Which wing? (plus a bp/harness rigging question or two!)

OK,

After reading here, there, and everywhere the pros-and-cons of wings vs stab
jackets, and talking to people at the club, etc, i'm pretty certain i'm
going to be going and buying a backplate, harness and wing setup for myself.

* Backplate, I guess the "nigel / ukrs backplate" is about right for me, my
stepfather has a garage full of power and hand tools which I can use to
deburr & round off everything, which is handy. My dad lives out in spain,
and dives, so i imagine i'll be going out for holidays and diving quite a
bit. So the plan is either: get a backplate and lug it back and forth each
time; get a cheap stab from ebay or somewhere and leave it there; get a 2nd
backplate and harness and leave it out there for when I go to visit, just
taking the wing with me i guess. Would the same backplate do the job? or
would i be better of with something aluminium for warmer climates when i'll
be in a 5mm wetsuit rather than a drysuit & undersuit.

* Harness. a DIY job, probably setup in the DIR style to start with, and
then i'll see if i need to modify it in any-way. I notice on the URKS site
there are a couple of non DIR rigging guides, "Keith Lawrence's" and
"Alasdair Allan's". Though there isn't really a "why we do it this way"
section. Anyone able to enlighten me?

but, there seem to be all manner of wings out there, so i'm seeking advice
as to which one would be best for me! I guess i'll also need some way to
fix the tank to the wing/bp/harness, so suggestions here would be handy too!

I'll almost certainly be starting out on a single tank, pretty "normal"
recreational diving, if i progress to a twin set or anything odd later, i'll
buy a new wing if necessary, would rather get something which suits me now,
than one which'll just about do until i maybee progress onto a twinset.
Price is, as always, an issue, i don't mind paying a bit more for something
significantly better, but don't just want to pay out hundreds of pounds for
a marginal at best difference, a better colour, or trendy name if i can help
it :)

Cheers folks,

dive show, here i come ;)

Gav.

"Gavin Carey" <gicarey@hotmail.com> wrote ...

> I notice on the URKS site there are a couple of non DIR
> rigging guides, "Keith Lawrence's" and "Alasdair Allan's".
> Though there isn't really a "why we do it this way"
> section. Anyone able to enlighten me?

One very good reason for rigging it differently is that it REALLY winds up
the purists But in the case of my harness there are two differences for
two reasons -

1. Extra clip in the left shoulder harness. The webbing is continuous but
the clip adds length so that I can get in and out of it easier. Works for
me, YMMV.

2. I have an extra D ring at the mid point of the left shoulder harness. I
clip off my SPG to there as I find it a damn sight easier to find and read
(especially with a stage on) than clipped in the traditional left hip
position.

Neither of these two mods are irreversible, take out the clip if you don't
like it (the harness is continuous), move the D ring if it doesn't suit you.

HTH

Keith L

On Sun, 15 Feb 2004 19:39:38 +0000, Gavin Carey wrote:

> * Backplate, I guess the "nigel / ukrs backplate" is about right for me, my
> stepfather has a garage full of power and hand tools which I can use to

Not if you want to use it with a single. Huw Porter was advertising a
backplate suitable for a single earlier this week. I'm sure he'll be along
in a minute.

As for wings, I think Huw uses a Buddy. One setup I've seen in Portland
Oceaneering which I thought looked very neat was an ally plate on a Dive
Rite travel wing. I've used the travel wing myself quite a lot, though I
use it with the Transpac harness.

Jason

--
http://www.scuba-addict.co.uk/ for Aussie diving reports including
Cape Tribulation, Cairns, Airlie Beach, Exmouth and the HMAS Swan

>Not if you want to use it with a single. Huw Porter was advertising a
>backplate suitable for a single earlier this week. I'm sure he'll be along
>in a minute.
>
I got to see Huw's wing on Friday night.. looks well designed and put
together.. he explained to me some of the design choices and they
certainly make sense.. perfect for his style of diving!

I believe that the initial batch has all gone, although there may be
one left?

rich

Keith Lawrence wrote:

> 1. Extra clip in the left shoulder harness. The webbing is continuous
> but the clip adds length so that I can get in and out of it easier.
> Works for me, YMMV.

This doesn't seem to make sense, suggeting I misunderstand.

> 2. I have an extra D ring at the mid point of the left shoulder
> harness. I clip off my SPG to there as I find it a damn sight easier
> to find and read (especially with a stage on) than clipped in the
> traditional left hip position.

This makes me think about a variation to my rig I forgot about. I have a D
ring on both the left and right sides of the waist strap. I don't use a
canister light, but quite often do have items I'd like to secure. The right
side D ring keeps those things out of the way of things normally attached to
the standard D rings.

Lee

"Lee Bell" <leebell@ix.remove.netcom.com> wrote ...

> > 1. Extra clip in the left shoulder harness. The webbing
> > is continuous but the clip adds length so that I can
> > get in and out of it easier. Works for me, YMMV.

> This doesn't seem to make sense, suggeting I misunderstand.

See http://www.ukrecscuba.org.uk/ukdiver/harness/index.html
With the clip done up the harness is the correct fit, undo the clip and it
slackens off considerably to get in and out of it. There is no break in the
harness, the clip just creates a loop.

HTH

Keith L

"Jason" <jason.usenet.nospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
newsan.2004.02.15.20.57.29.335303@ntlworld.com

> On Sun, 15 Feb 2004 19:39:38 +0000, Gavin Carey wrote:
>
> > * Backplate, I guess the "nigel / ukrs backplate" is about right for me, my
> > stepfather has a garage full of power and hand tools which I can use to
>
> Not if you want to use it with a single. Huw Porter was advertising a
> backplate suitable for a single earlier this week. I'm sure he'll be along
> in a minute.

Am I allowed to post it twice in a month? It's not for profit!

Anyway, I think I have just one left now -
http://www.huwporter.com/scuba/hplate.html

(Alex/Splosh Junkie - I have one with your name on if you still want it
- drop me a line)

> As for wings, I think Huw uses a Buddy.

A much modified Travelwing 16, which keeps on soldiering on despite the
abuse I have put it through.

Though I'm considering a new Halcyon to go with the new plate...

Cheers,
Huw
--
http://www.huwporter.com


--
Posted via Mailgate.ORG Server - http://www.Mailgate.ORG

On Sun, 15 Feb 2004 20:57:29 +0000, Jason
<jason.usenet.nospam@ntlworld.com> wrote:


>
>Not if you want to use it with a single. Huw Porter was advertising a
>backplate suitable for a single earlier this week. I'm sure he'll be along
>in a minute.

You can mount a single onto a Nigel plate, which has slots for a set
of cam bands that would probably stop tank rolling, or cheapest non
DIY single tanks adaptors I found are here: http://tinyurl.com/2kyto

I have a Diverite Rec wing, which is usable for singles and twins.

HTH

David

"Jason" <jason.usenet.nospam@ntlworld.com> wrote in message
newsan.2004.02.15.20.57.29.335303@ntlworld.com.. .
> On Sun, 15 Feb 2004 19:39:38 +0000, Gavin Carey wrote:

> As for wings, I think Huw uses a Buddy. One setup I've seen in Portland
> Oceaneering which I thought looked very neat was an ally plate on a Dive
> Rite travel wing. I've used the travel wing myself quite a lot, though I
> use it with the Transpac harness.
>
> Jason

Seconded - along with the newer DiveRite Venture wing , or Holycon Eclipse.

/F
http://www.e-aquanauts.com
for the more adventurous.

On Mon, 16 Feb 2004 11:34:06 +0000, rads wrote:

> You can mount a single onto a Nigel plate, which has slots for a set of
> cam bands that would probably stop tank rolling, or cheapest non

You can, but you would be trying to hold a fairly flat, shiny metal area
against a round cylinder whilst doing up the bands with the other hand. On
a rolling boat, it would be a pain. It's far better to have something
shaped to fit the cylinder. Or of course a nice soft backed BC

Jason

--
See http://www.scuba-addict.co.uk/ to view UK dive spaces or add your own.