Zeagle Tech Pac

[ebbe]

Zeagle seems to be good quality.

I got an offer for a new Zeagle Tech PAC - and would like to hear more from you before any purchase.

Anyone with experience on this ? Is it a regular BP/W - so it can be changed like others?

Is the Zeagle Tech Pac discontinued and when ? Any concerns on parts or accessories ?

Or simply; Go or no go?

I'm a wetsuit diver with a focus on nature and wrecks in cold and hot water. Adding my son to the adventure and is also considering a set for him.

 

[Thunder Struck]

Zeagle seems to be good quality.

I got an offer for a new Zeagle Tech PAC - and would like to hear more from you before any purchase.

Anyone with experience on this ? Is it a regular BP/W - so it can be changed like others?

Is the Zeagle Tech Pac discontinued and when ? Any concerns on parts or accessories ?

Or simply; Go or no go?

I'm a wetsuit diver with a focus on nature and wrecks in cold and hot water. Adding my son to the adventure and is also considering a set for him.

I don’t see it listed on their web site so I’m guessing discontinued.

From your picture it bears resemblance to the Dive Rite TransPAC. Basically a soft “plate” and wing style setup.

The wing on the unit you pictured looks like a horseshoe but tethered at the ends. The horseshoe shape doesn’t move gas around as easily as a donut style.

How does the price compare to current offerings on the Zeagle web site? The closest I see in the Tech Express at under $500. Linky.

It looks like you will need to add weight pouches. The 20# pouch set on the TransPAC I just got for my wife is pretty slick and can be oriented vertically or horizontally. Those pouches can be purchased individually for any backplate style setup.

I’d also replace that plastic belt buckle with a stainless.

Assuming the bladder doesn’t have any leaks, I’d look closely at the corrugated hose. Depending on the environment/climate it’s been stored the can dry rot and crack/tear over the years. Had that happen to a couple BCDs stored in the back of a bedroom closet for a number of years living in the low humidity of the Mojave.

 

[ebbe]

I don’t see it listed on their web site so I’m guessing discontinued.

From your picture it bears resemblance to the Dive Rite TransPAC. Basically a soft “plate” and wing style setup.

The wing on the unit you pictured looks like a horseshoe but tethered at the ends. The horseshoe shape doesn’t move gas around as easily as a donut style.

How does the price compare to current offerings on the Zeagle web site? The closest I see in the Tech Express at under $500. Linky.

It looks like you will need to add weight pouches. The 20# pouch set on the TransPAC I just got for my wife is pretty slick and can be oriented vertically or horizontally. Those pouches can be purchased individually for any backplate style setup.

I’d also replace that plastic belt buckle with a stainless.

Assuming the bladder doesn’t have any leaks, I’d look closely at the corrugated hose. Depending on the environment/climate it’s been stored the can dry rot and crack/tear over the years. Had that happen to a couple BCDs stored in the back of a bedroom closet for a number of years living in the low humidity of the Mojave.

Good points

Its unused and stored well in store - but haven't seen it yet. Price is around 428 USD and (too) close to the same for at fresh new item.

We also consider BP/W - and will end up near or above 700 USD

 

[Thunder Struck]

Good points

Its unused and stored well in store - but haven't seen it yet. Price is around 428 USD and (too) close to the same for at fresh new item.

We also consider BP/W - and will end up near or above 700 USD

Found a page with the breakdown of the Zeagle Tech Pac:

The Tech Pac from Zeagle

Tech Pac fra Zeagle En vinge / BCD til den krævende dykker

It has a 65# lift bladder. Even for doubles (which it looks like the Zeagle Tech Pac is intended for) that's a lot of bladder, it'd be a lot of unneccesary extra drag if you are looking to run a single tank on it. And if you were running doubles, you'd likely be much more comfortable in a regular backplate setup with a crotch strap. I also wouldn't want doubles hanging off plastic clips on the shoulder straps.

Does that Zeagle come with a single tank adapter or at the very least straps for a single tank setup?

It doesn't appear to come with weight pouches, so add those into your cost comparison. On that note, when pricing BP/W systems, ensure weight pockets are present as many do not include them as part of their package.

Also if you are expecting to have a storage or shell pocket on the BCD BP/W kits seldom include those but are available as add-ons. Most regular BCDs will have some sort of pocket(s) for something like a whistle and signal mirror at the very least.

Zeagle had been around for a hot minute and has cataloged the Ranger BCD for just short of forever. I seem to remeber seeing them on dive boats in 1999 when I first started, and given how robust their construction appeared, are probably still diving today. That the Tech Pac model didn't stick around in their catalog and has what appears to be a limited user base (determined from basic web searching) tells me it was a swing and a miss in the market for a reason.

At the end of the day, what is your budget, what features are you looking for, and what is your use case? Traveling, frequency of diving, type of diving, etc.

 

[happy-diver]

Zeagle makes magnificent long hard wearing stuff however the tech pack is not for new divers with a single tank

 

[ebbe]

Straight answer

happy-diver:
Zeagle makes magnificent long hard wearing stuff however the tech pack is not for new divers with a single tank

yes 65# is too much

At the end of the day, what is your budget, what features are you looking for, and what is your use case? Traveling, frequency of diving, type of diving, etc.

Budget /Benefit-factor is a bit open - On a product lifespan the extra bucks is ok.
My old BCD is still ok and has made it well through 24 years but is a bit too big for me.

Son is a new diver - (age 16 -180cm/5'11 and tall at the moment - so a bit slim for the next few years.

We are diving around Europe and home ; from beach, boat and 12-15 ltr. tanks are all good - if we go with a bd/w we might consider getting 2*7 ltr. later in the future.
- Weight is a factor by plane
- We does'nt bring a lot of stuff down when diving
- only recreational dives