Zeagle Zena Question

[elinox]

I absolutely loved the fit of the Zena on dry land and had my heart set on buying it as my first BCD. However, one dive shop owner swears by them and says they're her absolute favorite and fine for warm and cold water diving while another dive shop owner (she uses the Zeagle Ranger instead) says they're not so great for cold water dives because they don't provide as much lift with the added 7mm wetsuit and weights needed.

I'm petite and will be mostly doing warm water dives. However, I want the opportunity to do quarry dives in the summer, so ultimately my BCD has to be okay in colder waters too.

Has anyone experienced issues with lift in colder waters with the Zena? Also, is there anything else I should be concerned about with this particular BCD?

Thoughts/opinions are appreciated, thanks!

 

[DiveMaven]

I've done many dives with my Zena in a 7mm full suit with 20 pounds of weight. This is with an older Zena that only has 24 pounds of lift. The new Zenas have 31 pounds of lift, so would definitely be fine for cold water diving.

The only "caution" I will give you regarding the Zena is that IMO it has to be adjusted and worn properly for maximum comfort and zero movement during your dive. I can help you with that if you're interested.

From personal experience, I've had my Zena since 2006, have well over 500 dives on it, and it is the ONLY piece of equipment I haven't replaced since I started diving.

 

[elinox]

I can help you with that if you're interested.

That would be awesome, thanks. And if you have any recommendations for other gear too!

 

[DiveMaven]

The first thing to embrace is that the "corset" is designed to fit lower than you might initally think in looking at it. The top strap should sit at your natural waist, or below the rib cage if you're like me and don't have much of a natural waist.

The easiest way to get the perfect fit is while horizontal in the water at the start of your dive. Once you're in the water, begin your descent and go horizontal. Loosen all of your straps, pull down your Zena until the middle strap is below your rib cage, and begin tightening the straps from the BOTTOM up. The last straps you tighten are the shoulder straps, and then you're just taking the slack out. If you've tightened the body straps right, your Zena will never move, roll, or shift during your dive.

When tight, ideally your straps will still have room for more tightening when wearing your thickest suit. So in a 7mm full, I have about 50% left, and in a 3mm full, I have about 25% left. This gives me the wiggle room to even don a dry suit if I want.

Hints from experience: When boat diving, just tighten the straps enough to make your tank stable as you get off the boat. Then loosen everything up when you hit the water. For shore diving, tighten your shoulder section all the way down and take some of the slack out of the corset while you enter and exit the water. Having your tank higher on your back while walking will be more comfortable and stable. Once in the water you can loosen things up and adjust during your descent.

As far as other gear, best advice is TRY BEFORE YOU BUY! Don't buy something just because someone else thinks its the greatest thing since sliced bread. You should try it if others like it, but figure out what you like, what is comfortable, and what will meet your needs, then buy that gear. This is true for ALL of your gear. You want to be comfortable in the water so you can enjoy your dive and not think about what you're wearing.

 

[elinox]

Thanks for the tips!

While I would love to try all my gear before buying it, there aren't any shops in my area that rent out things like fins or dive computers. If the owners have things, they've been more than willing to let me try things though. For example, last week I tried the boss' wife's Mares fins. Unfortunately, I really want to get my hands on a pair of Aqualung fins but no one seems to have them, which means I can't try them.

But I agree, buying for what you want/feel comfortable in is the most important thing! I'm just looking for ideas in case I missed something!

 

[DiveMaven]

Okay, so I'll share my gear so you'll hear other opinions. I've been diving a Zeagle regulator since I got certified. I have a Flathead VI with an Envoy octo (which used to be my primary before I upgraded). My husband dives a Zeagle Flathead 7 with an Envoy octo (my old secondary!). We both find our Zeagle regs to be bulletproof in reliability and breatheability. They breathe as we'll at 10 feet as well as they do at 145 feet (our deepest dive).

I have Mares Quaatro Excel fins and have found them to be excellent for all types of kicks. I typically frog kick and they provide enough stiffness to be efficient, but not so stiff as to cause cramps. For a computer, I have an Oceanic VT3 horseless computer with transmitter. I have a set of back up gauges in case of computer or transmitter failure, which has happened once in over 6 years.

They key is finding what works for you and go diving as much as possible!