steel vs alu tanks

Jerry

Mark,

I dive the Optima with LP27s in a wetsuit all the time. Always with at least one side-mounted 80 bailout and I trim out fine. I use a Rec wing rigged very similar to the Nomad. All reports I have heard are that the Nomad works beautifully for the Optima.

Jerry

n2diving

As always, there are exceptions and qualifications, in your case you are diving in fresh water. I'm sure your happy with the trim on the 27's but I just sent a pair of 20's to LH, so give them a try... you might be surprised.

I just switched to the Nomad and I'm quite pleased with it (I have a whopping 6 dives on the Nomad, all with Kathleen and Scott this past weekend). I had been switching between a venture for sport and a rec for tech.... I'm going to just use the Nomad for both now. The main annoyance has been learning how to find and pull the dump... it's 'folded' into the wing and difficult to get to unless I run my hand down my side in a certain way.

-- Mark

edasque

Ah, good to know, Marc ! Cause I thought it difficult to find during our training week, sometimes.

Jerry

I believe I'll stick with my 27s. Both Jill and I dive them on our exploration and they trim out well for both of us. No special tricks.


Jerry

dreamdive

Thanks everybody! Your comments have been very helpful! Since I am just a beginner, I will not be diving my drysuit with the Optima for some time and will worry about steel's later.

JPJones

Mark what works well for you in warm open water does not work in dry suits and heavy underware. The 20 cf tanks will work fine till you add the heavy underware I had people diving them in Mermet Springs Saturday and Sunday and they did a passable job with people in dry suits and light underware. But if you have to add lead to sink you in cold water the weight might as well be something you can breath.

The main thing to remember is that one size does not fit all.

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n2diving

I wasn't suggesting the AL-20's for drysuit.... just for wet suit. I agree the steel cylinders are pretty much the right solution for dry, esp dry with heavy underwear. But steel in a 3 or 5 mil in salt results (for everyone I've seen) in divers with trim who look like they are walking, not swimming.... and their back hurts too. If they are diving wet and want more gas than 13's, the AL-20's are a viable solution that trim out pretty well.

JCdesign97

Good points being made by all - the best IMVHO being that every person needs to experiment with as many configurations as they can to determine what works best for them. I don't think that cold water, a drysuit and heavy underware automatically dictate the ST27s for every diver. I'm 5'10", 160lbs and I sink like a stone. I dive all year round up here, but at the same time I ALWAYS get cold - not a question of if, just when! So there isn't enough undergarment on the entire planet for me ... but that being said, the ST27s still had me "walking" like Mark said more than swimming. Just horrendous trim, way too much weight in the trim pockets just to try and compensate and with the corresponding back pain after every dive.

Having the weight in the tanks for those that need it definitely makes sense, but there are those for whom the position of the tanks (by virtue of the overall design) is just as big a part of the equation. I tried out the AL13s after doing my training and a few more dives with the ST27s. I like their bouyancy and trim characteristics, but I just feel more comfortable with a little more gas on the longer and/or deeper dives. So I ordered a set of the AL20s and have 3 dives on them now, as well, and they exhibit similarly better trim characteristics with a few pounds in the trim pockets. I'll alternate now between the AL13s and AL20s depending on the dive plan(s), but my ST27s are now in the same pile with my sets of ST85s collecting dust!

The moral of the story as always being that every diver just has to sort out exactly what works best for them ...

Cheers,

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Cheers,

John Cogan

n2diving

Excellent points by all.... I suggest all new O2ptima divers buy a set of each, try them all and put the ones you don't like aside!

Seriously folks, new O2ptima divers need some guidelines and here is what I tell prospective new O2ptima divers...

If you are training with me at Fill Express, don't purchase tanks until the end of the course... I have LP27s, X5-30s, X4-13's, AL-13's, AL-14's, AL-20's and even a set of AL-6's in rental and you can try them before you make a decision.

Otherwise, as a new O2ptima diver you are going to have to guess.... If you are diving dry, the LP27's (or since they are gone, now the X5-30's, although a good many LP27's are gathering dust in closets so you might find them used at a good price) are your best bet. If you are diving wet, but wearing a LOT of rubber, the X4-13's are the best bet. If you are diving wet but in a one-peice 3 or 5 mil jumpsuit then AL-13's are your best bet. For open water sport diving the 13's are plenty, but if you want more gas than 13's and don't need the weight of steel, then the AL-20's are your best bet.

The operative word here is 'bet'... sometimes you gamble and lose.... but the newbie needs some place to start and these recommendations are based on my experience selling a lot of tanks to a lot of O2ptima divers and then listening to the feedback. One size definately does not fit all, and one of the advantages of the O2ptima is you have so many choices in cylinders.

JPJones

I agree Mark the best thing is to try and see what works for you. I still use the 27 or 30 steel tanks I have both even in warm water and have no trim problems but I can dive for a whole trip without gassing up and trying to remember to put on VIP stickers.

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www.jpjscuba.com