactly your situation a number of years ago, had I to do it over again, I would not buy a Ranger.

 

[Aqua-Andy]

One other issue I have with the Ranger is the pockets. If you dive like a seahorse they are great but if you dive in horizontal trim they suck. When you look at the Ranger notice the position of the zipper on the pockets. The zipper is in an arc starting from the bottom front of the pocket and ends at the top back of the pocket. When you are diving in horizontal trim the zipper opens from the bottom and the contents fall out when you go to open the zipper.

 

[AFdivedoc]

The Ranger is a great BCD. It was my first BCD, I still own it 12 years later. Zeagle customer service has been absolutely superb, and I have seen no change after Huish bought them.


At 44 lbs of lift, the Ranger is oversized for single cylinder diving. Look at some (properly weighted) divers in the water in a Ranger with a single cylinder, and notice the conspicuous taco of the wing. Most divers who profess love for their ranger seldom see themselves in the water.

I have often said that the Ranger is a very comfortable fitting BCD - on the surface. It feels like I have put on a tailored sport jacket. And, that has absolutely nothing to do with its functionality nor does the 'feel' on the surface really mean anything (unless, possibly, you are hiking in scuba gear).

If you buy a Ranger, as a newer diver, it won't be a bad choice. You won't be unhappy. I personally think a wiser choice would be something less 'floaty'. That was the path I ultimately went down, and my Ranger sits unused in a closet.I have used my Ranger for both and it worked well. Now, having said that, a note of explanantion about my comment on Zeagle service.

Diving a drysuit in my Ranger, even with a steel cylinder, I needed an enormous amount of added weight (the 30ld your instructor mentioned is in the ballpark. It was sop much weight that I essentially overstuffed the integrated weight pockets on the Ranger. Over time, this caused the fabric around the pockets to tear. Several years ago - after I had stopped diving the rig, I decided to have the tears repaired, in anticipation of selling it in the future. because I bought it new through a local shop, I was able to obtain a copy of the sales receipt. I contacted Zeagle, who provided a code (RMA) and I shipped the unit to them. They repaired it superbly, and quickly, and the only thing I paid for was the shipping from NC to FL. So, I have nothing but good things to say about Zeagle service. And, yes, the Ranger is well built. But, it is not so well built to withstand the effects of stuffing the pockets with the enormous amount of weight necessary for diving a single cylinder with a positively buoyant BCD and a drysuit (nor is any other fabric BCD for that matter, I am not picking on the Ranger).

My bottom line - for what you describe as the kind of diving you are doing, at least consider as steel BP. Ultimately, it is your money, and you will spend it as you choose. But, having been in almost exactly your situation a number of years ago, had I to do it over agin, I would not buy a ranger.

I too have a Ranger that I bought as my first BCD. I bought it along with a Tec--both second hand. The Ranger was several years old when I got it, and still is in great shape, giving me years of great diving. Like you , I always found the 44 lb lift wing a bit much, and I rarely use it these days. The Tec was older, had seen more use, and had some frayed pockets, so I contacted Zeagle to see how much it would cost to fix. They were very accommodating, and even though I had to pay for parts, it was still very reasonable. I agree their customer service is excellent. I changed out the way-too-big 65 lb wing for a 35 lb Brigade wing, and had a very versatile BCD which is still going strong. I've used it for everything from warm water dive trips to drysuit diving and I still use it a lot for my single tank diving. I occasionally dive old double hose regs, and I've found that I'm able to rethread the top cam band down 3 inches or so from the normal position, and I can wear the tank lower to get the double hose reg closer to my shoulder blades, where is is supposed to be. That rig is closer to the Stiletto in profile and lift capability, and is more useful to me nowadays.

I use BP/W for back mounted doubles, and increasingly for my single tank diving. Those old Zeagles won't wear out soon, though, so I'll keep using them as well.

 

[enduser]

Dove a Ranger and loved it. Got a good deal on a Brigade (Ranger with smaller bladder) so switched. Brigade is all the good of the Ranger without the overkill of the 44lb wing.

Zeagle makes a great product and you will not be unhappy with either the Ranger, Brigade, or Stiletto.

Even better 2-3 peeps on this thread have said they have a Ranger sitting in the closet. Maybe buy one up used and save some $$ you can spend on diving.

 

[halocline]

You mean the material of the Tank that has direct relationship to its buoyancy characteristics isn't relevant to weighting and BC lift?


And of course no thread about equipment is complete without the insinuation that the LDS staff and instructors are no good for nothing air heads that just use any piece of equipment without any knowledge or experience simply to screw their students and clients for a quick buck. I guess we should never ask for any type of equipment advice at LDS', bike stores, fishing gear stores, etc. Yep, let's just ignore their advice and expertise.

Well, it looks like I hurt your feelings, so sorry about that!

Yes, the tank material has no-zero--bearing on BC lift needed, unless it causes a diver to be overweighted. BC lift needs to compensate for exposure suit compression and the weight of the gas, and float the rig without the diver in it, that's it. As a dive professional giving valuable advice, you do know that, don't you?

My comment about not buying gear simply because the dive shop staff uses that gear is a fair and accurate statement. I didn't insinuate anything about their knowledge, experience, etc....only that divers should purchase gear based on evaluation of their needs, not solely on the personal preferences of the folks at the shop where they sell the gear.

The OP in this thread needs a lot of ballast, and as such, would be a good candidate for a steel backplate. That's why I don't think buying either of the BCs, especially without trying the plate, is a good idea. I'm really really very sorry if that upsets you.

 

[BoltSnap]

Yes, the tank material has no-zero--bearing on BC lift needed, unless it causes a diver to be overweighted. BC lift needs to compensate for exposure suit compression and the weight of the gas, and float the rig without the diver in it, that's it. As a dive professional giving valuable advice, you do know that, don't you?

So AL 80 Tank is the same as Steel 15L same as 10L as 18L and the lift of the BC isn't relevant?

My comment about not buying gear simply because the dive shop staff uses that gear is a fair and accurate statement. I didn't insinuate anything about their knowledge, experience, etc....only that divers should purchase gear based on evaluation of their needs, not solely on the personal preferences of the folks at the shop where they sell the gear.

And this experienced staff who have seen many types of people and worked with them and helped them with their issues and needs can't provide guidance and help for the diver to choose their equipment, right? Let's forget experience and professionalism and go out and do it all over and hope that we get it right someday.