Wings

[Aquala1]

As per Luis' suggestion, I ordered the VDH back-plate, and I'm setting it up with the 30# Scubapro X-Tek wing that I already had. As you can see in the first pic, there's a fair amount of wing that protrudes into the can area of the plate.



Once assembled, the wing is bunched under the can, which is unavoidable and I'm guessing as normal as it can be with this wing.



I also read the back-plate thread where Bryan was developing his own wing to work with the VDH plate, but never saw if that project ever came to fruition. Maybe the Dive-Rite 25# travel wing that's for sale here was good enough, so no need to develop a proprietary wing.

I know I'm rambling, but just want to get the forum's thoughts on wings, especially the Dive-Rite wing. Is there less bunching, and better performance, or is my SP wing good enough?

[ScubaLawyer]

For what it's worth, I use an 18# Oxycheq wing with a VDH backplate. The plate covers most of the wing but it still seems to work just fine. Even if it cuts down some of the buoyancy volume how much does one really need if you have good weighting to begin with?. With a full 7mm wetsuit at 60+ feet I just add a few puffs/squirts of air and I'm good to go. My 2psi. Mark

[Bryan]

Most wings, as long as the hose is offset and not in the center work pretty well with the VDH plate. Wings I have personally used that work very well with the VDH plate are XS Scuba Companion #30, Dive RIte #23 (what I'm currently using) HOG #23 works great as well.
Most double hose divers are (or at least should be) very proficient in buoyancy control....Therefore very little air should be in the wing to be neutral. Depending on where I dive I don't even have an LP hose on my Argonaut Kraken cause I simply don't need it.

With that said, I will have a VDH wing to go with the VDH plate in the future and the main reason is CONTROL. I want to control the price and the quality and sell it at as an affordable price as I can. Current vendors dictate price and supply to me and I'm a little fish in a big pond so my hands are somewhat tied. I will not be re-inventing the wing but tailoring it to fit the needs of the VDH customer.

As we speak I am working on a deal with a company that all of you know that will more than triple what I will have to offer and will also expand my resources and reach in the industry by leaps and bounds.

Note....I'd be further along in new product development if I hadn't spent a kings ransom getting the DSV built....But the finished product was well worth it!

[swimjim]

I have a Diverite Trek wing that I sometimes use with the VDH plate. I do not remember for sure, but I think it's a 39 pounder. I am diving with a dry suit about 99% of the time. I have really taken a liking to having No wing and using the dry suit for buoyancy control. I feel I have much better trim that way. Also having a little more air in the dry suit keeps me warmer.
I sling a pony with a single hose reg on it. I run the dry suit off of it. That way, if I want to dive a single stage reg like my DivAir, Healthways or Mistral, I am good to go. Don't get me wrong, I love my Kraken and dive it regularly, but it's almost like cheating. Lol

[Aquala1]

For what it's worth, I use an 18# Oxycheq wing with a VDH backplate. The plate covers most of the wing but it still seems to work just fine. Even if it cuts down some of the buoyancy volume how much does one really need if you have good weighting to begin with?. With a full 7mm wetsuit at 60+ feet I just add a few puffs/squirts of air and I'm good to go. My 2psi. Mark

Mark, I'm all about minimalism with weighting, so 18lbs of lift would be enough for most of what I'd do with a DH rig. My weighting litmus test is being able to hold a 15ft stop with 500 psi in the tank, and no air in the wing. If I'm completely neutral under those conditions, then my weighting is perfect. That way, like you said, it only takes a little squirt of air at depth to neutral things out.

The Oxy-cheq wing looks good. Is that little fabric flap over the inflator neck removable?

[Aquala1]

Bryan, thanks for chiming in on this. The Dive-rite wing looks like it would be the most streamlined, with less bunching than what I have now. I guess I won't fully know unless I try it out.

What I might do, is order the Dive-rite wing from you, and also order the 18# Oxy-cheq wing too. Put them both together on the plate, to see which I like best, and then return the one that I don't end up using. All "undove" of course.

One last question, how well do the eyelets on the Dive-rite wing, line up with the holes on the plate?

[Bryan]

Luis took into consideration the spacing of eyelets on most major manufactures wings when they layout for the plate was done. Otherwise I would have corrected it after the first order.

[Aquala1]

Luis took into consideration the spacing of eyelets on most major manufactures wings when they layout for the plate was done. Otherwise I would have corrected it after the first order.

That makes sense, but the reason I asked is because the holes on the Scubapro wing don't exactly align with the plate. I had to slightly manipulate the wing to get the proper alignment, so the grommet screws could be installed.

Glad to know the Dive-rite easily aligns, and I'll place an order for that wing soon.

[ScubaLawyer]

The Oxy-cheq wing looks good. Is that little fabric flap over the inflator neck removable?

That little flap was the first thing I cut off. Of course the next thing I did was switch the top inflator hose intake to the bottom hole, replace the long tube with a 3 inch piece from a flexible snorkel, plumb a LP inflator into the end of that, and then run a dump cord from the dump valve now installed in the top hole. Ask anyone, I'm strange.

Mark

[2THDIVR]

[The Oxy-cheq wing looks good. Is that little fabric flap over the inflator neck removable?

It's not removable except with a pair of scissors.
Have done it to 2 Oxy wings
No ill effects

Scott

[Aquala1]

Mark, Scott...do either of you have any pics of the wing with the flap cut off?

[ScubaLawyer]

Mark, Scott...do either of you have any pics of the wing with the flap cut off?

b.jpg

[Aquala1]

Mark, Scott...do either of you have any pics of the wing with the flap cut off?

b.jpg

Thanks for the pic. So was the flap sewn into the seam?

[ScubaLawyer]

Yup. Sewn into seam. I've has tons of dives with it cut off and no issues. Mark

[2THDIVR]

004_crop.jpg

this my oxy 18 with the flap cut off

Scott