BCD Myths Fact Or Fiction 

I was thinking the same. Not to say either system is "bad", but if you have a guy who's spent thousands of hours underwater, he's going to correct for any deficiency in the design without even thinking about it because he's had to do it a hundred times before.

You make a great point Mark Vincent Cocjin.

Very true. We still try to focus on the diver manipulating his or her own body versus relying on the equipment to do it for them. But at the end of the day, we encourage all divers to use what makes them feel comfortable.

Hello Geoff waterman, glad you liked the video. You are correct, leaning back to stay vertical can be an issue in heavy current situations. This is where the Jacket Style BCD can perform slightly better. One of the reasons is its basic design. By surrounding your body with air instead of having it all behind you can really help with staying vertical at the surface.

Thank You, glad you found our video helpful.

Brian Donovan I have the sam problem....can’t wait to try this

Glad you liked the video Marcio De Souza, hope it helps.

Glad you liked the video D Dacombe.

Glad you liked the video Graham F.

That is a great video topic Lance. I will see if we can get one made for you. Thanks for the suggestion.

Thanks Binford400. I fall on the Back Plate and Wing System side too, as my go to system, but after 31 years I have found that the system itself doesn't matter to me, as I can wear any and all and feel comfortable.

Hello john metyk, glad you liked the video.

Hello Kris, glad you like our videos. Several other viewers have stated that the test was flawed because in an unconscious diver scenario, they believe the Back Plate and Wing would tip the diver forward. This is always a possibility. The same would occur for the over weighted diver, with all his weight in his front weight pouches, while using a Jacket Style BCD. As another viewer stated, relying more so on the equipment instead of the diver's own ability to manipulate their body in the water, is creating a crutch. It is completely understandable that an unconscious diver will not have any control over his body, and if this is something they constantly worry about, then it should be a determining factor in what gear they feel the most comfortable with. For me personally, I have never focused on the "What If" I go unconscious while diving. Take a way all the solo diving that I do 7 days a week here in our lake, we preach to always have a buddy to our students, thus always having a redundancy plan in place for that exact situation. If a diver is truly worried about his health being an issue while diving, then that is the first contraindication that he should not be diving until he is feeling better. There is nothing wrong with being prepared for the "What If Moments" in life, but at the same time, we can't always focus on ever "What If Moment" or we would never go diving. Look at it like this, "What If" I get in a car wreck tomorrow because a drunk driver runs a red light and I die in a car wreck. Well I better stay at home and not go diving. Some things are simply out of our control. Life is too short not to go diving. So I choose to go diving. Now to address the Elephant in the room. Staying Horizontally Trimmed without moving a diver's legs, feet, fins, hands, arms, etc., etc. The short of it is, we (or should I say "I") do not train robots that only move on command. We train divers. Since 1988, I can't think of a single time I have ever been perfectly still for more than a few seconds in the water. If I am doing underwater photography, I am constantly moving around, backing up, or turning just to get the right angle of shot. If I am teaching, I constantly am looking after several students, and will have to turn slightly to see the entire group, even when I am just on a fun relaxed dive, with no real purpose, my human nature or tendencies kick in, and I fidget. The only time I can think I was perfectly still with out any type of movement, is when I am laying on the bottom stalking a fish. As stated, we do not train robots, we train divers.

@@LakeHickoryScuba Good points. Might be an interesting video to test which BCD's if any would hold an unconscious diver upright. My guess is that most will not. Nor would they turn a diver over to float face up. After-all, these are BCD's. Not lifejackets. Although when we dive we are moving most of the time there are some times where it's nice to just hover motionless. I'm thinking on a drift dive or deco stop. Personally, I find that when my balance and weight is setup to allow an effortless horizontal hover, everything else becomes easier. I've got from a traditional style BCD to sidemount and love how much easier it is to hover and hold trim. Recently I've also added a backplate and wing into my repertoire and have been amazed how much easier it is to use than traditional BCD's. Makes me like diving backmount almost as much as sidemount now :)

Like you I personally do prefer a Back Plate and Wing System over the more traditional Jacket Style, but feel comfortable no matter what I wear. If I had my way, I would only dive Sidemount. I stopped using back mounted doubles well over 10 years ago, and my back has thanked me for it every since. Unfortunately though, I do so much diving for other purposes, I still have to lug one of those heavy cylinders on my back 7 days a week. We may try to do another BCD comparison in the future, just for the specific purpose of seeing what would happen to an unconscious diver at the surface. We have no doubt, some viewers would comment that the brand of gear would make a difference, and it would be impossible for us to test every brand and style out there. But you do make a great point, we use BCD's and not Life Jackets.

If you're worry about that you may consider looking for a more attentive dive buddy who will look up for you. Never dive alone 👌🤙

Hello Patrick Ng, we have several videos showing you how to do just that. Here is how we attach out lift bags for salvage diving. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2bGKHGcb_oA.html

Hello Shawn Skiver, glad you liked our videos and find them helpful.

You're welcome Ken, glad you liked the video.

Thanks Christopher Dunshie, glad you liked the video.

You make some great argument points Petr Sedlak.

@@LakeHickoryScuba I like your video because I like when anyone is challenging people to learn and to do educated decisions. Don't buy stuff just because someone told you. Think of it. What do you expect from your gear? How would you like to dive? How often, where? Learn a lot. Even about things you most probably won't do at all. Just because it is fun and you never know when this knowledge would be handy for you. There are great ideas like DIR. And even lovers of DIR may be misguided. Once it would become a religion for someone, the point is lost. Your video is great for making people better informed. So they can do better decisions. I love that. And what I love the most is, when a seller is honestly educating people, not just selling something.

Hello Marial, glad you liked our video.

You're welcome tunaman2200, glad you liked our video.

@@LakeHickoryScuba I'm doing a cavern course and I'm really having trouble staying trim when I'm trying to stay put in one spot and make my tie offs. The lower half of my body will not stay up no matter how hard I try to fight it. I have a wing style BCD Aqualung Rogue. I put my weight in the trim Pockets around the tank strap and I'm only using three to four pounds. my cave instructor is really good, awesome, experienced, world-renowned, but I'm struggling. I just bought a katana 2 sidemount in hopes that the low position of the bladder will help keep my back end stay up. What do you think?

Hello Mark Bennett, glad to hear that the system worked for you.

You are welcome Jan Sirkia.

You're welcome Kevin. We constantly see divers over inflating their BCD's at the surface. During an emergency, it is completely understandable, but how often does the average diver encounter an emergency at the surface. We took this into consideration during the video.

Amen, Kevin. I'm guilty of doing that. Now I know.... Thanks for the tip!

Hello Anti Gravity Divers Perhentian, I believe trim is more on the diver than weight placement. Yes, weight placement makes things easier, but divers should have complete control of their on bodies. Thankfully though, you can always add additional weight pouches to cam straps, and you can also strap them directly to the tank itself if needed.

You're welcome Bill, glad you liked our video.

Hello Darren, the key to making any BCD work for you is to simply dive it and get familiar with it. Also remember to never let the equipment manipulate you, you should always be able to manipulate the equipment.

Hello Stormblessed. Most modern day Jacket Style BCD's have a newer design built in, so that the shoulder straps don't actually fill up with air, as they did in the past. This eliminates air getting trapped in the upper regions of the BCD. They also have glides on them, which allows for the pocket areas to slide around to the side of the body and adjust as air is added. This allows air to constantly be shifted to the back area of a diver, simulating what a back inflate system does for a diver.

@@LakeHickoryScuba thanks for the reply Brian.

You’re welcome.

Hello Rick Wilson. One of the things we teach in the SSI Perfect Buoyancy Course, is proper trim. Manipulating your system is key, and divers should never let the system manipulate them. By shifting weights around (as you suggested using a weight belt), is just one way to help trim youself while in the water (even at the surface). My first suggestion to you is to breathe and relax. BCD's are designed to keep you positive at the surface, this means just enough to keep your head out of the water. A lot of divers try to float themselves at chest level, and this can cause several issues when trying new BCD's. The more you dive with the new system, the more comfortable you will become with it. Hope this helps.

Hello hcamisotti, we have actually did a video on this. I will link it here for you. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-r0MPhC7nuBA.html

Hello Cody Seren, glad you liked the video, sorry about the audio levels.

Thank you Josh D.

You're welcome.

Great question Jack Grant. Most divers tend not to trust their BCD's lift. So they will inflate it to the max. This can cause a diver to tilt forward as all that air wants to go up. By simply relaxing and not over weighting yourself this can be prevented.

I find the biggest reason these stigmata's exist is, new divers tend to forget that they are still in complete control of their bodies while underwater. They all seem to fall into the trap of letting their equipment take over the control of their body's position in the water column. One thing that I tell all my Open Water students is, "Make sure you manipulate the equipment, never the equipment manipulate you."

Thanks Benard Hackett, glad you liked it.

All very true, and great points as well.

You're welcome Marly.

Typically, underwater, I rarely use any air, as all of my rigs are balanced. At the surface, I tend to put just enough air in the bladder to hold my head out of the water. If you follow us on Instragram, you can see plenty of pictures of my above and below water.

You are very correct Mitch Roberts.

Glad you liked the video dre64. Sorry to hear that the XL did not work for you. Typically, with back plate and wings, divers will choose a single peice harness, that is custom fit to the diver for the perfect fit. This helps eliminate the roll. With the Hybrid, one option you can choose to do (if you didn't want to drop down a size) is to add a crotch strap. This will help you stabilize the system.

@@LakeHickoryScuba I could consider changing the size but I think in case of this BCD it would be too big drop down (those are in sizes M/L and then next one is already XL). I think it will work in cold Dutch waters (wearing 7mm suit) but I'd like to use that one also in tropical environment (striped down to a bare wing of course). I also looked at similar semi-wing models from Mares (Pure, Bolt, Magellan). Maybe you could advice me on those three. What are main differences, pros and cons of each one. I've already read a lot about those of course but you're an expert when it comes to Mares equipment and can give more practical tips I hope...

You're welcome Jose, glad you liked the video.

You make a very solid point Steve Just Saying. All the more reason for all divers to get out and train and much as possible.

Hello Adrian Corduneanu, you make a very good point. However, a few things to remember are. 1, BCD's in general typically come in 3 types of bladder configurations. Horseshoe, Donut, and 3/4 designs. All 3 have pros and cons in regards to trim. The placement of the air trapped in the bladder effects trim but can be overcome by training and experience of a given diver. 2, thanks to the density of water, compared to air, the resistance of the human profile in a body of water, assist divers in staying in a horizontal position, dependent upon the location of the trapped air in the BCD bladder. Thus, the training and experience of any given diver can overcome the difficiancies of the style or type of BCD. In regards to the compensation of compression of your wetsuit at depth, a divers should strive to be properly weighted from the get go. By doing so, he or she not only will have a more consistant and balanced rig, but the said rig will never be to the point where being overweight would out weight (pun intended) the amount of air needed to be added at depth to remain nuetrally buoyant. Also, a lot of divers tend to confuse buoyancy with trim. These are two completely different things divers have to learn to control. Here is a video we did a while back, explaing the differences in trim and buoyancy, and another video we did on balanced rigs. Hopefully, you will find them interesting and educationally. Trim vs Buoyancy (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2bEOXAPEC8A.html) Balanced Rigs (ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-uYeuBJkWxQ4.html)

@@LakeHickoryScuba Thanks, my point is that at depth, with a wetsuit, the BCD will have a lot more air in it, so ability to manage how it affects your trim becomes more important, as you said, with different air pockets in different places. But I agree that with experience a diver learns how to manage that, and is likely able to compensate to still maintain whatever trim they want.

As far as the BCD is concerned, no. The regulator on the other hand, we always recommend a cold water regulator for cold water diving.

Hello Aiden Martinez, the easiest thing is to simply go diving as much as possible and develope muscle memory in your legs. Now until this occurrs, you can simply change to a lighter fin, which will help with buoyancy as well. We did a video that explains this, hope it helps. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2bEOXAPEC8A.html

I have to admit Lars, I am on the side that hates a snorkel, unless I am snorkeling of course. But with that being said, I agree with you completely. I do carry a rolled up snorkel with me at times, and will throw it on at the last minute, during a safety stop, so I can use it at the surface. As far as swimming on my back or on my belly, it all depends on how far the surface swim is going to be. For short swims, I primarily will always swim on my back, but if there is going to be some considerable amount of distance, having the snorkel really helps so that I can roll over and swim in a more nature position.

I don't mind a snorkel at all, but I also don't like extra junk. So I don't take one if I'm boat diving or something where I know I won't be surface swimming much. I much prefer swimming face down with a snorkel over backwards.

Hello Brett Kramer. The Jacket BCD you seen in the video has two front pockets and two trim pouches in the back. I am fortunate enough that in a 3 mm, I do not need any weights, so there were no weights in the BCD at the time of the video.

@@LakeHickoryScuba Interesting, thank you.

Um. Sorry towards the end you answered my question . Thanks

Here is a video that may help you as well. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2bEOXAPEC8A.html

You're welcome

Thanks Chad, glad you liked the video.

It could, thus the need to make sure you have a proper fitting BCD.

You're welcome Darren. The more you practice with your equipment, the better you will get.

As the Ghostbusters would say, "I ain't afraid of no ghost." LOL

@@LakeHickoryScuba even my instructor kept getting pulled around while explaining the lesson. Even simply scuba mentioned "the pool ghost" once lol.

I must have missed that episode from Simply Scuba, I will go see if I can find it. Seems kind of spooky.

@@LakeHickoryScuba i think its funny scuba storries... Something like that, he mentions the dive master hving problems during the refresher lol

I will definitely look it up. I know Mark, the main personality on their channel has a live Q&A video coming out tomorrow. Regretfully, I have students all day tomorrow, so I will miss it. We are thinking about doing another live Q&A very soon, just got to have time to do it.

Hello Mikael, thanks for sharing.

Hello George, when Sherwood first developed the Avid, I had 2 of them. The shop that I worked for was the largest Sherwood dealer in North Carolina. I believe they are currently on their 4th model of the Avid. Personally I think they are excellent BCD's. I really like the new color scheme on them. The first models were Black and Red, and they really looked good, but the new Blue color is amazing. They are well built and will be a great BCD for you.

@@LakeHickoryScuba Appreciate your opinion. Thank you. Safe Diving.

You’re welcome, and thank you.

Hello Jaan. This is a tough one in regards to manufacture. However, as far as the style itself, you should get one that will suit your needs for the type of diving that you will be doing. Things to consider are, do you plan on advancing up the ranks to the professional level, technical level, etc. Do you plan to do a lot of dive travel where you will be flying to your destinations. Do you live in an area, where there are parts available for the system you plan on diving the most. What type of budget do you have. Answering these questions will help you determine what type of BCD will work best for you. I would ask your local dive shop if they have any type of rental or trial program where you can try multiple styles before you dive.

@@LakeHickoryScuba Thank you for reply. The people i spoke to told me to get jacket style bcd as the wing style is harder to dive with and its more suited for skilled divers. I got my OW certification last year and i will be doing advanced OW. Im really enjoying the sport and trying to get my kit together. I got regs, computer and all personal gear apart from BCD. Mostly ill be diving abroad on holiday. Thanks ;)

Just about every dive professional, myself included, has their preference on which system is better. The only advice I can give you, with out being too biased is, rent different types of BCD's for a given number of dives, lets say 10 dives just as a solid number, each time renting a different style, and see which one makes you feel the most comfortable while underwater. This should give you a pretty good idea which one is going to work best for you. As you gain more experience, you may still prefer one over the other, but you will come to realize that you will be able to dive both of them very comfortably with a little bit of practice.

@@LakeHickoryScuba Thank you for advice.

You’re welcome.

I'm going to take a stab and guess (UTD) or (GUE), both are great agencies as well. I think this is a great way to train some one who has difficulty manipulating their body in the water. I believe it teaches them to rely more on themselves than the equipment. I'm not really sure other larger training agencies will ever really make this a part of their training regimen, but from an Instructor stand point, they would never frown upon it. Most agencies, even SSI and PADI, give Instructors freedom to use different teaching methods to help the students reach the end goal of completing and mastering the skills sets. During the snorkeling session of the Open Water Course, we have students practice different fin kicks at the surface and underwater, weighted if need be for neutral buoyancy, until they can maintain that form. We do something very similar with a student who has trouble removing and replacing their mask. After doing all of the snorkeling skills, we usually have the students gear up in the shallow end, with everything on but their mask, and we will have them kneel down and take their first breaths underwater mask-less. Then as they get more comfortable controlling their breathing, with out something covering their nose, we will have them replace their mask and continue on with the rest of the skills. We have found much success in starting the training progression out in this manner.

You're absolutely right with your guess I did some extracurricular ratio Deco training with Andrew I can quite confidently say but you're an amazing dive instructor and all-around great person and have no doubt that any of your students will come out being first class

Thank You, that means a lot. I have met AG several times at DEMA, but never really spoke to him on a personal level. As short as I am, he towers over me when I stand next to him. LOL

No need to replace it or the valve. I carry several different types of SMB's depending on what type of diving I do. When I am in a Public Safety Diving situation, where I primarily wear a Full Face Mask, I have to use a SMB that allows me to fill it from the bottom with a second stage. It becomes too impractical for me to remove my Full Face Mask underwater, then exhale into a small oral inflation valve, before replacing my Full Face Mask and clearing it. When I Sidemount Dive in open water, I usually carry 2 standard SMB's, with oral inflation only. It is very rarely that I will disconnect my inflator hose to fill up my SMB. It does work great at the surface, but underwater water, it can be difficult to control the amount of air going in, especially with thick gloves. My suggestion is to become proficient with what you have, and when it comes time to get a new SMB, then get something different. At the same time, practice with it until you are proficient with it as well. The key is to always practice no matter what equipment you have. Most Dive professionals will tell you that they have their favorite types of gear, but feel comfortable and capable of diving any type. If you happen to be in the market for a new SMB, then find a model that has all 3 types of inflation. This way you can pick and choose which way you want to fill it, and will be prepared for any situation as well.

@@LakeHickoryScuba thank you Bryan, for your excellent knowledge and advice. U da bomb 💣💣💣

You're welcome, and Thank You for the kind words.

@@LakeHickoryScuba 2 year Late reply, I followed your advice. I purchased the All-In-One Mares SMB, its small, pre-assembled, can be filled 3 different ways. i love it, it lays perfectly as i am now diving on the DIR line. thanks Again Bryan! i still watch all your videos. Cheers!

Hello James, that is a great question. Personally the only time I use a long hose, now days, is when I am diving Sidemount. When I did dive doubles (many many many years ago), I would roll up my long hose and clip it to my right should D-Ring. I would also switch over to my short hose for breathing. Then I would remove the system in the same manner as you seen in this video. I get asked a lot about why I don't remove it over my head. The simplest reason is, since my short hose is bungeed around my neck, it doesn't cause any entanglement issues by pulling it around to my right side. You can do the exact same skill by pulling over your head, but I would suggest pulling your second stage out of the necklace first, to help prevent any type of entanglement issues.

Thank you for the reply Bryan. That makes sense. Can I ask Bryan, in your experience how do you find the best way to roll up the long hose to clip onto the right shoulder D-ring? Do you coil it and feed the regulator end through the coil and clip it off onto the right shoulder D-ring, does that work best? Any tips, tricks or subtle nuances to it? Would you differ at all if you have a canister light clipped off to the right shoulder D-ring or would it be just the same? I have never seen a neutrally buoyant bcd wing removal with a long hose configuration on RU-vid, all the video's I have seen are using short configurations. I think that video has yet to be done! Cheers James

Well it all depends on whether I am using a Rubber Hose, which I do currently for Sidemount, or a Miflex Hose. With a Rubber Hose, I let the hose itself tell me which way to coil it up. It tends to be stiffer in nature, and when it is pressurized it tends to be more difficult. If I start to coil it one way, but it starts to twist, then I simply will coil it in the opposite direction. To clip it off, I simply run the bolt snap under the hose and then to the D-Ring. While doing this underwater, the key is to go slow. There is no reason to rush it. I've never really had an issue with it getting in the way of a canister light clipped off. The guys over at ISE made a great video on using bolt snaps and how to organize them on the D-Rings. Here is the link to their video. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-XGG64lwi9TY.html. I will try to make you a video using a long hose configuration in back mount, while doing a neutral buoyant gear removal and replace.

I am using a rubber long hose. I purchased it a week ago along with my first canister light. I tried both out in the pool last Friday evening for the first time, which got me thinking what the best way to do removal and replacement of a bcd wing with a long hose is, plus, you coincidentally came out with your bcd video, hence my question.😊 I have seen Achim's video. I watch all of your and Achim's videos! Have you seen his dive profile of him crossing the English channel using a rebreather on a scooter. (At 15minutes 42seconds into the video) ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-dC-5Tq0-iZU.html If you like your sidemount Bryan, I think you might like this - sidefinning in sidemount (if you haven't seen it already). ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-a5H8-3mFwPI.html I have just ordered a XDeep Stealth Tec 2.0, so I will be having fun in sidemount soon, therefore I will be migrating my long hose from single backmount to double sidemount. Safe diving, thanks, cheers James

I’ve seen his English Channel Crossing Video. That was amazing. I will check out the other video as well.

Hello Sa Schny, we would love to do a DEMO of the ScubaPro Hydros. Unfortunately, we do not have one in stock, we are a Mares Dealer.

Sounds like a fun challenge. Thanks for the video suggestion.

Hey Chris I will actually be at Blue Grotto in Williston Florida, March 22-24. Then I will be in Boca Raton the last week in April.

LakeHickoryScuba you doing classes in boca or you just down for some fun diving? Also what the name of the video you mention in the beginning of this about adjusting your trim. I can’t find it. Thanks in advance

Greg I will be taking a class at SSI Headquaters in Boca Raton. Here is the link to the trim video. ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-2bEOXAPEC8A.html

@@LakeHickoryScuba Great video! Would you consider doing a comparison between different types of fins, specifically: Split fins versus full foot/half-foot fins? Most divers do not understand it is a different type of kick (modified flutter), so I'd love to see the comparison between "Tech" type (diverite?) and recreational splits. I'm an SSI/SDI/NASE (IT)/PADI (AI) instructor and we often get the question of "which is better."

Hey Steve, depending on the bulkiness of your Drysuit, the struggle is real for the rest of us as well. One of the things I use to do in the past is, I would run my Drysuit hose underneath my left arm, and then I would put my BCD inflator hose underneath my Drysuit hose. This would actually hold it in place on my chest, so I always knew where to find it. Now I run my Drysuit hose over my left shoulder, right beside my BCD inflator hose, so its not possible to do the same. One thing that you may be able to do, is to install a shorter BCD inflator hose assembly onto your BCD, which will allow it to hold in place easier. I have also known divers to use a hair tie or scrunchy which is wrapped around the BCD inflator hose and their should strap to help hold it in place as well. The benefit here is, it still allows a diver to manipulate the hose, whenever they need to dump air.

Hi Steve; one idea is to get a retractable reel unit and hold down your inflator hose with that. It holds the hose in place, but still allows you to move it to your mouth if you need to orally inflate, etc. One model that might work for you is: www.scuba.com/scuba-gear-129/131170/XS-Scuba-Flashlight---Camera-Retractor.html

You're welcome John.

Now that would be pretty neat to have a Scuba Diving TV Show on Discovery Channel. Not real sure how many people would watch me though. LOL

@@LakeHickoryScuba I had the job of accompanying Dive TV when they were on our Island some years ago. Now, their main diver presenter wore a Bikini, not sure you would be in the running for that one. LOL

Yeah, I'm not too sure I could pull off the Bikini Uniform. LOL, but it would still be cool to have a TV Show about Scuba Diving.

Great question, and one that we are going to probably be making a video on real soon. Steel Shot is 1000 times better for the environment than standard lead weights, this of course is if a diver is using soft weights, however when it comes to using hard weights, this is not an option. I personally use both, depending on where I am at, and what is available from the charter. Obviously if I fly when I travel, I never take my own weights, so I have to use what is available. We tend to sell more soft weights than we do hard weights, however all of our rental weights are coated hard weights. I like the hard weights better, just because they are more versatile (not only can you put them in weight pouches, you can also thread them onto cam straps, waist straps, weight belts, and you can even zip tie them to the back of your plate system). Now days most dive shops like ours, will use coated hard weights. This helps to eliminate any lead exposure to the environment. At the end of the day, it all comes down to personal preference.

@@LakeHickoryScuba Environmentally sealed lead shot... Https://www.seasoftscuba.com/seabag-weight-bags.html

What is the life expectancy of steel shot since it has a high surface area and is prone to corrosion? Also would this not stain your gear? I ask because I have been considered steel shot since it can be purchased for much less than lead shot.

Mark we use to be a dealer for SeaSoft, and I still have a few small weight pouches of theirs in stock. We have since switched to another company.

Nate with proper cleaning, it will last. It's no different when we use steel bolt snaps and bands on our cylinders. The key is to properly clean our gear after every dive.

Hello Hector, there is nothing wrong with using used equipment, as long as it is serviced properly. The main thing a diver should focus on is safety and comfort.

Hello Mark, we train several 100 new divers a year, including around 50 new Rescue Divers a year, and they all wear different types of BCD's. We have never really had an issue with the victim diver floating with their face in the water as you stated, even if they do have on a Back Plate and Wing. Maybe its the way we train them that makes all the difference, or we could just be luck that we have never had that issue.

@@LakeHickoryScuba not everyone is a trained rescue diver. Rescue divers in general have very few issues in the water in general. The observed issue is when a non rescue diver tries to save his unconscious buddy. In the open ocean with chop, the buddy will over inflate the unconscious divers BCD at the surface trying to keep the divers head above the chop, or as an emergency assent situation. A completely limp diver will float face down if his backplane BCD is fully inflated.. Try it.. Back into the pool, fully inflate your BCD, stop kicking, and go completely limp. You will see for yourself. You will be looking at the bottom of the pool in short order. Its just a matter of center of gravity vs center of floatation.

I guess it all comes down to the diver's comfort level in the water. Over the last 30 years, I have never really had an issue with trim issues, whether I am at the surface or below the water. In regards to not everyone being trained as a rescue diver, all of our students, even through all 5 agencies that we train through, are taught how to bring an unconscious diver up to the surface in the Open Water program, and we still have yet to see the results you mentioned. I'm guessing we are all trained differently. Happy Diving.

@@LakeHickoryScuba there is a reason you had to continue to frog kick to "lay back" with that backplane bcd. Stop kicking and see for yourself. I'm not advocating one style of bcd over another. They both have their place. It's just that your test is flawed, in that you in both cases you continued to kick to maintain body position. Have a great day

Thank You for all your insight Mark, its always great to learn from others. Happy Diving.

Very true.

Hello Jonnie Bangkok, I wish we did have a wave pool to test in.

Hello kirbythebamf, which part are you referencing to?

@@LakeHickoryScuba none of it, just a joke

@@LakeHickoryScuba but Back inflate >>> jacket

Thanks Darren

These types of bladders are still very popular, as most of the systems from Zeagle are still a Horseshoe bladder instead of a Donut Bladder. At the end of the day, the style of bladder we choose still should not have an influence over the will power we have to control our bodies in the water column. Although certain types of gear do help us out in certain situations (what some refer as a crutch), we should never solely rely on the equipment itself, but more so on our own abilities.

Hello number6, if you are referring to the Try Scuba student that was in the background, I do not recall any accident reports being filed during that time frame. So, I would assume so.

I will be sure to get right on that Todd Hasken. LOL

Hello S. B. I have never tried the rubber ducky, thanks for the suggestion. Now, where can I find a rubber ducky?????