What type of BC/ Reg do you prefer and why?

CynicalCnidaria

CynicalCnidaria

New member
This is just a general feeler thread to peoples' favorite brands/types of gear. Me personally, since I do cold water diving:

I dive a Halcyon eclipse 40LB BC
Apeks xtx50 reg/ poseidon jetstream primary

I really like the quality of these brands.

What about you guys?
 
I'm a huge fan of Aqualung. The largest manufacture in the US so parts are pretty much easily accessible anywhere you go. I have the Pro QD I3 BC and LOVE the new Legend reg. The comfort of both and not having to reach across my body to find the infilator hose was a big sell to me
 
I typically use the jacket-style BC's, I've never like the back-mounted styles (I end up with buoyancy problems since I don't weight that much). I curently use a Cressi Aquaride Elite and it's pretty nice, although I would love to try out a Zeagle.
As far as the reg goes, I like the Aeris A2 or Sport, pretty common and a lot less touchy than another high-end regulator I have used (can't remember the name, though. maybe a scubapro?)
 
love my Atomic M1 regulator, with swivel and custom molded mouth piece.
its overkill for my warm water diving, but meh, im OK with overdoing it.

all said, all these newer regulators are darn good, very little differentiating the whole lot.

I also have a Atomic SST for my second, wireless Galileo Sol, allowing for a single hose setup.

my diving isn't too technical, so a crappy sherwood avid, weight integrated gets me by fine. I've tried Zeagles stuff, just didn't feel intuitive to me.
 
I still have a soft spot for my first BC, the old Horse Collar :D Most recent BC is a Mares back inflate that I picked up on sale over the summer. Got to say, I'm loving the back inflate. While I can dive quite well in the old jacket style (dove in a Tusa jacket for nearly 20 years), the first dive in the back inflate had me sold on all the hype of back inflate :) As for regulators, I'm still using that old bullet proof Sherwood I brought along with that Horse Collar...breathes easy at any recreational depth and has given me no problems for over 30 years with nothing but routine maintenance.
 
any BC that does the job, and I still use weight belts, I'm old fasion I guess, I dont even use a computer, I just wing it.
 
I have the same Oceanic Contour for the last 12 years. It is comfortable and broken in. I put 10lbs in the pouches and still use the belt for any other weight I may need. I also have the same Oceanic Reg. that I purchased when I got my BC. It still works very well. I believe it is a Delta 4.
 
I'm a back-inflate Bc fan as I feel a more consistent trim in the water. Jacket style is fine in the pool or at the surface but who wants to spend time there?

I've got too much dive gear (whatever that means) but for my BC I mostly dive either my scubapro lite hawk or my scubapro knight hawk. For a travel/Light BC and vs the lite hawk, I like the aqualung zuma (pro version) a lot.
For sidemount/tec/cave I've liked the hollis SMS100d and SMS50

Regs...better is better. While the minimum standard of todays gear is nice, I only want the better regs. sp-s600 for my pool gear but for deep, cold, or repeat diving I like my scubapro a700 or the aqualung legend. The legend...is maybe a bit nicer breath. All my tech stuff is hollis or posieden.

Man, now I need to go dive but I've got some clowns to acclimate :D
 
JohnnyHeavens said:
..............
Man, now I need to go dive but I've got some clowns to acclimate :D
Click to expand...



Ill burn thru 4 tanks for ya this weekend....gotta squeeze in some deep sea fishing too, gonna be a busy weekend :)

I agree, dont skimp on the regulator....man you got a serious collection of BC's!
 
Marshall islands....back yard diving, literally. 2 minute bike ride to walk in dives....15 minute boat ride to wall diving. Enjoying while I can :)
 
I used to be a firm believer in jacket style BCs because my rationale was that if i ever found myself in a emergency state at the surface I would either want to float upright (if I was uncontious) or I would want to be able to remain upright while helping someone else. But I got a rediculous deal on a Zeagle Ranger and after using it I realized I was completely wrong before!

It is not an issue to float face up at all, you just lay back on your airbladder and it will even lift you out of the water some. But the best part is how comfortable you while face down during your dive... back inflators all the way!

As for regs, a high end first and primary second stage are most important to me. I dive with an Apeks XTX200. My computer is the ever popular entry level Oceanic Veo 180, and my octopus is some brand I cant even think of right now, soon to be replaced by an Air2 though.
 
IMO, give that Air2 a second thought. I know Bob likes them on all the university BC's, however, on a personal level I find them more trouble than a good basic octo....not to mention I've seen people grab their snorkel instead. I like to keep my air supply on the right side where it is supposed to be ;)
 
billsreef said:
IMO, give that Air2 a second thought. I know Bob likes them on all the university BC's, however, on a personal level I find them more trouble than a good basic octo....not to mention I've seen people grab their snorkel instead. I like to keep my air supply on the right side where it is supposed to be ;)
Click to expand...

does the same go for Atomic SS1's?

i love not having hoses hanging everywhere. air integrated computer, SS1....2hose setup.

no console hose, no safe second hose, no air pressure hose.

with all the other "crap" im trying to do in the water...hauling cameras or fish catching gear.....
 
Yea bill I know what your saying but I liked the Air2s before using the university equipment. I personally dont get how people can mistake at air2 with their snorkel because they feel completely different, plus i look at itbefore i out it in my mouth. I think its nice knowing the alternate air source is hanging in the exact same place at all times. With an octopus it could detach from its holster and be dangling down, then right as you need it you cant find it.

But hey everyone has their preferences. I just like the idea of an Air2 more than an octopus.

N balljunkie, the ss1 is an excellent integrated alternate as well. In fact, the atomic ss1, zeagle octo-z, aqualung airsource 3, and mares air comtrol all all copies of the same design which was orignally made in the Air2. The only one i advise against is the aqualung airsource 3 simply because the buttons are literally touching eachother and its easy to push the wrong one by accident...
 
r-balljunkie said:
does the same go for Atomic SS1's?

i love not having hoses hanging everywhere. air integrated computer, SS1....2hose setup.

no console hose, no safe second hose, no air pressure hose.

with all the other "crap" im trying to do in the water...hauling cameras or fish catching gear.....
Click to expand...

Don't have any experience with the SS1, so can't comment about it's reliability. With a good Octo holder, I've never found the extra hose problematic, and using a regular regulator as the octo, it breathes just as good as my primary reg.

huricaneredbone said:
But hey everyone has their preferences. I just like the idea of an Air2 more than an octopus.
Click to expand...

Definitely a personal preference thing, and something you want to practice with for either set up.
 
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